Talmarren looks to you and for the first time his solid, rocklike features look to be pained. The swirling energy that his symbols emitted has slowed to almost a crawl and as Sylin's remains burn their way into the lower portion of your home. Followed by a massive crash as it destroys another set of your furniture. Talmarren staggers to his feet as your shoved back down in your chair by Sylandra and it's then you notice that her hands aren't pressed on your chest, they are inside your chest. There's no blood though, no incision, it's as if her hands had melded with your body. And yet you can see her moving her wrists back and forth across your chest, its hard not to feel sickened, shocked or awestruck at the feat being performed before your eyes. Before your able to speak further she grumbles at you, obviously struggling to maintain concentration on the task she was performing. "Don't move Chosen! If I let go you won't survive long..."
Talmarren speaks over her. "The machination of evil men is not the art of men such as you Chosen..." He sucked in a pained grasp as he leaned against your patio's shattered door frame. He leaned so heavily on it that parts of the wooden frame breaks away before he's able to right himself once more. Each word was labored, sounding more forced by the second as Talmarren struggled. "Your sister is... Safe. Enough at least. Sylandra is right though, the damage they've caused you is fatal and i'm glad your willing..." His swirling patterns stop momentarily and he grabs at his chest, nearly doubling over before the patterns started to move again, weakly though. So slowly it appeared that they didn't move at all. "Because it's time. What else do you need from your home, because you may not be returning here again..."
Tyrn gaspsed and groaned in great discomfort, as he felt his insides being handled with no breach. As Talmarran seemed to be on his last breaths, Tyrn managed to squeeze out a response with great effort. "I need.... uurgh!... I need nothing, Talmarran. I'm ready for your world..." Tyrn's belligerent behavior ceased at the notion of his sister being a live. He knew he couldn't leave her here. "I only request we take my sister with us.... she's... she's not chosen, I'm sure, but I must see that she is safe...."
Tyrn felt fear as he saw the weakened Talamarran struggling to keep upright. He wished he was in a better position to help him.
Talmarren gives you a pained look and Sylandra grunts in effort as he speaks. His voice was cold and emotionless as he stated the simple truth. "Chosen, Tyrn, your sister is far safer here. They cannot pursue her. Sylain made sure of that when he killed the current High Lord. Without him his... Creatures will be scattered and disorganized. I wish I could stay and see the infighting but at this point... I don't know if we will succeed in the journey home. With my current... *URGH*"
He stumbles onto all four's and remains there as Sylandra looks from him to you. "You can't do it Talmarren! It'll...."
She pauses as the symbols on Talmarren's armor started increasing their speed, surging faster and faster and as they did so he stood up. Slowly but much more strongly then before. "I'll judge my own strength." He looks to you Tyrn, his eyes were like steel once more. Cold, hard and cutting with how intensely he was looking at you. "I promise you Tyrn, if we can return for her. I will..."
If there was nothing further Talmarren turned and faced the sky, the symbols on his armor were spinning blindingly fast now as he spoke. "Sil, bring us home." He paused for a long moment, before repeating what he said again. Yet... Nothing happens.
"Thank you, Talmarran.... she's the only family I have left..." Tyrn said painfully.
"What's... urrrgh... happening? Have we left? ::moan:gasps:: I still hear fighting..."
Talmerran stands there quietly and Sylandra looked a mix of confused and distracted by her attempts to keep your heart from stopping. "Fine, we do this the hard way then... I hate this route, more chance for error... Ready yourself Sylandra and Chosen, your not going to enjoy this..."
Talmarren pulls forth a rounded disk made of platinum attached to what appears to be a mithril chain around his neck. You hadn't noticed it before because of all the armor he wears and apparently he had had it tucked in this entire time. The symbol is large enough though that he grips it with the tips of his fingers, aiming the strange disk up towards the stars and open sky as he begins chanting in elven.
"Fa anira tyeamam eo anira Laanilm Vewwalala, anirmeyvir amirenyir iram nyilcnyycilaneella oemsaw anira amemcw illw ellatyemaw yla ane vmailanlalala. E nyilcc ane aniraa leam ane maanyml yla ane amiralnya ama nyilsa. Ane fmewva anira vilty, ane ceoan anira elaec eo amemcwla illw caan yla anmilelac faanamaal elnya sema."
"Omaa. Ylfeylw. Lae anirilan ama sila maanyml ane anira lairelelv cillw, ane anira tyellilnyca eo iram nymailaneella."
"Irailm sa leam! Etyal anira vilanaamila!
