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Gregory rips into the plant with frightening fury, sending great gouts of sap spraying across the overgrown garden, almost, but not quite, rendering the plant inert.
It responds, near-mindlessly, by continuing to attack...
...but does not manage to land a single blow.
Round 5: Gregory(-12), VV (-185)
Spitting bitter pulp from his mouth, Gregory attempts to deliver a killing blow.
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Gregory annihilates the final hapless plant.
Glancing up from his sticky work, Gregory is surprised to note that he has an audience!
Several humanoids dressed in loose-fitting togas are wandering around the patio, occasionally sparing him a mildly-surprised glance.
Huh. I guess these must be the other worshipers that I was told about...
Not wasting any time, Gregory pounces on the Kyton!
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Gregory pounces upon the hapless kyton, literally tearing it apart, and is surprised to discover that it has very little in the way on internal organs, although there is still plenty of blood to spread around.
The nearby androids (several dozen in total) scream, and start to flee, calling on Unity to protect them, and shouting for Deacon Hope to save them.
However, nine 'androids' (which Gregory recognises as more kytons) stand firm, and look ready to cast spells.
From the patio, Gregory has a much better view of the central room:
Impossibly bright colors adorn this enormous chamber, which is lined in tidy cobblestones and decorated to appear like an outdoor town square. Brilliant red-and-blue bunting and colorful tapestries are draped from balconies and walkways overhead, filling in whatever spots the leafy vines leave bare. Shops line the promenade on every side, and in front of the shops sit rows of small tables, chairs, and parasols. To the west, an archway reveals glimpses of greenery and hints of springtime scents, while the north boasts an impressive facade decorated with figures laughing, crying, and staring sternly at passersby. A beautiful display of enormous, colorful flowers and greenery grows in abundance within a pagoda at the center of the promenade, filling the air with a pleasant floral perfume, while above, a blue sky with a warm sun and a few clouds completes the serene scene.
Round 1: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-138,-,-,-,-,-,-,-,-,-)
Remaining oblivious to any other threats, Gregory pounces on the next kyton in line!
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Gregory eviscerates another kyton.
Four of them then glare at Gregory, whilst the closest four direct spells at him, attempting to overwhelm him with despair.
Suddenly, a large cloud of pollen is released by the plant at the centre of the room, which washes over Gregory with no effect.
A thin fog, however, then pops into existence around Gregory.
Round 2: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-136,-121,-,-,-,-,-,-,-,-)
Overcome by despair, Gregory nevertheless manages to shake off his ennui sufficiently to pounce on the next kyton.
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Predictably, another kyton falls, although like the others, it begins to slowly regenerate.
A burst of glitter then envelops Gregory, following which he can feel something trying to overload his motor cortex.
The remaining kytons then attempt to affect Gregory with their gazes.
Round 3: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-136,-121,-139,-,-,-,-,-,-,-)
Incredibly, Gregory manages to shake-off everything that is thrown at him, although he remains quite sparkly.
Snarling, he then pounces on another kyton!
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Another kyton is rendered inert (for now).
Another cloud of glitter envelops Gregory, and he once again feels something trying to take over his mind, as the central plant begins to shake in agitation.
The six vertical kytons decide to change tactics, and shout at the top of the their lungs, sending forth cones of sonic energy...
...which, much to their surprise, wash harmlessly over Gregory, thanks to his sound-proofing.
Round 4: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-134,-119,-137,-113,-,-,-,-,-,-)
Once again, Gregory manages to retain control of his mind.
What is wrong with that plant?
He then moves on to the next kyton.
Grinning, Gregory shakes off everything thrown at him, and pounces on yet another kyton!
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Gregory eviscerates another kyton.
The central plant's outer branches part, revealing the body of a green-skinned woman growing from the central trunk.
Scowling angrily, she moves forward on sinuous tendrils, before lashing out with a woody tentacle!
However, much to her obvious annoyance, she misses.
The four remaining kytons do their best to impair Gregory's ability to fight, once again flooding his mind with calming thoughts.
