Vance will wait once his companions are done he will head to the Door.
If Nuuskin can find something to write with, he scribbles down a note and passes it to Disbina.
Who is this man who can teach us about our powers?
Did all your companions perish? Or were they absorbed by the enemy? If we meet any of them, what should we know about them?
Tch'Chiana had taken up a kneeling position on the floor of the command tent. A goblet of have drunk wine sitting next to her. When offered the gamble to touch the orb she was hesitant, paranoid, and skeptical. Vance touched the sphere and did not die. That gave Chiana a boost of confidence. A hand whipped out and she fully grasped the sphere as if it were a bug that would fly away if not caught.
She knew not if the experience was the same for everybody; but for her it felt as if she were walking the stairs passing through Doors and worlds while seeing through somebody else's eyes. Oddly enough she also experienced another person's emotions as well such as the thrill and fear of passing through an unknown door. She caught glimpses of people and creatures she had never seen. All the details faded as she let go of the sphere. Only the deep impression and understanding of the Doors and the ways of a Warden were left. A chattering sound escaped her lips as she let out her breath, which she had apparently been holding. After catching her breath she polished off the last of the amber nectar left in the goblet.
Chiana patently waited for Severus to handle his armies. When he returned she took up a position by his side as they follow after Vance.
"Severus, this is your world, I concede to your knowledge, experience, and command for as long as we're here," she says rather matter-of-factly. She turned her head to the side and glanceed to see if the other followed as well. Her decision was based more off of survival rather than respect for the General, but why not kill two birds with one stone?
Thiol a tall blonde human male, about 40 years, healthy, ancient Grecian clothing and a gem like crystal over his third eye secured with a golden metal band walks up and places his hand on the orb, For a moment it is fine then you see shear power bleed out from his body, braking his skin apart as he scream in object agony. His flesh burns away, his bones blacken, then gem in his forehead shatters into nothing, a horrid smell fills the tent and all that is left is a wisp of smoke and dust.
A Disbina Looks at what is left.
"Four out of five not bad, more than I expected"
She walks out the tent following her other selves.
Nuuskamuikkunen looks at the remains of the grecian man, and then looks out after Disbina, making light of his death. This man was one of her prospects, too; he came from his world at her invitation, only to die in agony, senselessly. This mad didn't fall in battle; he fell because encouraged her new recruits to grab power beyond their ability to hold. Throughout this entire escapade, he has kept an even emotional balance, but this flippant disregard for life leaves him seething.
'Hard to kill,' you say? Mayhap, but I swear, by the soul of this man, and by the companions you let die, we'll see just how difficult.
The Void stopped when the last of their number had touched the orb and burned to nothing. That could have been any of them and who would have touched the orbs if it had been him that had gone first.
"He sacrificed himself so that his world might live, a moment for him." The Void stopped and used his cape to clean out the glass he had used placing the ashes inside of it.
"He should be buried on his native soil."
From one of the pockets on his vest he took out some duct tape and covered the top of the glass with it.
He then silently went off to the Door.
After the conflagration that was one of Desbina's chosen, Chiana raised her hands into the air, fingers spread wide. She shook her hands violently as she slowly lowered her arms. She also made some sort of soft gargling noise from the back of her throat mixed with rapid chattering of her pointed teeth. Some sort of prayer to the dead perhaps?
"What was the blonde Ume's name? We should consider cleansing his world for him, so his sacrifice would mean something...after the rest of ours of course," she said to no one in particular. "It takes great courage to come as far as most of us already have."
The death of Thiol was shocking but Severus was somewhat more sanguine about it than the others; death of one's comrades being something of an occupational risk for soldiers.
Inwardly Severus lamented the man's loss only in so much as he would never now know the man well enough to determine if he was honorable and trustworthy or conversely a person of no worth. In addition had they not all been warned of the risk? The choice had been Thiol's own and his death was thus of his own making.
Severus watches Vance gather up Thiol's remains in silence, he makes no comment.
One of the Disbinas gos over and punches the one that spoke, in the arm.
With a displeasing look says to it.
"Heartless Much!"
Another one looks over at the two and then at the rest of you,
With a shrug
"She always like that, thinks its dark humour, stupid if you ask me"
The one punched is rubbing her arm. The one who punched says
"Yes and forgets others have FEELINGS!"