By the power of the Star Goddess, through which her calculations formed the world and inspired us to greatness. I call to thee now to return us to whence we came. To bridge the gap, to lift the veil of worlds and let us travel between once more.
Freely. Unbound. So that we may return to the Shining Land, to the pinnacle of her creations.
Hear me now! Open the gateway!
As he finishes a lot of things happen at once...
A strange light falls over all of you, like a shower of sparks from an arcing torch as it contacts metal. The shower grows until it blinds out all other images except the intense white hot light. It isn't painful at first but it is dreadfully uncomfortable and forces you to squint as the world fades away.
Then came a horrible lurch...
The bright light fades away finally and you find yourself floating in a dark sea of nothingness. No light, no stars, just a complete void that was light up by the swirling patterns and presence of your two elven companions. Sylandra wraps one leg around yours to keep herself grounded to you as you realize that you aren't floating, you were hurtling through this void. Tumbling and rolling but due to the lack of gravity, images, light or anything to prove whether you were up, down or sideways. You didn't suffer from the vertigo and dizziuness you would have in the real world.
You tumble for a long ways, Talmarren's symbols have faded once more and he appears to be unconscious or something as he doesn't make any mvoes to slow or correct his tumbling. Sylandra grunts with the effort of trying to maintain contact with you and you start to feel very tired yourself. Like the weight of years was catching up to you even more.
It felt like hours before a light appeared on the strange horizon, it tumbled back and forth, up and down, sideways and spinning out of control until you plunged through the open gateway and into the bright world that lay beyond...
Instantly you felt a warmth that your body hadn't experienced since the days of your youth in Cygnus. The usual ache and weariness in your bones fades and is replaced by the pleasant warmth of a tropical land by your accounting. Despite falling though the air at a semi quick rate, you didn't feel concerned for some reason. This strange relaxed feeling didn't seem to be affecting Sylandra though as she shouted to Talmarren to DO SOMETHING!
And for a long ways you fell, skydiving towards a bright and clear ocean that stretched for miles around. Home to thousands upon thousands of islands and not a single smoke cloud, smog cloud or steamship for hundreds of leagues. An untouched paradise...
Finally Sylandra pulled one Hand free, which brought back extreme discomfort and wasn't enjoyable in the slightest as she pointed and spoke something you couldn't make out as the air pressure roared past your ears. As she finished speaking Talmarren snapped awake and looked around in confusion before mouthing an obvious expletive and started drawing glowing runes in the air. As the runes surrounded him he turned and dove into you and Sylandra and once agian the world went dark...
You awaken on warm metal, the light hum of machines vibrating down your spine and Sylandra is laying on top of you her hands resting on your chest and she appears to be asleep or wiped out from the sudden and violent jaunt through the veil between planes. Talmarren is sitting nearby, his patterns are slowly swirling but he is holding some strange rounded metal contraption that appears to be... pulsing with a weak light.
Where you are however is a room that appears to have been made primarily out of copper or a copper colored metal, there are also twenty rounded glasses tubes recessed in the walls and floor of the room. What a strange place...
Sylandrai is torn away, the pain returns worse then before as your heart continues to fail you. You awaken on your back amid the bodies of the fallen. You recognize Cygnus crests and the sounds of combat ring in from almost every direction. Directly above you a gargantuan black scaled dragon blots out the open night sky with its humongous wingspan and for all its strangeness it appears to have green lines running throughout its form. The same color as burning Cryxian Necrotite.
However you are alone amid these bodies, Sylandra and Talmarren are gone and the sounds of approaching footsteps catches your ears...
Do you do match DC or do you have to roll higher than the DC?
It was hard to put everything together, because it happened so fast and yet it felt like hours had passed. He gently attempted to awaken Sylandra to make sure she was okay.
Tyrn was struck with awe at the strange and alien room he was in.
"Talmarran. Are you going to make it?" said the old man concernedly.
"Where exactly are we?" He played it safe not asking too many questions, though he had thousands.
Crosses
The hole reveals what appears to be another cramped deck, however you don't spot much movement and, except for the burning debris that has rolled into the next floor, there are a multitude of corpses littering this floor. A few sport the red painted dog head of the Red Shields. Those few that do appear to have been eviscerated and one appears to have had his heart forcefully ripped out. By the look of how much blood is around these corpses, they were alive when this brutal fate befell them.
The sounds of combat are echoing throughout this now open deck, the Red Shields appear to be still encountering heavy resistance or the Cryxian's are fighting among themselves for some reason...
