The Escapist Avatar Adventure: An Open RP (Now Re-Opened!)

NotYetForsaken · Jul 16, 2017

[[Dying Dreams]]

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Knighthood

Code:

balance's story

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"Save me."

A long time ago, there lived a young girl. She was a princess, and her father a great king. When she was born, all the kingdom rejoiced. She was a blessed child, and her coming had been heralded by the thunderous roar of heaven. The God of Storms doted on the child, blessing her with beautiful white hair and brilliant golden eyes. She was beloved by the kingdom, the gods, and most of all, her father.

But there were those that grew envious of the young princess. A rival kingdom who also worshiped the God of Storms grey jealous that their kingdom had not been blessed with a child of the heavens. Their envy grew into hate, and then their hate grew into curses. Hearing their spiteful words, the God of Justice challenged the God of Storms.

He said that the young princess had been blessed with too much. The love and magic that the God of Storms had woven into her body had thrown the mortal realm into imbalance and it must be rectified. The God of Storms did not listen to the God of Justice, instead dismissing the younger God's concerns.

Faced with the grim decision between disobeying the leader of the Gods and betraying his duty as the embodiment of Justice, the God of Justice chose to undo the blessings that had been given unto the young princess. So in the night of her fifth birthday the God of Justice swept through the royal palace and tore the divinity from the girl.

When she awoke the next day, she had been afflicted with a terrible illness. She was weak and frail, her skin was fallow and bruised at the touch. The king called all of the medicine men in his kingdom to treat the princess' illness. Yet none could place the mysterious ailment.

Weak to the elements, the young princess was confined in her room at the highest tower of the castle, where the priests tended each day to her care. The entire kingdom prayed and prayed, for the young princess. They bade the God of Storms give his blessing to their princess. But when the God of Storms descended from the heavens to give his blessing once more, he was stopped by the God of Justice. The two fought. The God of Storms wanted his chosen to prosper, but the God of Justice demanded that all mortals be treated equally. In the end, the God of Justice failed, but as he fell he wove a spell that sealed his essence into the breast of the young princess.

Unable to restore tamper with the divinity of another God, the God of Storms could do nothing more for the young princess as long as she harbored that Justice within her heart.

The days grew into years. The princess grew up in her tower, surrounded by priests who had given up on her cause. The king sent scholars to her to teach her of the world outside. She was enchanted by the tales of beauty, of heroism, of the strength of the king's army and the valor of his knights. The yearning in her heart grew and grew as more years passed. She grew into a beautiful woman, who still sat by her window, staring into the world outside. She wished that one day a knight would come and free her from the curse. Whether it was by a true love's kiss or through clever sorcery, she did not care. She just wished to be free of her gilded cage.

She wished and she wished. And eventually her father passed, as did his kingdom. Yet she was kept young by the divinity stored inside of her body. Unable to live outside of the castle walls, but unable to grow old, she spent her time reading tales brought to her by scholars seeking her wisdom. She had become some kind of wisewoman, telling stories and giving advice to those that would make the arduous climb through her tower. Over time the essence of the God of Justice became one with her own soul, indistinguishable and inseparable from her person.

Yet she was still unfulfilled.

As the decades bled into centuries, she grew more and more desperate for the ability to leave her castle. Then one day, a great evil arose in the land. A bleeding darkness that sprung forth from the depths of the abyss. It consumed the peoples of faraway kingdoms first, but then soon the dark had spread to all of the lands of man. The Gods were brought low by it's power, an unfathomable darkness that swept away the individuality of mankind.

It was not long before all of mankind had fallen. The fields lay empty and dust raced across the kingdom. The palace walls were barren and the stone had taken a tire chalky texture. The sky was dark and the stars themselves had vanished, forsaken the world. It was as if the entirety of the world had died.

Still.

The White Rose remained, princess of a kingdom swallowed by darkness. Ageless but fettered, bound to a crumbling castle in a lifeless realm. It was at that time that the darkness spoke to her, either out of pity or curiosity. It asked her, why did she refuse its gift? Did she not wish to finally be put to rest?

The White Rose told the entity the stories she had memorized. Of knights and dragons, of princesses and labyrinths. She told him of all the old kings and the story of great sorcerers. Great animists and machinists and skilled rangers. The entity listened intently, taken by the color of the characters.

The entity mused on these stories. They had such life, such color. In its world, all was black. There was no conflict, no strife, no death, but also no life. It wondered what it meant to live, to struggle, to forgive, and to hate. It asked more questions and the White Rose answered to the best of her knowledge. She told the entity about the seasons and festivals, about foods and drinks. She drew for it detailed images of all sorts of plants and animals. The entity thought on all of the things that the White Rose had told it. And then it asked the White Rose how she felt.

She said she was lonely. All that she had known had died and for her long life she did not ever leave her palace. Now that she was alone, she supposed that she ought to find someway to die.

The entity asked the White Rose if she wanted anything.

And she answered, to be a knight.

More than anything, the entity asked.

More than anything, she repeated.

And when I awoke I was clad in white armor, floating in a great empty space. In my right hand was a beautiful sword, set with the scales of justice, in my left was a shield, beautifully adorned like those in a fairy tale. The entity was before me, around me, was everything.

"You have awoken, yes?" the Entity asked.

"Where am I? What happened to my world?" I asked, no matter where I looked I could only see darkness.

"I have removed you from your world." It answered. It willed light into the darkness around us. "I have forged worlds from the stories you have told me. You are now the warden of these worlds, so do as you wish. You have become a knight of justice, sworn to only yourself."

I looked at the lights, and within them found brilliant shining worlds. I held onto my sword tightly, it felt surreal. For the first time in my life I felt strong and solid. "Why did you do this?"

The entity paused. Then it answered. "I do not fully know." It beckoned a world over and held it in its formless grasp. "I was born one day in the dark and I had but one order 'reproduce.' So I did. Yet, as I expanded, I grew intelligent. First I learned to move, then to hunt. I grew and grew until I became self-aware. Now... I have grown so much as to consume entire worlds. Yet, I feel empty. As if I have not truly reproduced." It looked at me. "As you have taught me. I feel lonely."

I reached out and touched the world it held. The light shimmered and I could see the entirety of the realm. Rolling green hills filled with blooming flowers. Great birds that soared through a vast sky filled with drifting islands. Streams of water rolling through the sky on beds of clouds. Within the realm were people. Humans, angels, demons. Men, women, children. The elderly, the young. I looked at the Entity. "Are you a god?"

It laughed. "I am not."

"I am without words." I said.

"I have created children. Daughters. And to each I have given a piece of myself. Watch over them, and teach them if they do wrong. I wish to stay away and watch from afar, my children."

And so my vigil began.

---

[[Main Scenario]]

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Glimmer of Hope

Code:

titania's story

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"Though wise men at their end know dark is right,"

Vihaan's soldiers set B.C. down in a chair as he paced across the room. Two large mechanical arms were moving the Gem of Want out of the containment chamber and into a drydock even deeper into the base. The young admiral was looking out at the gem. He called an assistant over, "How long before it can be slotted into the Desire Drive frame?"

"It should be done by the end of today, sir," the assistant answered.

"Good, thank you."

"There's a man here to see you sir!" Another researcher called from across the room. "He looks pretty upset!"

"Let him in, it's probably David." Vihaan sighed and cracked his neck, "This has been a right pain in the ass, but in the end the result's the same."

David came storming in with a girl and two dragons in tow. Vihaan spread his arms in welcome to his guests and put on a warm inviting smile, "Hello my friends, I see you have brought me the information I need." Vihaan took two steps back and dodged David's half-hearted attack, not dropping his amused smile.

He turned to B.C. "I suppose I owe you and David a basic explanation at the very least." He paused and motioned for an assistant to bring David a chair. For sitting. Not throwing. "But I have to warn you five though, once I have told you about the events that have just occurred, you'll be placed in a very bad place. You'll either have to stay here, separated from your friends, or you might be forced to hurt your friends. For the sake of knowledge, would you be willing to pay either price?"

Texas Joker 52 · Jul 16, 2017

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When the time came, B.C. ultimately cooperated. Armed women came into the chamber not long after she had collected her jacket, took aim with their directions and ordered her to stand down and be detained. She merely raised her hands in a gesture of surrender and told them sardonically, "Hey, no big deal, just one unarmed woman here."

From there, she was escorted to where the brat from earlier was and shoved into a chair. She merely folded her arms across her chest and crossed her legs in front of her.

"So, is this just you being a sore loser, or am I here for another reason?" she asked dryly.

The boy's focus, however, was on the gemstone. She could hear mechanical noises and metallic scraping as it was moved out of the chamber it died in. And as he paced, he asked one of his subordinates how long it would be before it was slotted into some "Desire Drive frame", which sounded awfully important. Not that B.C. knew what the hell a "Desire Drive frame" even was in the first place. Still, she could put two-and-two together: The boy wanted the gem for something, otherwise there wouldn't have been a fight with her as the gem's champion in the first place. And since it was dead, it didn't matter that he lost, because it wasn't about to complain no matter what he did to it.