The one rubbing her arm says.
"I'm sorry ok, just thought, you know"
Says the one hit, hanging her head.
Another Disbina says,
"As I said we can do things others find hard, like hold a number of differing points of view at the same time. His name was Thiol and he was a brave man, I for one am sorry he could not take the power offered, but we taked about the riks and I did agree to save his world even if he lost his life now or later, that go's for you all. Its in just as dire need as your are. As for the one who could help us, if and I mean IF he want's to be found I know where we can start looking. But right now there is an Army of taint on the march in Tch'Chiana"
The Disbina that spoke hangs her head.
If he finds the Door he will then look to Severus, "You wished to see it, I believe this is a Door to those Stairs."
He also nods to Tch'Chiana.
There is another Disbina at the door,
She says
"I'll be going with you, the others will be splitting in to two groups, one will stay to find the taint here, the other will head to Thiol's world to she what's happening there. The army should be at my tower now, so they will slow them down."
She lwaits on you to open and pass the door.
Nuuskin still deeply distrusts this woman, to the extent that he would likely as not find his own way to a battlefront, rather than keep her company. But he is still severely injured, and these creatures are good enough in combat to sneak upon him and give him such a serious wound before he can respond. He simply can't go off by himself against such enemies.
But then again, there's no safety in numbers, either. Would Disbina risk using the Pinch on herself, and on us, killing herself as well as all of us if it meant disrupting her enemy on a battlefront?
Nuuskin shook his head ruefully. Of course she would.
Disbina refused to answer his questions, twice now, about her former comrades. She was giving them limited information and no time to prepare or develop their skills. This was feeling more and more like a wind-up to throw us underneath a cart.
All right. If she won't give us a chance here, I may just have to make one.
Nuuskin followed Vance through the Door. A suspicion began to gnaw at him: What if Disbina's orb not only opens people's minds to power, but also sets up hypnotic triggers. What if Vance or Tch'Chiana are now programmed to be her footsoldiers in any conflict. It was a painful thought, given Vance's good manners when they met. It was time to keep very close tabs on everyone.
Tch'Chiana was confused as to why anyone was leaving. Would it not be prudent to finish off the world they were already in? And would they be able to do anything about the problem? This Splintered Goddess was a mess of multiple personalities and self motivations.
"Are there ways we can keep in contact with one another if we do split up?" she asked. She was certain a few of these folks knew magic, Desbina and the old man that smelled of pipe smoke for example. Though she knew not what spells the old man was using she could feel the presence of it like static electricity caressing her skin.
Several people seemed eager to visit the Great Stairs and Chiana was certain it was for personal reasons. After all, that's why she was choosing to pass through the Door. Once on the stairs she looked around with her multiple eyes. She received some sort of power that linked her to the Stairs from Desbina. She needed to know how to use that power, without it stopping invaders from entering her Domain seemed like a long shot. She focused on finding someone other than Desbina to aid her in learning to harness the powers of a Warden, someone willing and able to teach and aid.
Severus looked through the doorway and only by an act of will did he prevent himself from looking around the outer edge to confirm to himself that stair and the doors visible through it were not simply on the other side of the doorway in [i]this[/] place.
When Disbina began making plans for everyone's movement Severus stared at the one that spoke then burst into laughter, a wide smile appeared on his dark hard featured face, showing that he did in fact smile sometimes. It went away quickly when he spoke however.
"Lady Disbina, you are deluded if you think that I will abandon my command on Vrachos without even ensuring that the taint is gone. I must be sure that it does not pose an immediate threat to the men still stationed here. If the taint is not rooted out and destroyed on this moon who is to say that it will not reemerge stronger than before. There is a very real risk that my entire Legion might become infected and through them the taint may spread and eventually encompass the entire Imperium, perhaps even the worlds of the Periphery also."
He nodded to Tch'Chiana, since he felt her question bore answering.
Nuuskin nods in agreement with the Legate.
"As you can see the Stairs are real. I can feel some sort of connection to them which is hard to explain but I think you others might be experiencing this as well. I will go where it is most needed if the taint here is almost expunged I say we clean it away. Then it sounds like Tch'Chiana's world is next most in need though I don't know about your world Nuuskin ?"
"My own world has almost lost all sense of order and civilization, only a few candles of peace and hope burn in the night."