Round 6: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-130,-115,-133,-109,-140,-141,-,-,-,-)
Gregory discovers that he just no longer has a desire to fight.
This time, Gregory retains control of his senses, and, ignoring the plant woman (thereby provoking an AoO), pounces on another kyton.
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A flailing tentacle just doesn't move quickly enough to hit Gregory.
Redeeming himself, Gregory pounces on another kyton, and tears it limb from limb.
The three remaining ones try exactly the same tactic, fighting a losing battle to contain Gregory.
The plant creature then chases after Gregory, swiping at him with one of its thorny vines...
...but failing to even make contact with his shields.
Round 8: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-126,-111,-129,-105,-136,-137,-175,-,-,-)
Avoiding the ongoing bombardment of his mind, Gregory chases after another kyton.
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Once more, the plant's flailing vines fail to inconvenience Gregory, as he pounces on yet another kyton, and utterly destroys it.
The two remaining ones then try to calm him down...
Whilst the plant creature surges forward to attack him!
Round 9: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-124,-109,-127,-103,-134,-135,-173,-134,-,-)
Once again, Gregory manages to avoid the remaining kytons' snares, and pounces on one of them.
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Once again, flailing vines do little to inconvenience Gregory, as he pounces forward to take down yet another kyton.
The last one frantically tries to calm Gregory down...
...whilst the plant creature surges forward to futilely flail at Gregory's shields.
Round 10: Gregory(-12), M(-), TW (-122,-107,-125,-101,-132,-133,-171,-132,-165,-)
Gregory pounces on the final kyton!
Breathing a sigh of relief, Gregory turns his full attention to the plant.
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Gregory starts ripping into hostile plant with focused fury, tearing off great strips of thick, bark-like hide.
It responds by lashing out with its vines...
...and, incredibly, manages to strike exactly over a weak capacitor, causing his shields to start haemorrhaging energy.
Round 12: Gregory(-35), M(-141), TW (-118,-103,-121,-97,-128,-129,-167,-128,-161,-135)
"Damn."
Realising that he needs this battle to be over, *quickly*, Gregory redoubles his fury!
Gregory, firstly, spends a charge from his wand to stop his 'Bleed'.
He then collects the kytons, four at a time, start with the first ones that he dropped.
He then drags their bodies to the ornamental pond in the overgrown park, and drowns them.
He then repeats the process with the other six, taking two more trips, before finishing the healing process.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Gregory moves back to explore the smaller rooms that appeared to calve-off from the central chamber.
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When Gregory moves back into the central chamber, he hears a heavenly choir, and a cloud, suffused with golden light, floats down from the ceiling, dissipating when it touches the floor.
In its place, stands a handsome man with short black hair and a close-cropped goatee, dressed in a richly tailored gold and tan robe. At his shoulder floats a small golden globe of light, from which echoes of the heavenly choir continue to emanate.
The man frowns when he sees Gregory.
"Why have you come here, to deliver such pain and sorrow? Heathen, explain yourself! This is a holy place, sacred to the great god Unity, and you have defiled it."
"Unity is no god that I recognise."
So saying, Gregory pounces on the man!
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The man shouts in surprise when Gregory's claws rip through his form, but Gregory is even *more* surprised to discover that the man is not entirely there - for although his claws *do* rip strips off the body, it does not bleed, and the man's appearance starts to get slightly fuzzy around the edges.
Round 1: Gregory(-), DH(-93)
What the heck is this guy?
Shrugging his shoulders, Gregory presses his assault!
Thoroughly bemused, Gregory continues on with his original task: Exploring the smaller rooms on this level.
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Practically all of the smaller chambers on this level appear to be old market stalls, with facades emblazoned with signs in Androffan promising various merchandise for sale. Within, the stores are disturbingly identical: shelves lined with identical clothing, bland and flavorless prepackaged meals, and a small and repetitive selection of entertainment options.