Another of Vihaan's lackey's called out then, someone who was clearly some sort of egghead.

"There's a man here to see you sir! He looks pretty upset!"

"Let him in, it's probably David. This has been a right pain in the ass, but in the end the result's the same."

"Someone else you've pissed off today? Gee, I wonder how many can claim you've done that, brat." the Convict taunted with a sneer.

She had begun to rock her chair back-and-forth on it's back legs when they were joined by a grizzled looking man presumably named David, who clearly didn't understand how to shave. Along with him was a young girl and a pair of what looked to be dragons to her untrained eye. The day was simply getting weirder and weirder. Vihaan promptly welcomed the new arrivals with the most insufferable smile on his face, and handily moved away from David's swing. B.C. already started to like him for that alone.

"I suppose I owe you and David a basic explanation at the very least."

Cocking her head, the expression on her face as she looked at him told him that she thought he was quite possibly terminally stupid for saying that.

"Gee, ya think?!" she asked testily, her chair's front legs clanging back to the floor as she leaned forward, "I haven't gotten a single explanation since I got here, ya little shit!"

"But I have to warn you five though, once I have told you about the events that have just occurred, you'll be placed in a very bad place. You'll either have to stay here, separated from your friends, or you might be forced to hurt your friends. For the sake of knowledge, would you be willing to pay either price?"

B.C. scoffed at that and went back to rocking her chair back-and-forth as she glared contemptuously at Vihaan.

"Don't got friends, and I bet I've been in worse places than you think. Are you actually gonna follow through on this threat, honey, or are you gonna be all-talk like earlier? Now what were your words again..." she mused, reaching up to tap her bottom lip with a finger as she pouted thoughtfully.

Then she leaned forward again. When she spoke next, her voice was a perfect imitation of Vihaan's.

"Someone like you has no chance of beating me. My name is Vihaan Valdur, second son of Krishna Valdur, and high priest of the Maara. If I must fight you with my all, I will. For the sake of my people, and for the sake of my honor." B.C. said mockingly, before she spat at his feet and told him in her own voice, "That's what I think of your precious honor. Just tell me what the fuck is going on because I fucking deserve a goddamned explanation."

Zepherus14 · Jul 17, 2017

The Escapist Avatar Adventures | Cloudtop Citadel: Rising Dawn and the surrounding Hanger
Nina and Phillip

There was many classics in cinema but one that will have a special place in many hearts is the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. In a time where practically everything was practical effects and the digital era where literally everything was CGI, it has this timeless aspect where one could not smile at its songs, beautiful scenery and childish whimsy. Why does this matter you might ask, sure it is a good movie, but how could this have anything to do with the end of the world as we know it. Well, there is one particular scene that was just out of place within the friendly jaundice people and dental decay, a certain boat ride that had weasel'd its way into the nightmares of children everywhere.

What Nina was witnessing could be described as the limited addition director's cut of the film, 10 hours of extra boat scene goodness all compressed down to the same bite sized minute as the original. Needless to say the visuals alone were giving Nina a serious case of vertigo without considering the tital wave of mana that was washing over them. But just has she was thinking she couldn't last much longer, the fight between BC and Vihaan ended. The sudden calm in the eye of the hurricane gave Nina a momentary breather. Shakily getting to a knee, she finally was able to look around with semi clear vision.

"Y-you okay Phillip?" She asked, checking on her companion who merely curled several of his tentacles as if to shrug. Nina wearily smiled at this. "That's good, just take my word for it, that wasn't fun..." Setting her sights on the other citadel officers near her, she could see their gems still giving off large waves of energy. "Whatever happened, it seems to be dying down, we should go help th-" Nina was interrupted again as the resurgence of mana came back with a vengance. Apparently one screening of Willy Wonka's special addition wasn't enough, an encore was in order!

This time however it seemed far more aggressive than the last, not settling for merely disorienting Nina but bringing a raging sandstorm of mana. Collapsing to the ground again, Nina couldn't protect herself as she was way beyond her element, her dress giving her zero defense for this. Phillip's aura helped to reduce the initial build up, but as it continued to swell it was becoming clearer and clearer it wouldn't be enough. Looking to the more distant objects, the mana rushed passed it with such force they'd start showing clear signs of wear and tear, like several years flew by passed them. Even Nina's skin was starting to show beginning signs of rug burn, not that she could do much to change that. The contents within him though, showed no such signs, shielded from the manastorm by Phillip's own body.

To the citadel workers, there seemed to be little warning as Nina took in an audible breath and Phillip's body swelled to his larger size. Tentacles wrapped around Nina's body aggressively as she was swiftly swallowed into his mass, her hand over her mouth and her eyes squeezed tight. For what seemed like ages, Nina was cast into darkness, the only sound she could hear was the slow shuffling of the tendrils that covered her entirely. The pressure was remarkable too, like being hugged by all sides at once, leaving her paralysed within his mass. As each second passed, her lungs started to strain, pleading with Nina to release the CO[sub]2[/sub] building with her. With her lungs practically on fire and her mind starting to grow fuzzy, she couldn't tell as her position within Phillip changed again.

Once the storm had finally settled once more, Phillip didn't hesitate to spit Nina out, the later taking no time to greedily take in new air that finally hit her raw skin. Her vision once a kaleidoscope of images was practically gone as she was on the verge of blacking out, and simply lay on the ground to try and regain herself. Her body unable to bring itself to move without first replenishing the life giving oxygen it needed, Phillip just stayed by her side unsure if there was going to be a third wave.[footnote]I will note that although Nina does have rug burns across a good part of her body, it is very mild all over. No droplets of blood forming but her skin is raw like a sun burn[/footnote]

Diablo1099_v1legacy · Jul 18, 2017

"...REALLY!? Really?!"

While this was one of the most dreaded and feared days in the minds of some, all that was going though Rugal's mind was "Not this shit again..."
He seemed to be hexed to bring chaos and destruction where-ever he walked, prompting him to just gaze at his allies for a moment as if to say "...Don't look at me, I just wanted a repair job!"
"Are you just going to stand there and gawk!? Go get people before they get hurt!" Titania yelled at him, doing wonders for his temperament.
"PARDON ME FOR NOT EXPECTING TO BE RIGHT NEXT TO THE ARCANE EQUIVALENT OF AN ATOM BOMB!" He barked back before he brought up his Dark Barrier, less out of malice but more out of anger at the calamity itself.
Titania's wards were keeping the others safe but there was still a number of wounded soldiers and people still in the middle of it all.
"Get another ward up, I'll get the wounded! Nadalia, you have healing magic, tend to them. Angelus, Tell our allies to get ready. I doubt this will be simple battle. Caim, hold position and be ready to strike. [sub]And next time, I'm fixing the fucking ship myself, I don't care how much it costs![/sub]"

And just like that, it was all over, the shaking stopped and the rest of the base began to go silent as they were surrounded with injured and wounded women.
Rugal stood there and-...well, gawked for a while, looking totally uncertain about what exactly had transpired here.
"...Okay...That happened...Nadalia, going to need that Warmth spell. Angelus, get word out, I'd rather our crew be prepared if it happens again. Caim-...Carry on..." He remarked as he let down his shield before quickly fetching the wounded and laying them down to be treated, including Titania.
"So...does anyone know what manner of magic that was? I've seen many things in my life and during my trials...but that was a new one..." He then asked outloud, hoping one of the mages here had some idea what happened.

All the while, the specter known as Leoric seemed to-...well, Vanish really.
Undead spirits were often afflicted by even the most basic of magics and what happened here was far from the most "Basic" of magics.
His crown and mace still remained in Hillary's grasp, as did many of his old bones as they laid littered around the room but the King himself was nowhere to be seen...

bluerocker · Jul 18, 2017

Reposting/updating spells and weapons. Keeping em together for my sanity.

Also, something myself and Ninjamedic discussed was the possibility of putting a "Nonlethal" modifier on some spells, on account of this character's proclivity towards not killing people. It is thus generally assumed that any damaging spells are not to be considered lethal damage.

Effectively, Teri's caster level is 9 (Cleric 8/Monk 2/Contemplative 1; Monk levels don't make you cast better), and gains bonus spells from her Wisdom modifier up to 6th level spells (provided she has her equipment on. Without, it is only up to 4th). As of Contemplative 1, she has three domains, Healing, Water, and Purification

6 |0-level spells per day
4 + 1 |1st Level + 1 of A Domain per day-1st Level Domain Spell
4 + 1 |2nd Level + 1 of A Domain Per day - 2nd Level Domain Spell
3 + 1 |3rd Level + 1 of A Domain Per day - 3rd Level Domain Spell
1 + 1 |4th Level + 1 of A Domain per day - 4th Level Domain Spells
1 + 1 |5th Level + 1 of a Domain per day - 5th Level Domain Spells

0 Level Spells
Create Water: Creates 2 gallons/level of pure water.
Detect Magic: Detects spells and magic items within 60 ft.
Detect Poison: Detects poison in one creature or object.
Light: Object shines like a torch.
Purify Food and Drink: Purifies 1 cu. ft./level of food or water.
Mending: Makes minor repairs on an object.