Leon gives a quick sign for caution before dropping down into the lower deck his feet hitting the ground with hardly a sound. He emotionlessly checks the bodies of his dead allies to see if they were killed in combat or were bound in someway before their death.
Aurora followed close behind Leon. She silently looks around then kneels next to a body close by. She looks up at Leon and back down at the corpse. She then gently rests her palm on the corpses' forehead solemnly tilts her chin in a bow, much like an old friend paying respects. She gently tugs at the clothing and fixes the body in the most dignified manner that she could. She then proceeded to do that with all that had fallen. She gazed at their lifeless faces. In their death she no longer judged them, death was the great equalizer.
MORE. THEN. CAN. EXPLAIN.[/b]
”With good fortune as I doubt we have the time to hear it. Doubly so, given your rate of speech,” he replies dismissively. He couldn’t help but feel envious of those Sil had “chosen”. So much so that his sharp dark features turned near instantaneously from joyous to brooding, similar to a child who dropped his sweet roll. Deemed as needed in the future, he repeated internally. The little goat isn’t so impressive.
Assuming I’m successful in restoring the temple core AND we defeat or incapacitate ‘The Shadow’, we still have no idea where we are or how to get back… O! So encouraging…
”Sil, how would you propose we get to the core?”
It was hard to put everything together, because it happened so fast and yet it felt like hours had passed. He gently attempted to awaken Sylandra to make sure she was okay.
Tyrn was struck with awe at the strange and alien room he was in.
"Talmarran. Are you going to make it?" said the old man concernedly.
"Where exactly are we?" He played it safe not asking too many questions, though he had thousands.
Talmarren doesn't respond, he appears to be completely out of it and after several long seconds Sylandra stirs. Albeit very groggy before saying. "We've arrived at the Tranquil Ley. That fool there will survive, how he continues to astounds me..." She tentively touches your exposed chest, heedless of the fact she is laying on you as she speaks. "I would say you could move about freely here but the sooner we have you in stasis the sooner we can make repairs."
Tyrn
Crosses
Hopping down onto the roof of the next upper deck and placing the hands of the fallen rightly. You don't find anyone or anything immediately menacing or confronting you and the fighting is echoing throughout the deck.
Your superhuman sense tell you these men died in combat and by the look of how they are arrayed, plus having experienced first hand the underhanded way they fight, that they tried to surround and flank whatever eviscerated them. It's unclear however if they succeeded in surrounding their opponent or if it was more then one enemy they were facing. Each man remains well armed though, a loaded pistol remains on their person, their boarding axes and shields are intact as well. One man is armed with a smoke grenade and the other is carrying an incendiary grenade.
Besides the bodies of your enemies and allies alike your faced with the choice of three doors on either side of the small area your standing in. Their is a short hallway ahead and behind you as you are standing at about dead center on the ship...
Cassian, Mir, Ael
Sil studies your changes in facial expression closely Cassian, too closely. Ant however completely misses the dismissive tone in your voice and merely nods in agreement after a moment of digesting what you said to it.
When you ask your question Sil seems surprised and takes several long moments to consider before speaking. "The greatest concentration of mutations is at the core, along with the Shadow, approaching them will not be easy and to go unnoticed will be nearly impossible..."
She raises her hand and, turning it palm up, displays several flashing lights that give a rough outline of where you are standing and two routes of entry into the Core area. "The Lift is the Primary entrance to the core, secondary entrances is the stairwell that the mutants were using. There is however several ventalation shafts that could be used but their condition is unknown and they were never fully integrated into the system. They were mainly Servitor pathways..."
The map changes, moving up and towards the 2nd level, which appears completely blank oddly and leads to what appears to be a large and impossibly deep blank area at the furthest part of the second level. "If you reach the core it is imperative that you do not come into contact with it, especially the energized portions or you will most likely suffer fatal injuries."
All of those terms you've heard before, some from aged and drunken sailors who's flying days were long behind them. Some are legends of Airship Captains of old who discovered pathways into another world. The Promised Land is a world that is believed to be untouched, a young world that scholars and the more learned have theorized that it remains out of reach of mankind and was the world were the demi-humans departed to when they abandoned the Old World to mankinds growing machinations.
You remember one story that you heard back when you were a child, of a certain Air Merchant that had discovered a new land. An unmapped land where he made his massive fortune bringing raw materials from those strange showers and back to the hungry markets of Free Cities. He made the trip numerous times and in time created a vast armada of Merchantmen airships with the spoils he acquired from these unmapped shores.