Then it sounds like Tch'Chiana's world is next most in need though I don't know about your world Nuuskin ?"
Nuuskin raises a reassuring hand as if to say "It's all right. Let's take care of others first."
The lone Disbina looks at you all now as you work out what to do,
"Severus I have no easy answers for you, but I don't I am just trying to work out what to do. I'm not the wise guild who shows up and leads you to self discovery in some mystical way. Nuuskin here asked me more than once what happened to my fellow Wardens guarding this part of the Stair. Truth is we where attacked, attacked after being invited to a friendly world that we felt was safe. To a wedding of one of our number. I was there in as many incarnations as I could. It was chance alone that I had one, off doing a dull take of decommissioning an old look out tower I one used. That and that lone slaved me, the last image that incarnation got off the others was utter darkness fulling in an instant. Then nothing, as if all life, communication every thing was cut off. That one incarnation and believe when I say I have never felt so vulnerable. Allowed me to re-manifest myself. Then as the last warder I slit my time researching would could have happened and in finding you. That research lead to my discovery of a device call the "Pinch" The event that whipped out most of myself and my fellows, was the total removal of a Gossamer back into shadow. Some thing I did not know was even possible until I made a tiny version, affecting only a tiny part of a Gossamer. Nuur has seen it in action. Even then it takes a great amount of time and power to craft, But to make one with the power eradicate a whole Gossamer. That's beyond anything I have ever heard of. I know you have questions and I wish I could supply the answers but I just don't have them. All I do know is someone attacked me and my fellows, they all but whipped us out and now this train has sprung up. I have no idea if what we are doing is the right thing to do, but its all I can thing of here and now. I joke I know I do, but its fear that drives it. You four, your my hope, Where we go from here is up to you, you want to stay then stay, you want to come with me and Tch'Chiana then come. All I know is an Army of taint is now out my tower, there I have defiances but they will not hold them off forever. I, we need to get there and wipe it out full, then in my tower I may have a means to make something to aid us detect the taint. Is up to you."
She seems a little lost like no your seeing her for the 1st time, the single Disbina, alone, A woman worried and scared. She seems to be braver around her other selves, like she was putting on a show for herself.
The Void nodded, "We do need some means of detecting this taint, or we can never be sure our worlds have been purged. We should also all think about some type of armor to keep the tainted from effecting us. With any army attacking Tch'Chiana's world it might do well that we have an army. Though Severus, you are the only one I know here that seems to have one."
"I can't believe I am standing here talking about other worlds, and it is apparent much is going on that we do not know. At the same time we are pressed for time as every moment we are not destroying this taint it might grow. I say we should clear this world while perhaps one of us goes to seek help or at least more knowledge of what is going on. With this world cleansed we could then see to Tch'Chiana's world."
"Dispina, what is at your tower ?"
Severus listens to Disbina and Vance, his face is stony as he says, "I will stay to ensure the safety of this place... my Gossamer. Even were you all to leave through yonder door right now then this would be so."
He looks at Vance, Nuuskin and Chiana in turn, "I have sworn to aid you each fight this blight, for in numbers there is strength. Conversely I expect your aid here, for with such aid this place may be cleansed all the quicker.... Leave now with Disbina and I will point no finger of blame, but I will hold my oath to be null and void."
Nuuskin calmly withdraws a notebook from his pouch. He uses the writing tool he'd used in Severus' tent, and quietly writes a message.
I have exhausted my supply of talking tobacco, but I have plenty of paper.
There are five worlds in peril. If we each take our own home as our first priority, we will be facing our foes alone.
I would ask that we pool our responsibilities as well as our powers. Let us consider ourselves collectively wardens for our five homes, and take their safekeeping in priority.
I would think that we should focus our first efforts on the most urgent crisis, lest it fall. But you might argue that we should move in order from nearest Gossamer to farthest along the Stair, or least dangerous to most (so that we learn to use our abilities as we go).
"There is a certain logic to taking on those worlds least effected to learn our powers better. Clearing things up before they get too bad, but that also means we might lose those worlds most tainted. Without the means to detect this taint though we will never know if we have purified a world. I am fine with staying here and clearing things up, though someone does need to discover how to find this taint even small residue of it."