First Level Spells
Domain Spell: Nimbus of Light [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/spells/spell-compendium--86/nimbus-of-light--4597/index.html]: Sunlight illuminates you until released as an attack.
Entropic Shield: Ranged attacks against you have 20% miss chance.
Ice Slick: Creates a 20-ft. square of slippery ice.
Protection from Evil: +2 to AC and saves, counter mind control, hedge out elementals and outsiders.
Shield of Faith: Aura grants +2 or higher deflection bonus.
Shivering Touch, Lesser: Touch deals 1d6 Dex damage; reducing movement to enemy

2nd Level Spells
Domain Spell: Cure Moderate Wounds: Cures 2d8 points of damage +1 point per caster level (maximum +10).
Bull's Strength: Subject gains +4 to Str for 1 min./level.
Frost Weapon: Weapon gains the frost special ability +1d6 cold damage.
Frost Breath [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/spells/spell-compendium--86/frost-breath--4540/]: You breath an icy breath that deals 1d4 points of cold damage per two caster levels (maximum 5d4). In addition, all creatures damaged by the frost breath that fail their Reflex save are dazed for 1 round by the sudden shock of cold.
Healing Lorecall: [https://dndtools.net/spells/spell-compendium--86/healing-lorecall--4689/] Using Healing spells removes additional conditions with this buff in place.
Remove Paralysis: Frees one or more creatures from paralysis or slow effect.

3rd Level Spells
Domain Spell: Recitation [https://dndtools.net/spells/spell-compendium--86/recitation--3861/]: Your allies get bonus on AC, attacks, and saves.
Holy Storm: [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/dndtools/spells/spell-compendium--86/holy-storm--4710/] Creates an area with holy rain - deals 2d6 damage to evil creatures
Mass Lesser Vigor [https://dndtools.net/spells/spell-compendium--86/vigor-mass-lesser--4729/]: Gives a minor regen effect to up to 4 creatures at once (1 creature/2 caster levels).
Remove Blindness/Deafness: Fixes damage to eyes or ear, magic or mundane. Won't give you back an eye if you poke it out.
Shivering Touch: Touch deals 3d6 Dexterity damage; robbing them of mobility. Depending upon how well this is rolled, it can paralyze.

4th Level Spells
Domain Spell: Control Water: Raises or lowers bodies of water.
Frostburn [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/spells/frostburn--68/frostburn--1283/index.html]: Touch deals 3d12 frostburn damage +1/level (max +20).
Panacea [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/spells/spell-compendium--86/panacea--4118/index.html]: Heals a variety of conditions, as well cures 1d8 points of damage + 1 point per caster level (maximum +20).

5th Level Spells
Domain Spell: Dance of the Unicorn [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/spells/spell-compendium--86/dance-of-the-unicorn--4325/index.html]: Purifying mist washes the air clean of smoke, dust, and poisons.
Darts of Life [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/spells/complete-champion--57/darts-of-life--595/index.html]: Summons 10 small glowing orbs of light around the head. The caster can send these darts to allies or undead to heal/harm 1d8 per dart.
Frostbite: [http://dnd.arkalseif.info/spells/frostburn--68/frostbite--1249/index.html] Chilled air causes 6d6 cold damage and 2d6 Dex damage.

Additional note: Teri can use a Reppuken [http://www.fightersgeneration.com/nx9/char/cvs2/rugal/a/special/rugal-cvs2-projectile1.gif] (a ground bound projectile) from level 1 and higher, and costs 12 seconds of recharge after it's use; or a Kaiser Wave [http://www.fightersgeneration.com/nx9/char/cvs2/rugal/a/special/rugal-cvs2-projectile3.gif] (large aerial projectile), from Level 4 and higher, and costs 24 seconds of recharge after use.

Caim's Sword 13:02

Crimson Hood 5:35

Guardian's Sorrow 10:40

Fheng's Glaive 3:29

Hymir's Finger 16:20

Knight's Vow 7:49

Slaughterism 9:49

Swordsmasher 15:35

Windsinger 3:45

On Loan to Angelus
Kingsblood 12:35

bluerocker · Jul 18, 2017

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In one moment, the two reptilian blood-brothers were minding their business, and in the next, the very building they had set into had become a shaking madhouse of magic and screaming; followed by Laeta and David shouting at one another. Between the half-hearted reassurances and the swear words (at least, Ton Ton knew they were bad words, and would need to tell his younger counterpart to never repeat them later) things were beginning to go belly up very quickly. To make matters worse, David ran off on his own to find someone who was apparently involved in all of this, bringing the total number of strangers up to 3 (Laeta, B.C. and Vihaan). In the midst of the chaos, Cadolbolg very quietly 'sent' to his pact partner, "Ton Ton, I'm scared... We should find mother and father. They can fix this, right? ...Right?"

In an attempt to reassure Cadolbolg, Ton Ton allowed the star above his head to manifest, the small token of his power spinning dolefully in the gloom. Additionally, the Tonberry gave Cadolbolg a light scratch in one of those hard to reach spots behind a horn, before 'sending' back, [color=15650D]"It's okay to be scared, but Mr. Caim and Ms. Angelus can't help us unless they know what's going on. Let's stick around a little longer."[/color]

Placated for now, the two little ones listened into Vihaan's 'insights' and B.C.'s barbs, before he said,

"But I have to warn you five though, once I have told you about the events that have just occurred, you'll be placed in a very bad place. You'll either have to stay here, separated from your friends, or you might be forced to hurt your friends. For the sake of knowledge, would you be willing to pay either price?"

Cadolbolg was the first amongst the duo to speak up, his fear of the unknown coalescing into a shocked (and perhaps somewhat panicked voice), "Separated from our friends? Being forced to fight them?! What are you talking about, Mister? Friends don't fight over big scary stuff like what caused that crazy earthquake, they fight over who eats the last cookie or who used the wrong toothbrush! This sounds too serious to 'fight' over!"

Ton Ton, seemingly emboldened by his pact-partner's distress, pointed his knife at Vihaan and said in a firm tone unfitting a creature so young, [color=15650D]"I agree with my brother. Whatever you say to us will *not* have us conflict with our friends or our families. And if you think you can tear us all apart because you declare it to be so, you are sorely mistaken. I'm with the foul-mouthed lady - quit with the theatrics and tell us what is going on so we can stop it!"[/color]

Diablo1099_v1legacy · Jul 21, 2017

[hr]

[hr]

"But I have to warn you five though, once I have told you about the events that have just occurred, you'll be placed in a very bad place. You'll either have to stay here, separated from your friends, or you might be forced to hurt your friends. For the sake of knowledge, would you be willing to pay either price?"

"A bad place, huh?...Alright...Alright, I'll go to a bad place...and I'll take you with me and, ohhhhh by god, what I'm going to do to you..." David remarked before pulling out his weapon, keeping his aim solely on Vihaan.
It was then he noticed B.C. tied up in the hair, briefly turning his at some of Vihaan's lackeys.
"Get the girl out of that chair. Try anything and even the bits of your brain that flew from your exploding skull will but full of holes!" He threatened as he motioned for Vihaan's men to cut B.C. loose.
"So...What's your game? Better give me one damn good answer if you enjoy having a nutsack..." The sniper then added before attempting to secure the "Hostage" B.C.
"B.C. You alright?..." He asked without breaking his eye contact with his target.

bluerocker · Jul 23, 2017

[hr]

After Rugal starting acting like some sort of commanding officer for once, Caim and Angelus sprung into action. First, Angelus waved over Hillary and instructed in a much gentler voice "Stay close to me, it's not safe right now." Second, she tapped on the rings and sent out a communique to all who possessed them, "Attention Rising Dawn members. This is Angelus speaking, in company of Caim, Rugal, Nadalia, Captain Yona Isami and a civilian. We have just survived some sort of strange magical energy attack, and are nearby some wounded soldiers on the Cloudtop Citadel. Sound off, report your status and location at once."

Caim, on the other hand, did as he did best. Unsheathing his family blade, he began to patrol the perimeter while the other members of the Dawn set to working on their assorted tasks/get back Angelus' mass communique.

[hr]

Airship Rising Dawn
Outside the Canteen
the Anguish of an unsmiling watcher
[color=eca222]Lucas "Luke" Cypress[/color]

[hr]

As the wave of magic that had crested over the Dawn faded away, Luke slumped against a wall, eyes looking blankly at a ceiling tile as he wondered aloud, "The hell was that about? I haven't had to use that much energy in a while... This isn't normal."

Straightening himself up from his "perch", Luke closed his eyes and began to concentrate, his mind moving "upwards" as he reached towards something, or in this case, someone, a little above above his pay-grade.

[color=eca222]"Boss, we need to talk. Something weird is going on down on the Material Plane, something that required me to step in to stop it. Me! You know, the guy that's watching the place while you deal with upstairs?"[/color]

Although his greeting was a bit rude, Lucifer had certainly said or thought worse things to The Boss before, especially when angry. In this case, he preferred to be more to the point, especially given the circumstances. However, what he wasn't expecting was the dead silence that followed his question, the 'noise' fading away like the echos of a stone falling down a well.