He brought exotic woods, unknown metals of obscene durability and exotic foods. The markets were ever hungry for these items, especially the privileged as nobles from across the realms demanded more and more of these exotic items. Despite all of this the merchant never folded under growing pressure to reveal the source of his exotic goods and he deftly avoided more unscrupulous means of prying the information from him. This continued for a long time until one day he returned, his ships were battered and after arming them for war he departed.
His ships never returned, the only surviving document was one of his naval journal's that was secured in Argos. Kept under heavy guard along with several other artifacts...
Aurora looks around herself examining the three doors. Her brows furrow for a moment as she debates which one to pick. She sighs and admits to herself that she is ready as ever. She looks down at the bodies and plucks two guns, tucking them away in leather pouch. Once she secured the pouch with its brass buckle she turned to her husband.
“I know neither of us haven’t ever trained in these,” she motions to the guns, “but I think they definitely will make someone back off if we waved one in their face right? I mean if worse comes to worst and we can’t fire the damn thing, we can always whack someone in the head with it.”
She lets out a small giggle laced with nervousness. The slightly melodious notes from her giggle permeated the air giving a sense of irony due to their current situation. She looks over at her husband and grabs his hand. Her delicately black lacquered fingers trace his knuckles for a moment. “Well love, which door do you pick? So many prizes to choose from! We could survive, we could get shot, and we could even get stabbed! All prizes are not refundable.”
A large pointed grin is unveiled along with a jesting wink. When she gets nervous she lets a bit a humor break down the anxiety.
"Well gee those all sound like such great prizes." Leon says as he gives Aurora's hand a quick squeeze before drawing his sword and heading towards the door that probably leads to the front of the ship.
Talmarren doesn't respond, he appears to be completely out of it and after several long seconds Sylandra stirs. Albeit very groggy before saying. "We've arrived at the Tranquil Ley. That fool there will survive, how he continues to astounds me..." She tentively touches your exposed chest, heedless of the fact she is laying on you as she speaks. "I would say you could move about freely here but the sooner we have you in stasis the sooner we can make repairs."
Tyrn looked to Talmarran in his crippled state. Noticed how Sylandra no longer coward at his presence. His helpful nature has been contradicted by his animosity toward Sylandra. This has not gone unnoticed, but trusting Talmarran was really Tyrn's only choice. His chance to finally figure otu Sylandra's role in all of this has finally come.
"I mean no disrespect, and no doubt your touch has incredible powers, but I think I would like to get up and stretch.... but if you protest, by all means, rest where you are." He gave a winning grin as he gently helped her off his chest. Tyrn cautiously picked himself up, scanning the room for something he would recognize, as it all seemed quite alien. Like prototypes and models from his imaginations of the future. Fear was diluted with excitement. He has officially come out of retirement, and is embarking into the unknown once again.
"My dear, you must tell me now," Tyrn said quietly to try to avoid Talmarran's attention, "why does he treat you so harshly? Is he of an opposing faction to yours? I understand Talmarran is Imperium... well, of a sorts. And I know you are of a very different order. Are you captive? If so, we must leave while we have a chance..." Tyrn began calculation scenarios in his head on what they should do.
Don't be daft, Jade. His powers are immense and he certainly is persistent. He'll simply heal and be in pursuit for as long as you run. And still, you have no evidence suggesting he of a sinister nature. But drawing a blade on Sylandra... such a reckless display of hatred.
Another hero of the Free Cities; Ser Edmond Hilgrath commanded more than twenty vessels of varied purposes. Some traded alien amenities while others traded spitfire bolts and cannonballs. If Ser Edmond’s Armada was able to pass between planes, why shouldn’t I?
The ship-less captain weighed Sil’s words for a time while he assessed the value of his associates. If ‘The Champion of the Tigress’ is fractionally as clandestine as a Cygnan alley cat she would best suit the hovels of the servitor pathways. Also it would seem that sweet Aelessaer’s footsteps scarcely make a sound, perhaps it best to let them scout a path for myself and… the two ton enormity of bewitched stone. Dredging into his satchel Cassian finds a soft oiled fabric and begins methodically cleaning his mithral sword Silene, named for the delicate catchflies rooted at the hilt and sprouting along it’s blade.