"in My tower, ithere may be a means, I have an old device, long proven for use but I could craft a door resonance amp from it, yes , if we linked it to a door it would give a simple value for gossamer content, a yes there is some taint and no, I could even make a simple location device from that, it would be crude but it would do as needed"
She is off thinking, looking away, as if talking to others.
Severus turns and heads back to his troops, he calls over his shoulder, "Let me know what you decide, my mind is made up."
"Work on it Dispina, or have some of your other selves work on it we will need it."
Vance looked to Nuuskin patted his shoulder and then followed Severus back in.
Looks at Severus as he walks off.
"You know I thought he would come, hold on"
She splits and one of the Dibinas runs after the General.
The other says,
"So yes, I was going to do that anyway BUT you have to get me to the tower, I left it in a rush and did not leave one of my-selves there. Mistake that. So what's it to be stay or go?"
The goddess was mad, and the men weren't thinking clearly. Desbina admitted to not being able to seal Doors. She said her device, which she doesn't have, could sense the presence of taint in a world but not how much or where. Which meant they had little in the way of resources to even find the tainted. Can't find them, can't stop them. Some people just had to learn the hard way.
She looked to the nearest goddess, "I will go with you to your tower. Retrieve what toys you must. We can then return back here and see what good they do in this world."
Chiana would at least get to experience more travel along the stairs. She would watch the goddess and see just how she performed her tricks, and if Chiana was lucky pick up a few of those tricks herself.
Once back at base Severus sends an urgent communique to the Imperial capital indicating that the Brotherhood are using some form of mutagenic organism which is highly contagious and causes severe genetic alteration and a homicidal frenzy in the victims, he requests more men, equipment and ships in order to root out the Brotherhood once and for all and to destroy the dangerous genetic pathogen. He makes no mention of doors or other worlds, or Gossamers as he is beginning to think of them.
After this, Severus calls a staff meeting and outlines his plans. The settlement recently held by the Brotherhood is to be searched thoroughly for any hidden cellars, crypts, rooms or tunnels. Any tainted are to be destroyed utterly. Once it is clear that the place is free of taint the whole town is to be razed to the ground.
Meanwhile the surviving Brotherhood soldiers are to be run down and as many captured as possible so that they can be interrogated in order determine the source of the taint or at least try to find out anything which points to a source.
He decides to quarantine the doorway, and positions a force of men and artillery in cordon about the area, the quarantining force has orders to fire on anyone or anything attempting to enter or exit the quarantine zone without Severus' explicit order.
With these orders in place he speaks to the Disbina who followed him.
"These doors, are there likely to be more of them on this moon? Also how many other doors are there likely to be which open directly to this universe?"
His concern being that if there are too many that there will be no viable means of finding them all and thus preventing the taint's contamination from spreading.
"That would be the only one, they are very rear indeed. It's here because it can shift, go touch it, you can feel it's a mover. In fact its here because of you, I Dial'ed you up, One of me has a dial"
The other Dibinas start to lead the other into the door.
Severus and Vance moved back to the battleground we'd just left, and Tch'chiana was accompanying a Disbina to her tower. Nuuskin had heard about this tower, and considers it worth exploring. He puts his hand on the Skorvid's shoulder and indicates that he, too, will travel to the tower.
Vance looks to see what battle plan Severus has for dealing with the taint.
Chiana didn't know what to think of the mute old man. She suspected he wielded magic, which by itself would be fine; after all, she was raised by a witch. If it was his magic she felt trying to push into her mind, that was another matter all together. She simply nodded, to show him she understood.
Chiana looked towards their Desbina escourt, "So, you never answered by question earlier. I suppose because your attention is split so many ways. So I'll ask it again. Is there a way, magic or otherwise, that we can keep in touch with one another across worlds?"
"That would be the only one, they are very rear indeed. It's here because it can shift, go touch it, you can feel it's a mover. In fact its here because of you, I Dial'ed you up, One of me has a dial"
The other Dibinas start to lead the other into the door.
Severus frowns and asks, "Could it move to another moon or another planet? If so there is no defense I can think of to put in place."
"Yes it can and there is no defense if it do's, but you need the power to do it and that is hard, 1st you have to know about doors and then how to move them. I'm using an old artefact made by one of my old compatriots. How he made it I don't know. Your world is in danger and you have no idea what to do about it, Trust me I know just how you feel."