[color=eca222]"...O-kay... Maybe She's a little busy, [sub]we *did* just have a minor cataclysm. Let's try again...[/sub] Boss! I'm serious, where *are* you?! This is kind of our thing, discussing matters when crazy stuff happens to your precious humans! HELLO?!"[/color]

Like before, there was only silence. Not even the normal kind, like when someone isn't in a room they're supposed to be in, or the empty echo of a dial tone after the phone is hung up - this was a deafening, black void of nothing, where sound or thought was swallowed whole in an unseen maw.

[color=0E59E4][sub]"Luke. Luke, please, answer me!"[/sub][/color]

~~Lucifer~~ Luke's eye's fluttered open when he heard a different voice in his mind, this one being very much from the plane he was currently inhabiting. A little disoriented from the silence he encountered moments ago, he focused again, and found the source coming from-

[color=eca222]"Teri?"[/color]
[color=0E59E4]"Oh, there you are. Luke, what the hell just happened?! Everything started shaking and I thought it was some kind of earthquake but...- are you alright?"[/color]

Luke breathed a sigh of relief when he heard his beloved's voice again. Sure, she sounded a bit panicked, but if she was focusing on his well-being, then she was surely in decent condition, [color=eca222]"I'm fine, physically. A little drained after that stunt I just pulled, I had to ward the Dawn from...Something. It seemed magical in nature, from what I could tell. I could see the leylines begin to bend under whatever it was.."[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"Wait, you had to ward the Dawn? And...Leylines?! Those are a 'thing' here? [sub]This just gets better and better.[/sub]"[/color]

[color=eca222]"Look, Teri - listen to me. Whatever's going on, it's pretty serious. I trust Garm to help take care of you, but it'd really make me feel better if you stick with another Dawn member until this all blows over. I'm going to investigate all this in the meantime."[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"Luke, I'll be-"[/color]

[color=eca222]"Please. Just.."[/color]

Luke hesitated, trying to find the right words, something that conveyed how devastated he was when his beloved was captured not too long ago; something that didn't sound desperate or needy, before settling with, [color=eca222]Can you do this for me?"[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"I...Yeah, okay. Viscus is nearby right now. He needs to be put back together, but we can regroup with the others after that. Sound good?"[/color]

[color=eca222]"Yeah, that'll do... I'm sorry I'm being pushy about this, but I don't know what's going on; and...well, when you're in a position like mine, you're supposed to; in addition to something else I've just noticed."[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"And that was?"[/color]

Again, Luke found himself at a loss. How does one explain a lack of something they've felt their whole existence? For a messenger of the Lord, feeling that connection was something that was, a state of being, something as natural as breathing. Yet, all he could manage was, [color=eca222]"I... can't hear the Boss. And that sounds weird, I know, but She is supposed to know everything. Evoke her, and she'll answer, in one way or another. Yet, I don't... I don't 'feel' anything. It's like nothing's there at all."[/color]

At that point, the two servants of the Lord felt a sudden chill deep creep into their bones. It was the sensation akin to a student who was halfway across campus, and then realized they left their term paper in their dormitory - the sudden awareness of what had been long forgotten.

Silence hung in the air between the two as the revelation sunk in; one akin to what Lucifer had encountered moments ago. Even if he was cast down from the Heavens, all divine-aligned beings feel a connection of sorts to their patrons - in his case, his Hell was supposed to be the lack of the divine spark, the agony of separation from the Divine Parent. However, due to his role, that "agony" was never really present, it was something he pantomimed among his peers and kept well hidden from almost all of Creation. And yet, in that sickening moment, when the silence 'rang' in the air, Lucifer almost felt sick; a strange jingling noise filling the air as he tried to regain his footing (when did he lose balance?). Looking downwards to the source of the noise, Lucifer saw instead that it was a watch on his wrist, his hand trembling like a newborn fawn. He would have stayed stuck to that spot, were it not for Teri's 'voice' ringing in his mind again, this time in a panicked tone that shook as she tried to put together something that wasn't a shriek,

[color=0E59E4]"I can't cast! I don't know why- I do the thing, I move my hands, but it's not happening! Luci - what's going on?!"[/color]

Lucifer drew pause again, a thousand different thoughts running amok in his mind in an attempt to make sense of it all. If The Boss had suddenly up and vanished, how could it have happened so suddenly? This definitely needed some looking into. Lucifer waved a hand over himself, feeling the glamour of invisibility cover his form, his wings unfurling once the magic was in place. With a tentative flap of his wings, Lucifer ascended towards a broken window, his last message simply being,

[color=eca222]"Hang in there - I've seen darker times then this and humanity has prevailed. I going to investigate and find out what happened here. For now, stay safe and stay with the others. I'll return when I can."[/color]

[hr]

Cloudtop Citadel
Engineering
Curiouser and Curiouser
[color=3897E0]

Code:

AI Dimitri

[/color] | [color=356D60]Garm[/color] | [color=0E59E4]Teri[/color] |

Code:

AI Viscus

[hr]

Prior to rather catastrophic after-effects of Balance's actions, all Teri and Garm wanted to deal with was mind their business while attempting to free Viscus from the overzealous technicians. However, with all the magic and madness that happened a moment later, Teri found herself pillowed against Garm's side; the faithful wolf having used his body as a cushion between her and a nearby wall. After the two waited several long seconds to see if anything else was to occur, Teri finally allowed herself to disentangle from Garm, the wolf asking, [color=356D60]"You alright, Tear-ri? That was pretty scary...."[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"Ye-yeah, I think so... And you're right, that was a bit too much, even for us... Gimme a sec, I'm gonna call Luke."[/color]

As the conversation with Luke went on, Teri took another deep breath, leaning against Garm's side as she murmured a basic healing incantation to help with some of the the hurt caused by being buffeted around, only to see that nothing happened. It was also at that point Luke mentioned not being able to hear God properly. It was at that moment Teri noticed several key things. The first, that her Aura was suddenly not active; as it should have been taking away some of the hurts already; the second, the comforting sensation of God's presence in her day to day life was suddenly *gone*, leaving her feeling as empty and hollow as when the power nullifying cuffs were placed upon her again. At this realization, her throat felt tight, her knuckles growing white as she clutched her robes and her breaths grew shallow.

Dimitri was the first to pick up on it, asking in a panicked voice, [color=3897E0]

Code:

"Your Ladyship, what's wrong? Did something happen when you contacted Mr. Cypress?"

[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"I...I can't cast spells. I can't feel it. I can't feel anything!"[/color]

[color=3897E0]

Code:

"Can't feel...?"

[/color]

Garm was quicker on the uptake, gently prodding his nose against the shaking Cleric, [color=356D60]"Tear-ri, calm down! You told me before, this has happened to you - remember, at that prison?"[/color] He circled around to her other side, his voice dropping to a soft tone as he instructed, [color=356D60]"Take a few deep breaths, this is only temporary. You're with me and Dimitri voice and Viscus; and if we need too, we can find Alpha Rugal. It's okay, we'll figure something out. Remember what we're here for?"[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"H-help Viscus with Dimitri."[/color]

[color=356D60]"That's right. What'll we do after that?"[/color]

[color=0E59E4]"I-I dunno.. Luke said to stay safe?"[/color]

[color=356D60]"Then we'll stick with Viscus and do that."[/color] Garm gave Teri one final nuzzle of his fuzzy cheek against her brow, before turning to the Tablet, [color=356D60]"Dimitri-voice, we came to fix Viscus, and with the circumstances, we need to do that ASAP. I'll contact Alpha Rugal, and we'll see what we can do from here."[/color] Turning to the AI-in-Armor in question, Garm helped Teri up and lead both Cleric and AI towards Viscus to put him back together...

Texas Joker 52 · Jul 26, 2017

[hr]

As it turned out, the two little ones, which looked like a dragon-turtle and a little dragon kid in a set of heavy robes respectively, were not only tiny, but actually were children, especially judging from their voices and what they said. B.C. leaned back in her chair, folding her arms across her chest as she watched the dragon-turtle begin to panic, just a little.

"Separated from our friends? Being forced to fight them?! What are you talking about, Mister? Friends don't fight over big scary stuff like what caused that crazy earthquake, they fight over who eats the last cookie or who used the wrong toothbrush! This sounds too serious to 'fight' over!"

Young, and predictably naive. And yet, that naivety was rather sweet, even to a jaded criminal like her. The other one drew a rather ominous looking chef's knife that glinted in the light, and pointed it right at Vihaan. That was enough to make her grin and give him a pointed look.

"[color=15650D]I agree with my brother. Whatever you say to us will not have us conflict with our friends or our families. And if you think you can tear us all apart because you declare it to be so, you are sorely mistaken. I'm with the foul-mouthed lady - quit with the theatrics and tell us what is going on so we can stop it![/color]"

B.C. suddenly burst into a bout of obnoxious, raucous laughter, and leaned forward in her chair to grin even wider at Vihaan.

"Well, you heard 'em, brat! How's it feel to know that no one really wants to play your asinine fucking game? Does it hurt your widdle feewings?" she asked mockingly, as if she was speaking to a five-year-old, "So hurry up. Get to the damn point."