”I shall be the first to admit my ineptitude in subterfuge but I wager Mirrianissa and Aelessaer can make up for that in spades. I would send Steven to flush out the pathways before you set foot or paw into darkness. Where that leaves Ant and I remains uncertain. Suppose we could put his moniker to trial as a distraction in the stairwell,” he muses aloud with apparent disregard for the Immortal’s wellbeing. ”As the only one suited to make these repairs; I will need to gain quick access to both the core and the necessary tools to alter it. Perhaps that is something you may provide, Sil.”
”As for the Shadow… Any child will tell you that a shadow cannot exist without light. That in mind, would there be a way you could reroute the temple’s remaining power to load the lighting system in the Core Area to a state where this entity could be limited?
I shudder involuntarily at mention of the shadow, "I wish we could harm the shadow. We cannot always be in flight."
Di
Your Aunt Tesa's smile after your brief embrace fades when you ask your question and she shakes her head sadly. "We're not faring well, Old Ironsides is a ship of the line but if more then three Rakers come she's finished. These men are solider guardsmen and pilots but they are not seasoned soldiers, hell we don't any warjacks to match the cryxian's. As for the rest of the city I... I don't know. They're holdin', it's the only thing I can hope for. The Cryxian's are beginning their end game..." Her Butler's face looks more stern then before, he rests his hand on his trusted weapon as he stands staring off into the Rennor. Agnes looks pained as well, remaining silent.
In the distance the roar of cannon fire continues to echo near the horizon, the fires of falling airships light up the skies in the distance. Several fires burn, unchallenged throughout the city as well and from aboard Old Ironsides things looked grim for Rennor...
Diyeana's smile also fades as the talk turns to the grim state of affairs. Listening to her Aunt's report Diy's eyes begin to roam over her beloved city. As she takes in the many fires burning, in the sky and on the ground, a blaze ignites in her own heart "No! we shall not fall! The Cryxian's begin their end game you say? Well, then we shall finish for them!" as she becomes caught up in the passion of her own speech she begins to slowly turn around, addressing all the people of both ships gathered around her. " These unholy bastards think to destroy us? These abominations think their cowardly surprise attack shall spell our doom? Well let us show them how wrong they are! Are you with me? Do we show these rotting corpses how the living fight?? We are Rennor! We are Cygnus! And we shall not fade gently into the night!!"
Diplomacy?:After the reaction from the crew, Diyeana takes Smitty, Joey, her Aunt with her maid and butler and the officers of Ironsides aside, speaking quickly "We just passed one of the most impressive Warships I've ever seen. In fact it saved our hides. I say we take these two tubs, link up with that warship if we can, and kick some Cryxian ass! What say you all?"
Leon makes a sour face at mention of using the pistols. "I hate those things. No skill what so ever any fool who knows how to point can fire one." He says whilst securing the gun anyway. When Aurora grabs his hand a momentary smile breaks through his customary scowl. Her bright demeanor cutting through his anger and pain. He grips her hand like a lifeline to a drowning man. "How about we hedge our bet my love and take the hallway?"
Leon says as he draws his katana with one hand and a pair of throwing knives with the other and begins to head down the hallway.
Leon makes a sour face at mention of using the pistols. "I hate those things. No skill what so ever any fool who knows how to point can fire one." He says whilst securing the gun anyway. When Aurora grabs his hand a momentary smile breaks through his customary scowl. Her bright demeanor cutting through his anger and pain. He grips her hand like a lifeline to a drowning man. "How about we hedge our bet my love and take the hallway?"
Leon says as he draws his katana with one hand and a pair of throwing knives with the other and begins to head down the hallway.
Aurora lets out a menacing giggle, "That's the spirit!"
She takes Leon's lead and prepares for any fight that may await them.Gracefully she makes a swift motion of her hand into the shadows. Melding out of the darkness a wakizashi emerges.
Tyrn Jade
For the first time she notices the awkward position your both in and blushes deeply before allowing you to help her off of you. She looks slightly confused, her long ears drooping as she listened to your words. When you finished she shook her head. "There are many clans within our society and he looks down on all those who... Abandoned the world. You see he... Hates us for leaving. Sylin was one of the few that stayed behind like he did and he paid for it dearly, most of the Elders who remained behind did in one way or another. But Talmarren, he chose to walk in the light of the world, to try and rise above the destruction of civil war. To forge a nation strong enough to whether the coming storm..."
She looks towards Talmarren a deep sadness filling her features and touching her eyes. "Sadly though they both suffered horrible fates but Talmarren suffered in ways that I could never heal. It deepened his hatred, infused his bones with it and despite all we have done for him. He still holds us in contempt, even the goddess cannot reach him and I fear that he will never forgive us..."