"In which case I can do no more here than I have already done."
Severus turns to Vance and asks, "Do you have anything to add, I welcome any viewpoint at this time?"
"I cannot detect it either and I think that is paramount to combating this disease or taint, whatever it may be. Still I see a lot of high technology here, perhaps something could be devised. Yet it would take time, perhaps it is best to go to this tower and claim something already made for this task."
"Then we NEED to get to my tower, all our books and research is there. Somewhere in that it there has to be a means to found this taint. If you are with me then lets go, as one, to-giver, we have an army of taint between us and my tw..."
She stops for a moment looking away.
"They have started the attack, my other-selves are doing there best to hold them off with the towers defiances. But we dont have much time.
Severus Caelio how many troops can you bring with you, your powers will protect them on the steps and if one of you can weave an illusion so they see not the real steps that will help as well."
Now she seems in a hurry to get things done.
Severus takes some ten minutes to issue contingency orders then returns to Disbina and says, "I am ready. If we can save your tower and find the source of the taint perhaps that will enable us to cut the head from the beast and remove the threat from all of our world's. ... Gossamers."
Vance nods, "I shall do what I can and shield Severus men from seeing the Stair. It is strange simply seeing it would be dangerous to them ?"
Vance prepares to do what he can using his powers to shield the men by warping their view to something more acceptable to the current landscape.
good then we go,
she opens the door and it grows in size, ready for troops to head it.
you head in.
The landscape shifts but looks like it sits, soon your at a large Buncker doors Disbina opens them and you see in side a wasted plan at night, a large battle is under way. 1000s of misshaped being are asolting a tower.
Knight in white are fighting them, looking close you can see they are robots. There number is now few,
The imminent fall of the robotic white knights draws Severus' attention, without looking at Vance or Disbina he comments, "Whomsoever is controlling the mechanicals should move them back into a smaller perimeter, the tainted will have to bunch up and that will be inclined to reduce their advantage in numbers."
He has a copper colored ion pistol holstered at his side which he draws as he watches the battle.
"I take it we need to break through the enemy line to help the defenders?" he asks rhetorically.
As he speaks Severus' ion pistol morphs, within moments Severus holds a six foot long quarter staff wrought of dark wood shod in bronze.
He turns to look at Vance and smiles, "Shall we be about it?"
Vance nods and floats up into the air, "Very well Severus. You lead your men and I shall provide the air support."
Vance paid careful attention to how the attackers moved and if they had their own flying troops as well as the weak points they could strike at to get Severus his troops and Dispina through to the tower.
He focused on wide attacks or striking at what he perceived as weak points. Still being no general or even sergeant himself he listened for Severus commands and tried to carry them out to the best of his ability.
Disbina nods
"I'm controlling the servitors but I have no experience of mass combat."
She dos as you say and you see the robotic nights fall back.
The mass of the tainted seem to press the attack.
"Yes we need to get to the tower and clear the flying tainted from it"
You can see a mass of tainted flapping around it top.
"No time like the present." comments Severus, "Once we're there, do you want me to tale over command of the defense? I'll need to know what defenses you have."
Vance nodded took to the air to clear away some of the flying tainted hurling black spiral blasts at those coming within range if they had wings he aimed for those.
|
Disbina says to Severus
"Yes I am no good with army's, Devices, communication and travel I can do, war is not my thing"
She smile worriedly. You can see the mistakes she has made with her troops, its better now they are flighting closer to the tower.
As The Void flys up and starts to clear a way to the Tower, the thing moves out of the mass of tainted, its dark evil looking and big, it seems as large as the tower itself and its made of a mass of bodys from the tainted.
Then a mass of voices say from it.
"You dear defy me!! THIS REALM IS MINE! splintered one, your wasting your time"
Then it opens its mouth and a jet of black slime as wade as an office block sprays out at you all.
Vance brings up his defense black spirals forming before him as he goes into full defense mode.
"That's new."
Diving aside (hopefully), Severus moves to dodge the blast of taint. He forms the Novus into its Ion Pistol configuration and begins blasting at the huge dragon to distract it.
"Woman, get you to the tower." he calls as he shoots at the beast, he keeps moving as he does so, changing direction randomly, or so it seems, but still manages to move inexorably closer and closer to the tower.