It was then that David decided to pull a gun, aiming it at Vihaan before demanding that B.C. be released from her non-existent restraints. As she stood up easily, she placed a hand on the back of the chair to spin it around. Then she promptly sat back down, resting her arms on the back of the chair, and her chin on her arms.

"So... What's your game? Better give me one damn good answer if you enjoy having a nutsack... B.C. You alright?"

"I'd make sure to aim a little higher. I tried giving him a nut-shot in our bout earlier, didn't work. Little shit doesn't have the equipment." she said dryly before looking back at David with a look of clear irritation and said, "And no, I'm not alright. I got dragged here by some big-ass, talking gemstone without my shit, in the middle of shopping, without a goddamned fucking explanation. I don't have my guns, I don't have my grenades, I don't even have the stuff I was about to buy!"

Looking back at Vihaan, her eyes narrowed.

"So, get talking, boy. I'm listening with bated breath." she said, just loudly enough for Vihaan to hear.

Zepherus14 · Jul 27, 2017

[hr]

To be chastised by Angelus to then be nearly blasted by an explosion of raw mana if not for the quick action of Titanus, Hillary was very much surprised yet still par for the course. It was like a person expecting a surprise party only to be bait and switched with another surprise birthday party, she was expecting weirdness to happen but all of this was definitely a lot higher on the weirdness scale than she'd first anticipated.

The events had happened so quickly that Hillary was left unable to reply to Angelus before everything went sideways. Hillary had dropped the mace on the ground, actually smashing her own foot in a grotesque manner if it were anything but solid steel. Hillary didn't seem to make note of this possibly because of the brilliant, albeit unseen, display of colour as the mana washed over the barrier protecting her, or more accurately her own lack of awareness of this impermanent damage to herself. She however did notice she wasn't the only one being shielded like this, and that whatever was happening she shouldn't try to stick her hand out of the barrier either.

As the last moments crept up, Hillary's body would appear to be losing some of its rigidness. While still appearing metal, her body did appear to melt somewhat. Part of her body mass pooled at her limbs by gravity, her hands and feet becoming more like puddles than distinguished digits, and the large hair buns this form had given her slowly shifted with gravity as well.

Once things finally settled, Hillary would stay still for a moment. Not needing air currently, there was no need for her to gasp, but it would take a few moments for her body to start building itself back up again. By the time Rugal had finished his little speech Hillary was back to her prior metallic mirrored self like before the catastrophe, no worse for wear. "O-Okay, Hillary will make sure to stay by you!" She replied promptly with a concerned tone, quickly making her way to the woman. She would make sure not to bowl over Angelus, but would take 'stay close' a bit too literally, pressing her oddly warm but rigidly firm body against the dragon's. "I'm very sorry Hillary was swinging the mace around! She was trying to get it to that lady over there Rugal was talking to, but then there was the fire, and then the scary guy yelled at Hillary for some reason, and then whatever that was! Did you protect Hillary Miss? Thank you very much if you did!" She spoke, trying to make out what was going on with the rest of the group given the current events, spotting that there were still flames about over there (the warmth spells) "Hmmmmmph... Hillary should be over by Rugal, he was helping her get home, but why's all that still gotta be there..? Do you work with Mr Rugal, or the other lady?"

NotYetForsaken · Aug 2, 2017

[[Main Scenario]]

[hr]

Glimmer of Hope

Code:

titania's story

[hr]

"Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night."

Titania rested her head against Deborah's warm body. The larger woman ran her fingers through Titania's white hair. The little major sighed, her eyes searching the scenes around them for some semblance of sense. Yona put her spear away and stood above her personnel, her fierce eyes and deep voice cast orders like arrows from a bow.

"I will suffer no more of such embarrassments. Allyon, bring me a report on Balance's status," she swept her leather jacket over her shoulders and cast a sidelong glance at Nadalia, "You 'hero' types are always so fond of banter." The colonel flickered for a moment and then was gone, flash stepping across the hanger to assess the full brunt of the damage wrought by the incident.

"The worst is past," Deborah murmured, "so says the book."

Titania shook her head. This incident was only the beginning. She knew deep in her heart the reality of the situation. The collapsing leyline, the sudden outcry of a celestial, and this deep silence that lingered in the air afterward. The very nature of the world had changed in a cataclysmic instant. "I hope it is so." Titania grimaced as she tried to sit up. Angry red bruises ran the length of her arms and legs, a result of her sudden overuse of native magics. Her body was not used to that sort of sudden stress. "Show me the book," Titania commanded.

Deborah drew the tome from her bag and handed it to Titania. The cover was warm and inviting, soft as skin. She pulled the covers open and lay bare the pages within. She bade her breath and opened her eyes, forcing a brilliant golden light from appear before the pages. The words on the cream parchment flew off the page and formed deep gold runes, infinitely deep and complex each. They shifted and turned, as if alive. Yet their movements betrayed their agony. The very fates were injured. "Show me what the others are doing," she commanded in a harsh whisper.

---

Luke held lightly to the air high in the hanger. The Rising Dawn below was bent, the thick steel plates on its outer armor had wilted, thick streams of stretched metal hung over the drydock like forlorn flowers. Even with the barrier, the damage had been severe. But the world around the Rising Dawn, and Cloudtop Citadel, was even worse for wear. From his perch high in the sky, Luke could see the grim specter of death that still lingered in the air. The sky was blue, and the sun shone, but there was no life to their existence. It was as if someone had created cruel imitations of nature and set them into motion. The air, the earth, the water, the light, and the darkness all felt somewhat wrong.

It was as if the world itself had died and was forced back into life.

---

Vihaan frowned and took a half-step back he flicked his wrist and forced David's gun toward the floor with a flare of magic, "Please calm yourself David. There is no need for such a display of savagery." He turned his eyes toward TonTon and Cadolbolg, and ran his hand through his hair. Then he looked at B.C. in her chair, and then at Laeta, hiding behind David's broad shoulders. She is an interesting one. I don't remember ever meeting her before.

"The event you all just witnessed has nothing at all to do with the problem we face," he began, turning around to fiddle with a terminal. He pulled out a small disk and set it down between the six of them. The holodisk sprung to life, projecting a list of people. Their portrait, their names. "Some time ago I had a deep-consciousness study conducted on a large number of our staff. The results were, unsettling." He scrolled through the list. There were dates listed next to each portrait, but the numbers varied massively in scope. Some in single digits, others in numbers so large that it boggled the mind. "These numbers are the absolute values of their earliest memories, derived from the environments in their dreams. A zero value corresponds with some 1400 B.C. and the max value we have, 237,491,883 corresponds with something around 800,000 A.D."

Vihaan took a glance at his audience and cleared his throat, "Nevermind the details, the point is that each member of the observed staff has a different time and place they have an affinity for. Strange mannerisms, ideologies, and subtle habits and the like." He motioned at himself, "The most fortunate, like myself, retain memories of my homeland." He pointed at B.C. "This one as well, is able to remember the realm of her origin."

"My own personal theory," he continued, "for all of the anomalies that have occurred, is that an intelligent entity is plucking people from other worlds and keeping them in here like some sort of zoo." He waved toward the dead rock that used to be Balance, "My interactions with the White Rose lend support to the idea."

"Now to the point I made earlier. I have ample reason to believe that the entity behind our capture is masquerading as one of the members of the Rising Dawn. Ergo, one of your friends." He put his hands on his hips, "And if they found out we knew, then they would flee, and we would never be able to discover the identity of our captor. Secrecy and subterfuge will be our best tools here."

Vihaan paused, he could see that he lost most of the group somewhere down the line. Put his hand on his chin and mused for a little bit before summarizing, "Long story short, the thing that's causing problems for everyone is one of the people who were with you on the Rising Dawn. Someone who isn't supposed to exist. Their nature would be... different from the rest of us, as if they were jammed into our lives unnaturally and the forced to fit in afterwards. We find that entity, we end all of this absurdity."

"Luckily for us, David has inherited a master list of every person in this world. So, do tell us if you have any idea who our antagonist could be?"

Diablo1099_v1legacy · Aug 3, 2017

[hr]

"The worst is past," Deborah murmured, "so says the book."

"...As nice it is to know that information, I can't help but feel that it would have been better served if we first knew what exactly it was that just passed..." Rugal pointed out as he approached Deborah and Titania, rather pointedly interrupting their deliberations as he looked over Titania's shoulder to try and find out what exactly this book was telling her (With about as much success he was expecting).
"...Okay, you two just-...keep doing what you are doing..." He then muttered in an embarrassed tone, knowing full well there was not much he could really add there as he turned his attention back to his allies.
"Nadalia...Sorry about earlier. I know it's literally the least of our concerns right now but might as well get it out of the way before the next arcane calamity hits..." The "Captain" then said to the Bride of Ash, as well as noticing Miia currently clutching to her for dear life.
"...ahhh...Let me help with that..."