To the northeast and south west, short corridors lead to staircase that spiral upward to another level, whilst to the south, Gregory discovers a moderately disturbing monorail station: Murals of smiling men and women, aggressively green trees, and lurid houses in a strangely antiseptic and blocky architectural style line the walls of the room. To the south, a large cage sits balanced atop a glowing beam of force.
Meanwhile, to the north is a conspicuously empty room, the walls of which are plated with sparkling sheets of gray and silvery metal that periodically shimmer with ripples of multicolored light. Several small side chambers, likewise plated in the same strange metal, calve off from the main room, and in two of these, Gregory easily identifies secret doors, hidden behind large plates in the walls.
Whilst searching around, Gregory also sees a few androids cautiously come down the stairs to peek at him, but they quickly run away when spotted.
Ah, right. The worshipers.
Not knowing what is behind the secret door, but *definitely* knowing where the androids are, Gregory decides to go and 'cleanse' them.
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The upper consists of several broad, curving corridors, off of which are dozens of studio apartments. Each of the 15-foot-by-20-foot cabins contains two beds, a kitchenette, a washroom, and plenty of shelving. Little of any actual value can be found here.
Scattered throughout the rooms are several dozen androids; when Gregory comes for them, some (futilely) try to flee, some are confused, and some simply stare up at him dully, not really comprehending what is happening - such an avatar of death being wholly outside their limited worldview.
When he is done, android body parts and thin, pale blood (surprisingly scentless) are scattered around the upper deck.
One thing of note stands out: At the southern extremity of this level are several banks of strange machines, fronted by a dizzying array of monitors, dials, and buttons.
"Huh. Fabricators. I could think of all *sorts* of useful things that I could make with these..."
Shelving the crafting for a later date, however, Gregory uses Prestidigitation to clean himself up, then heads to the lower level, and in particular, for the westernmost secret door, to see what lies beyond.
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Beyond the secret door is a corridor that curves around to the right, with a few empty offices and storage rooms calving off from it.
The corridor itself, however, eventually terminates in a rather disturbing room:
Coils of horribly living viscera decorate the walls of these chamber—hearts still throbbing and intestines still pumping, all intertwined with inexplicable devices. Piles of tools and blood-caked mechanisms are neatly laid out on every horizontal surface, save for the impeccably clean surgical tables. Despite the grisly view, the air in the room smells antiseptic and clean.
Scattered around the human are four strange figures:
Two seven-foot-tall humanoids, their bodies pierced in numerous places by spiked chains, and their mouths sewn shut with jagged strips of metal wire.
More disturbing by far however, are the two larger creatures that accompany them - multi-limbed monstrosities of claws and blades, with a central core of glistening veins, organs, and twisted flesh.
Bubbly voices speak in a chilling chorus:
"New flesh..."
Round 1: Gregory(-), IK(-,-), SK(-,-)
"Kytons. Lovely..."
Wrinkling his nose in distaste, Gregory pounces on the closest big one.
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Gregory rips into one of the Interlocutors, which quivers ecstatically as he rips into its pulpy central body, but otherwise, shows little signs of damage.
Both interlocutors then attempt to skewer Gregory...
...but neither is able to land a solid blow.
The two Sacristans then turn their gazes upon Gregory, attempting to overwhelm him with masochistic urges.
Round 2: Gregory(-), IK(-148,-), SK(-,-)
Gregory manages to navigate his way through the unusual urges flooding his system, and attempts to finish-off the injured interlocutor.
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Gregory tears the central mass clean out of the injured Kyton, which writhes helplessly for a few seconds, before growing still.
He is then able to adjust his position, and start working on the remaining interlocutor, use a claw attack to set it up for a devastating bite!
It then attempts to return the favour...
...but once again, is unable to land a single blow.
Meanwhile, the two Sacristans continue to direct their gazes at Gregory.
Round 3: Gregory(-), IK(-63), SK(-,-)
Once again, Gregory is able to ignore the Sacristans' siren song, and continues to fillet the Interlocutor.
With a grin, Gregory turns his attention to the Sacristans.