As Miia latched harder to her anchoring point (person?), he began to place his hand on her shoulder, reassuringly saying "Shhhhh...It's okay, the-..."thing" is over. We are about to go home now and and you have all the children with-ah, found it."
[color=BA0025]"...F-found wha-YEEEAAAHOHOHOWWWWWWW?!"[/color] The Iamia cried out as Rugal revealed his deception, grasping at the flesh near the very tip of her spine with his hand to cause just enough discomfort to override her body's feral instincts and make it go limp instead of merely constrict tighter around Nadalia.
Once he had achieved this, he merely rolled her tail up somewhat like a massive rope with one hand and held her almost bridal style in the other, ending this feat by gently leaving her on the ground.
Looking at a dazed and most likely upset Miia, he then added "Apologies, you had to be removed and, if it makes you feel better, that was the least painful way I could have done that..."
Glancing down slightly to where she had wet herself, he paused for a moment before pulling out a "R" branded handkerchief from his pocket and handing it to her.
"...You may keep that when you are done..."

[hr]

[hr]

"......Wow....."

That-...was a lot to take in at once and it left David rather-...well...how the hell do you react to news like that?
"......That-....Is one damn good answer..." He trailed off, slowly lowering his weapon before holding his head slightly and gritting his teeth in pain.
"...So that's what-....wow...I-...am nowhere near qualified enough for this Dr. Who bullshit..." He confessed as he realized what all that information that was shoved into his mind was about and there was a nam-
"M-Marlow Alice!...Marlow Alice!...Is-is that it?...There were so many names, I had no idea what was going on but-...M-marlow Alice?..."
Glancing to the rest of the gang, he merely shrugged before saying "Hey, don't look at me. I got into the military after I flunked college. I don't know shit..."

*Shakes magic 8 ball*

Diablo1099_v1legacy · Aug 3, 2017

bluerocker said:
She did most of the work here

Cloudtop Citadel
Engineering
404: God Not Found
[color=3897E0]

Code:

AI Dimitri

[/color] | [color=356D60]Garm[/color] | [color=0E59E4]Teri[/color] |

Code:

AI Viscus

[hr]

Code:

[...]

Even as Teri and Garm began to collect all the pieces of his armor from the corners of the Engineering room, Viscus was silent as his mind crunched the numbers, trying to understand the exact nature of the even that seemed to had rattled the Cleric (and the entire base) so much.
Still, once the majority of his stray armor pieces were pried from the grubby hands of the staff, his head flared to life before sending a signal to the parts of his body in the room.
In perfect sync, they all began to come online before swiftly reassembling themselves right before Teri and Garm.
A few moments of self-checks and diagnostics, Viscus was back online and delivered a message that was the LAST thing that Teri wanted to hear right now:

Code:

[Your God has no power here.]

Teri, who was already emotionally raw after the recent revelations, didn't take the rather blunt declaration too well. Quite literally shaking in her boots, she stood in one spot before covering her face with her hands and weakly said, [color=0E59E4]"T-That's not true.."[/color]
Marching right past the Cleric, Viscus opened up the panel on his wrist before attempting to make a connection to the outside world, only to find that wasn't possible.

Code:

[Telecommunications to the outside world are down. The Leyline disruption is creating a field of interference around the base. I do not have the means to fully determine the nature of this event.]

[color=0E59E4]"...Wait-...so does that mean-"[/color]

Code:

[Negative. There is no detection of Holy magic in the area. We are no longer within the grasp of your entity's power. Stop asking. We have more pressing matters to concern ourselves with.]

He barked before making his way towards the exit, equipping a number of his armor's systems as he did.

Before Teri could say anything further, Dimitri "stepped up" to the plate (or as best an AI could) and quickly added [color=3897E0]

Code:

"Don't you see, Your Ladyship? What Viscus was [u]trying[/u] to say was that the current circumstances are not any fault of your's or your God- something is blocking the divine's influence, a la a signal jammer. Like Garm said, this is only temporary, and we know that for certain. Isn't that nice to know?"

[/color] He punctuated this comment with a comforting smile, which seemed to have the desired effect; Teri's shoulders relaxed, and the shaking finally stopped. Instead, she leaned against Garm once more, the wolf asking the more pertinent question, [color=356D60]"So what do we do now?"[/color]

Code:

[This installation has a research databank in it's lower levels. I am going to interface with it and obtain all of the Citadel's findings on their research. With that information, I can find a way to reverse it's effects if such a feat is possible. With the interference, I can't hack it remotely so we need to find it ourselves.]

He replied, seeming much more focused on trying to figure the location of this databank then even correcting Dimitri's false statement on the effects of this "Godless Black-out" as temporary.
It was then his ire turned to the nearest member of the Engineering staff, his emotionless face glaring at her before quickly picking her up by her throat as his wrist mounted shotgun unfolded, the barrel pressing against the side of her cheek.

Code:

[The Research Databank. Tell me where it is...]

Before she could worry about Viscus possibly murdering random members of staff, a rather frantic Vermilion messaged in.
[color=FF5349]

Code:

"User: Teri Gravel! I have terrible news! It's Adelhield [RETRACTED], he has gone missing! After the blast from the Citadel, he was missing from his bed and I can't find him anywhere on the ship!"

[/color] She warned as an image of a empty hospital bed with several missing tubes and pieces of torn off medical equipment littering the ground.

BlackHarte · Aug 6, 2017

[HEADING=2]Rising Dawn: Hallway ------------------------------------------------------------------ 09:40 AM[/HEADING][hr][HEADING=3]Lt. Abigail Martin[/HEADING]

The research staff grew silent and the woman Viscus held against her will struggled against his steel grip. The woman that Viscus had picked up had by some strange coincidence of fate happened to be Abigail Martin, who in a room of privates and other first-year enlisted researchers was the sole officer, and the only person in the current area to have undergone the Rising Dawn's extensive officer training. That training happened to put her not under Colonel Yona Isami's jurisdiction, but under the command of Admiral Valduur.

That being said, Abigail was the only person in the room to actually know about the secret research projects that Vihaan and Yona were conducting in the lower floors of the Citadel. That being said, it would be quite the black hat on her head if Abigail actually let the lower ranking soldiers on the floor hear her publicly admit to secret experiments below. Instead she took a deep breath and uttered, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

The other staff put their hands on their side arms, and a younger girl in the back of the room swiveled a railgun toward Viscus. "We are in a crisis situation. Now put me down before I have you put down."

Zepherus14 · Aug 7, 2017

The Escapist Avatar Adventures | Cloudtop Citadel: Rising Dawn and the surrounding Hanger
Nina and Phillip

The cold floor felt nice against Nina's body, her eyes feeling tired as they squinted against the imposing fluorescent lights across the ceiling. She tried to move her hand up to block some of the light, and it did for a few moments before slowly putting itself back where it'd fallen moments before, resistant to the idea of needing to do anything other than take a break. Given everything that had transpired, Nina had been left in a confused state of what to do next, fight had taken a page from flight's book and ran off with the other. She knew she needed to do something, but her brain wasn't making a decision, if only that light wasn't blasting down at her.

"Mmmmm... Thanks Phillip..." Several of Phillip's tentacles rose over her head as he sat by her side, his mass looming over her shoulder. "Uh, I think I'm okay? Nothing feels broken I think, just.. You remember when you touched that boiling pot a couple of months back, and it really stung? Ya, kinda like that, but all over the place." She spoke; carrying on a nonchalant conversation as her eyes slowly looked up to see the two citadel personnel. "Oh ya, they are there aren't they..? This happen often, or... you know this is about as weird as I'm feeling it is?" Compared to how she felt, they were looking no worse for wear, which filled Nina with a mix of optimism that things were probably going to be okay, but envious that they appeared to luck out in this whole situation.

Nina watched as the two got up, the smaller of the two shouting for the other to get someone as she came to her side opposite Phillip. The abomination was a deterrent sure, but with the current situation she seemed to be more worried about Nina's wellbeing. Her words meant to reassure Nina she was going to be okay; she wasn't apparently bleeding, she hadn't lost any limbs, she probably would need a healing spell or two to recover but at least the worst of her damage was the mere clothing she was wearing.

"...What?" She suddenly responded in unsettling sobriety. Despite her injuries, her hands found themselves scurrying across her body. When she found what was once her tiny hat clip, now quite tattered. She sat up abruptly, pushing the woman out of her way quite aggressively. "Oh, no no no!" Nina shouted with newly found focus, getting up to her feet, the fiery rage building within her allowed her to fight through the stinging pain of her raw skin.[footnote]at least the soles of her feet were unharmed because of her shoes taking the majority of the damage.[/footnote] The woman tried to scramble to her feet to follow after Nina, but swiftly felt the focused gaze of Phillip upon her. Almost immediately the spinning sensation of vertigo took hold of the woman as she fell to the ground, while Phillip merely adjusted his oversized chef's hat still atop him. "You can take this lying down, but like FUCKING HELL I AM!!" She roared, storming to her intended destination.

[hr]

As Caim was making his rounds of the perimeter, he'd start to hear an unfamiliar voice coming from a descending elevator close by. "Where the hell is that party room! Kristen said it was just down the hall to the left! You couldn't miss it! she said! Be lots of fun stuff she said!" The woman looked like she'd gotten waaaay too much sun, the vast majority of her body was rubbed raw. The yellow and black outfit was properly ruined; the stockings full of holes, the dress was torn in various places, oddly only her hair seemed to be the only semblance of order. Phillip still hung from her shoulder, slowly churning as the mass of tentacles silently watched them descending.

Getting out of the elevator and turning the corner, she stopped as she noticed the people there. Clearly these people weren't part of the Citadel staff, their outfits were unique, obviously these were members of the Rising Dawn. "You!" She scowled, pointing accusingly darting from one to another. Since Nadalia and Miia had stepped out for the moment, there was no one specifically that she recognized in the group here and thus her attention was passed over everyone to a degree. "I hope you're happy with yourselves! I get it, I've been to college. Hazing process for new members, throw a red sock into your whites, all your undergarments tossed onto the lawn... But this, I guess with all your fancy shmancy powers all that was probably just a walk in the park for you all. No big deal. Hell, I don't know if there even is a party at this point?!" She raved, her words more of an incoherent thrusting of whatever came to mind than a properly thought out complaint. Phillip recoiled in horror at the mere thought of no party; no party meant no food after all.

"So here's what's going to happen. Someone's going to tell me who's responsible for cooking up this idiotic prank, so I can personally lodge a complaint of my foot to their stupid face!" She commanded, which despite her outward frustration, this threat was largely hollow. The second wind Nina had managed to muster to get her this far was already dwindling. Laboured breath, light shivering, not standing up straight; although she wasn't in any life threatening conditions, her body was clearly showing signs it needed rest.

While this was going on, Hillary looked on from the safety of Angelus' motherly protection. She'd seen a lot of different beings in her time, but whatever was on this woman's shoulder was something else entirely. "That new person sure is mad, but she looks really hurt! Do you know who that is?" She asked Angelus quietly, likely tugging on her dress to call her attention without drawing too much over to them.

bluerocker · Aug 11, 2017

"Hmmmmmph... Hillary should be over by Rugal, he was helping her get home, but why's all that still gotta be there..? Do you work with Mr Rugal, or the other lady?"

Hillary's enthusiasm was, to be frank, was very endearing to the dragon-in-mortal-guise, especially when it reminded her of her youngest child, Cadolbolg. Furthermore, with Hillary's previous apology for her behavior, Angelus allowed her features to soften, and for her voice to take a gentler inflection as she spoke, "My name is Angelus. I am a member of the same organization as Rugal and - if you mean Nadalia," she gestured to the Iron Queen, prior to Rugal's extraction of Miia from her person, "Then yes, we do work together. You could think of us as...'Co-eds' I suppose? But, that begs the question - what brought you here if you're trying to go back? Fall through a portal? Something summon you here?"

Angelus's lips curled upwards into a maternal smile, before she patted the young girl on the shoulder, "Many of our number often end up in this strange world by happenstance or accident, myself included. If you sought out Rugal in an attempt to return home, I will do everything to help you as well. For now, we are not in the best circumstances; so myself and Caim will do what we can to protect you. Caim is-" the dragoness frowned, before looking around- "Where on earth did he run off to?"

Speaking of the devil[footnote]No, not that one![/footnote], Caim had not strayed far on his patrol before he was accosted by a very angry Nina, who said something or another about a hazing and laundry, huffing and puffing all the way. However, this series of angry, child-like threats did not bother Caim too terribly - he was a father of two rambunctious Tonberry/dragon-kids who could stab or burn things a moments notice; A college student was small potatoes by comparison. Instead, the mute warrior looked the girl up and down, taking note of her weary state and labored breathing, his PDA announcing nonchalantly,

Code:

"Looks like there's a wounded civilian on site."

Completely ignoring her little rant and demands about a party, the swordsman instead deigned fit to sheathe his sword, wander over to Nina's side and sling one of her arms over his shoulder, and use the other to support the young girl's weight as he brought her over to the other wounded. If he did show any sort of surprise about the situation, it was the slight quirk of his eyebrow when he eyed up Philip - chef hat wearing tentacle monster that he was. However, as he carried Nina towards the rest of the wounded, Caim couldn't help but notice a small shiver run up his spine when his hand accidentally brushed Philip's skin; a sensation akin to jumping head first into the ocean in early spring. Being as he was, Caim did not comment upon this aloud, rather, it formed a small question in his mind...what was this creature with this seemingly innocuous young girl?

Hillary, on the other hand, seemed to show a bit more concern, asking Angelus quietly, "That new person sure is mad, but she looks really hurt! Do you know who that is?"

Angelus tilted her head in confusion at Nina's sudden intrusion and outburst, and only shook her head, "I can't say that I've met her at all. Though I have to say, Caim's response was rather...kind, of him." She smiled faintly, "I wonder if that's on account of the children... No matter - we have dedicated healers, Hillary; she'll be alright. Now, how about I bring you over to Rugal and find you something to do in the meantime?"

With a small gesture, dragon and slime-girl and tow made their way over the King of Fighters...

Speaking of, in the midst of all the chaos and company, Rugal received a message over the rings, the voice belonging to one familiar winter wolf, [color=356D60]"Alpha Rugal, we have a problem."[/color]

[hr]

[hr]

Ton Ton's knife lowered after he heard both Vihaan's explanation, as well as David's... "educated" guess, feeling somewhat satisfied that himself and Cadolbolg were actually able to get a straight answer! It seemed like a simple enough explanation - someone was faking being a proper Dawn member, someone "unnatural" as described by Vihaan. In equal parts an attempt to mentally sort through the information and to keep Cadolbolg calm, Ton Ton spoke softly, [color=15650D]"Someone who was 'forced into our lives'? Hmn... Well, I think that eliminates your parents, Cadolbolg. Not to sound rude, but Mr. Caim and Ms. Angelus are too self interested to consider anything along the lines of "people collecting". Besides, doesn't Mr. Caim have a castle now, he certainly wouldn't wanna stick around here."[/color]

The little turtle dragon gave a happy wag of his tail as he chirped, "Father said he does! We just haven't gotten to see it yet."

[color=15650D]"Exactly..."[/color] Ton Ton pondered this strange situation further, and thought aloud, [color=15650D]"Aside from this 'Alice Marlow', the most unusual thing I can think of is that party Ms. Angelus told us about - something about gathering a bunch of Dawn members together? If this person's plan was to capture everyone, gathering them in a big group would be a 'high risk, high reward' sort of deal. The Dawn is a bunch of powerful people, so putting them in one place sounds pretty stupid - unless they had a trump card..."[/color]

"You know, Father did mention that the prison he was in was able to cut off his pact link with Mother - if this person is as powerful as he (Vihaan) says, then maybe they can cut off powers like that too? But... How?" Cadolbolg's hover dipped for a moment, before he looked to Vihaan and voiced in a tone better suited for a child being told 'no' to extra cookies, "I don't feel like we got a lot to go on aside from being 'unnatural' and 'forced'... And I think my idea of 'weird' is a bit off, I used to explode for a living! What else is wrong with this person? Do they smell like feet or something?"

Zepherus14 · Aug 12, 2017

"No, not Nadalia, the other..." Hillary stopped as she looked around the room, trying to spot Yona to point her out to Angelus, but with the colonel already gone to look over the damage to the citadel this was proving to be difficult. "..Lady...? I don't see the lady now, maybe she left to go help someone else?" She suggested optimistically.

When asked about if how she'd first arrived to this place, Hillary looked a bit down."I'm still trying to remember what happened, Hillary was coming back to the Laplace, and then she tripped I think, and then she was on the ground here by herself." Hillary stated the initial events, still unsure exactly on the circumstances that brought her here. "Hillary is more worried Penelope will worry about her than getting back though. I'm sure Hillary will be able to go back." She said with an unfounded confidence. "With nice people like you, and Rugal, and Caim, Hillary will go back again." She smiled sweetly and gave Angelus a firm but gentle hug as a way of thanking Angelus for her words of comfort, protection and kindness.

That was about the time Nina came into view, prompting Hillary's concern and Angelus' response in kind. Although she wasn't sure why she felt so uneasy about the noodle monster that hung from the woman's side, Angelus' calm mannerisms once again put Hillary at ease, smiling along with Drago mom. "Very much so, he's like Penelope, doing what she can to help others. Or like those two Hillary first met too, Tonberry and Cadolbolg! They helped Hillary find Rugal and were really nice to her! They went with Teri and Garm, I think?" Hillary squeezed her eyes shut if trying to remember, poking at her head to the point of making a dent in her forehead. The damage soon fixing itself once Hillary stopped. "There's been a lot of people today to remember..." She spoke sheepishly.

And with the final suggestion to head over to Rugal to help, Hillary looked up gleaming in more ways than one. "Yes! I would like to help if she could! Hillary could... lift stuff. Talk to people. Make their sore muscles go away." She happily offered, following along with Angelus but still being weary of any open flames that were still lingering around[footnote]Which includes the 'Warmth' spell Nadalia has conjured[/footnote].

Silence · Aug 12, 2017

Cloudtop Citadel
Yona's office

[hr]

Mio | Mitte

"I did not know a harbor for flying ships could also get attacked by krakens." Mio said in a deadpan voice as the pressure and the shields were lifted from her. She got up, dusted herself off, then looked at Mitte. "Are you okay, there? This place does not exactly seem safe."

[hr]

The Rising Dawn
Bridge

[hr]

Diana | Hiryu

"So you want me to prove myself to you, after you already picked me?" Diana sighed. "It can never be easy, can it? The stuff that is happening here is probably caused by some kind of idiot, again. Which also means that it should not be too hard to find out who did it, unless they are already dead." She got up and stretched herself a bit. "Alright, I'm doing it. How can I contact you again?"

[hr]

The Rising Dawn
Cantina

[hr]

Anjali

Anjali was satisfied, but as there were great things going on, she felt the thing inside her stir, giving her the desire to learn about the demons causing this. It nearly controlled her body, so much it was pushing. So Anjali decided to follow the instinct of the creature inside her which had caused her reanimation. She got up from the chair in the cantina, and walked out, seeing a different god fly out of a broken window.

The creature inside her stirred again, and she went further along the hallways, trying to find a place or person of importance to the events, only her instincts guiding her, but her instincts guiding her well. She could feel that something had changed about this place, something more than just damage caused by earthquakes.

Texas Joker 52 · Aug 13, 2017

[hr]

Vihaan's explanation was, unsurprisingly, rather lengthy. It took every ounce of restraint to keep the Space Convict from making low, long-suffering groans or faces at the boy, so she settled with the occasional eye-roll. It didn't help that it gave her the impression that while he could've kept it short and to-the-point, he just wanted to hear himself talk. What a self-assured little shit.

But as it turned out, that wave of negative energy and emotion that threatened to crush her earlier was apparently completely unrelated to what he considered to be the real problem. Instead, apparently some entity was taking people from different dimensions, timelines, universes, what have you. While it made B.C. wonder if that was why the prison transport crashed here on this primitive dirt ball, it was ultimately a non-issue to her.

But apparently, Vihaan wasn't just satisfied with knowing what was going on, he felt the need to stop it, and that meant killing this entity. A being that, he explained, had forced itself into their number and was masquerading as one of the otherworldly visitors plucked from their home worlds. And apparently, David was in the best position to know, having the entire list of everyone who didn't belong there.

"M-Marlow Alice!...Marlow Alice!...Is-is that it?...There were so many names, I had no idea what was going on but-...M-marlow Alice?..."

The name didn't mean anything to B.C., but then again she didn't expect it to. She hadn't been on this world for very long, and the number of people she actually knew or recognized could be counted on two hands. But as the two little ones began to talk among themselves, something they mentioned immediately piqued her interest.

"[color=15650D]--the most unusual thing I can think of is that party Ms. Angelus told us about - something about gathering a bunch of Dawn members together? If this person's plan was to capture everyone, gathering them in a big group would be a 'high risk, high reward' sort of deal. The Dawn is a bunch of powerful people, so putting them in one place sounds pretty stupid - unless they had a trump card...[/color]"

Her head lifted from her arms as a wide smile spread on her face.

"A party, huh? In that case, I have a suggestion: Why not send David and I along to scope it out, see if this Marlow Alice chick is there, and if so, we can do a quick smash-and-grab. If we're both guests, that shouldn't raise too much suspicion, and I can give David some backup, as well as pose as his date." she said with a smile, before glancing back at David and giving him a suggestive wink, saying "Hope you don't mind little old me clinging to your arm tonight, darlin'."

When she turned back to Vihaan, however, her expression was lacking the same warmth that she regarded her potential 'date' with.

"Consider me a civilian contractor for this. I'll need something appropriate to wear, of course. I'm thinking a nice, long, shiny black latex number, slit up one side of the skirt to the hip, strapless and with a nice low neckline. Matching evening gloves. Oh, and a nice pair of boots. I'm sure an organization such as yours can make sure I get something like that." she told him with a sneer.

NotYetForsaken · Aug 13, 2017

[[Main Scenario]]

[hr]

Glimmer of Hope

Code:

titania's story

[hr]

"Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,"

Vihaan tilted his head back, far more than seemed comfortable. Perhaps it was a custom of his homeland, but he grinned. Titania could tell that he was amused. The runes danced in the air before her, melting in and out of the scene. Her eyelids were heavy, but she forced herself to stay awake. It is a shame my body has gotten this weak. The boy admiral laughed, casting a sidelong glance at Titania to acknowledge his remote audience.

"The party, the party," the words danced on his lips like the beating wings of a butterfly. He held out his hands and shrugged, flipping two invitations from his sleeves. "These were Colonel Yona and my invitations."

They were cream-colored, soft as skin, and embroidered in golden ink. Titania squinted as Vihaan turned his hands over and handed the two pieces of paper to B.C. and David. For a brief moment, Titania could see the paper flash black and the ink silver. These were not written by the trespasser. Disguised documents. The same type that was given to Eddie the Dead and Katya Rostikova, Titania mused.

"There is no need to gather us all in one place. We've already been captured after all. This is more than likely just a way to try and pacify us. Perhaps assure us that nothing is wrong with this mockery of a world that we've been stuffed in." Vihaan put a hand on each of the Cutie Bruiser's heads and smiled kindly. A genuine smile from the son of a malevolent demon king. "You have the right idea however, someone wants all of the strongest people in this world all in one place. Something big is definitely going to happen."

He motioned for his closest assistants to leave with him. Vihaan stopped right before the door and turned to speak to B.C. over his shoulder, "Try not to feel so entitled. This is a military base. We have engineering uniforms and we have research uniforms. We don't keep a locker full of dress clothes." He pointed at David, "Mr. West knows the way out. Be vigilant. Who knows when you might cross paths with a white rabbit."

Vihaan left, but the other stranger. The brown haired girl. She seemed rather perturbed by the situations. She shook her head, "No way, there's no way." She grabbed the invitations from B.C. and David, staring at the writing as if absorbed into their cursive loops. "This is Lola's handwriting... but it can't be, I saw Lola write all of the invitations herself. There's no way she could have made these!"

White rabbit. Titania remembered seeing something like that in the presence of this brown-haired girl when she first arrived on the ship. A white rabbit who kept trying to keep them on the right time table.

---

Mitte got to her feet and leaned against the wall for support, "No. That certainly was not normal." She looked at Mio and found the pirate somewhat frazzled by the sudden onslaught. "Good thing you are made of sterner stuff than I am." Mitte coughed. "I will need a moment of rest before I continue."

There was a flurry of footsteps as soldiers rushed down the hallway. Two stopped and helped Mitte stand up.

"Lt. Kobayashi, please let us help you," the first of the two soldiers said, putting Mitte's arm around her shoulder. The other patted down the lieutenant. Then she turned to Mio, "You should get to the main concourse. The entire base is in a state of emergency. Follow this hallway down and then take the elevator to the lowest floor that it'll take you. The other members of the Rising Dawn are already there."

"Alright, see you later then, Mio," Mitte forced a friendly chuckle.

"Lieutenant Kobayashi!" the first soldier gasped as she picked up the injured lieutenant.

---

Titania closed the book and stood up to stretch. Her eyes hurt like hell, but the bustle of the people around her kept her from falling immediately asleep. Deborah supported her from behind, huge springy bust acting as a sort of cushion for her head. The larger woman ran her fingers through Titania's long white hair.

"I don't like how things are going," she muttered under her breath.

"You rarely ever do," Deborah said, "if you worry too much, your hair will turn white you know."

Titania faked a laugh. Then she stood up and on shaky footing made her way to the center of the gathered heroes. She cleared her throat and held her book close to her breast. Two of her retainer fairies materialized behind her. It was good to be back in her body at the very least. Spending so much time locked away in the darkness had made her bond their her muscles weak.

"Rugal," she said. Her voice was strong and clear, belonging more to Major le Fey than it did to Titania. "We need to get everyone back to the Rising Dawn. This was no accident, but a deliberate attack. We need to get moving. That thing will be back." Hopefully, she added silently.

"Angelus, it's time to spread your wings. Hasten the newer members of the Dawn to the safety of the ship immediately. Nina and Phillip, you are both to calm down. The 1021st division is already aboard the Rising Dawn. Go and see to it that they are safe. They should be in the main kitchens when you arrive."

"Caim. David, Ton Ton, Cadolbolg, Laeta as well as the prisoner we ran into at Denver are in the floors below. Meet them at the east side elevators when they come up and make sure they get to the Dawn in one piece. That Colonel Yona is liable to try and turn B.C. into minced meat given what they've done to her base."

"Rugal, again, also you have a mad robot that's about to get himself and your daughter killed. Do something about that before the Colonel decides that we're all enemies of the Citadel."

She turned around and spread her mantle around her like wings. Her hair billowed dramatically in a passing breeze. "The Rising Dawn undocks and leaves in twenty minutes with or without all of you."

The Escapist Avatar Adventure: An Open RP (Now Re-Opened!)

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Queen of Cockblocking and Misery

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Queen of Cockblocking and Misery

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the Heart of Darkness

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Living undeath to the fullest

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