"His intentions are seemingly noble, m'lady, though I'm sure your people did what they had to do in order to protect themselves. 'The coming storm..'? Are you referring to the invasion of Argos?"
Crosses
The forward hallway seems to pay off as you both hear an increase in the sounds of fighting and the coarse oaths of the Red Shields. Barnabus is among them as you hear his usual bluster and bellowing over the top of gunshots and the echoing of steel on steel...
Di
Your rousing speech gets mixed reactions. Several soldiers look ready to push forward, while just as many look grimly at the fighting and continue with their duties. Smitty crosses his arms before his chest and Joey looks ready to jump at the opportunity to bring the fight to the cryxian's. Your aunt and her entourage maintain a neutral face, broken only by the broad smile your aunt gives you as she lays a hand on your shoulder. "A true Stormwin is what you are my dear, but who will protect this district if this old warship leaves it's post? The Vigilant is far faster than we are and far more advance in it's tech as well. Smitty had no small part in its design..."
The old salvager gave a loud hrmph at being mentioned and ignored the praise entirely. "The most we can do is give you a squad to help retake the streets my dear. Can you take on such a command?"
Mir, Ael, Cassian
Sil looks at Cassian for a long moment before saying "I can try..."
Ant nods at the suggested tactic, seemingly unphased with the fact it may as well be a suicide attack. Bera looks from Ael and Mir to the tall Formian and nods. "I will fight with it..."[smaller]
Sil looks to Ael. [smaller]"Where did you awaken again? Within the temple you said?"
Although the flight through corridors has been a little bewildering, I do my best to describe the room where Bera and I awoke. I also give a rough description of the location.
Leon stops at the sounds of battle. He holds his hand up and gives a quick and wicked grin to Aurora. Use the battle as a distraction and take out whoever is leading this defense against Barnabus. He signs while drawing a pair of throwing knives.
"Now let us profit from the chaos and create our own." He says as he looks for a way to sneak into the battle quickly and brutally.
"Now let us profit from the chaos and create our own." He says as he looks for a way to sneak into the battle quickly and brutally.
Leon's words send gooseflesh down her back full thighs, hidden beneath her clothes. The sensation of pure adrenaline fills her blood sending flutters to her heart. Aurora nods in agreement with Leon. Her blade in hand, she is ready to face anything.
Miri lifts her head, ignoring the otghers for a moment as a strange scent catches her attention.
Sil looks to Ael, her head spasming for a moment as her image distorts momentarily. Solidifying once more she continues looking at Ael as she asks. "Where did you awaken again? Within the temple you said?"
Bera looked oddly at Sil, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. Ant tilts his head, the very image of confused as Sil's image distorts again, more violently erratic this time the outline of her being changing colors rapidly. Stabilizing once more her images spasms and she stands facing Ael once more. "Where did you...? In the...?"
Her eyes grow wide in shock before she turns towards Cassian. "Something is... Corrupt-ti-ti-ti-ti-ting my l-l-l-l-l-linkkkk to the temp-l-le... Mothe..." The words die on her lips as her mouth hangs open, her mechanical eyes growing wider in a shock or dismayed fashion before she says. "WE Are coming for you, you are all going to die." With that Sil vanishes, her departure causes the lights to flicker for several long moment's...
A light scent wafts past your powerful nose, a smell you know all too well. Rotten meat, decaying flesh, the scents and calling signs of the dead. But to smell it so strongly and at a distance in a place with no air current...
It's then you hear the barest scrape of a claw or bone against metal and while the others are talking you look back down the hallway. It's lights flickering momentarily and see the gathering shadows at the beginning of the hallway...
"His intentions are seemingly noble, m'lady, though I'm sure your people did what they had to do in order to protect themselves. 'The coming storm..'? Are you referring to the invasion of Argos?"
Sylandra's long ears droop and she looks away from you momentarily, her sudden indecisiveness and loss of focus causes an all too familiar pain to return in the center of your chest. It's not overwhelming, at least not yet. She realizes her mistake and turns back towards you as you grunt involuntarily from the pain. She places her hand against your chest delicately once more and the pain quickly retreats.
Her aid is more forthcoming than her words though, she stutters and appears almost unable to speak at all let alone meet your gaze. "We... well... No. The coming storm is not about Arg..." The sound of building pressure and an increased humming in the metal walls announces a change in the room. Sylandra turns to look at the suddenly appearing doorway as part of the once seamless wall moves aside and a figure, clad in heavy armor. Similar to Talmarren's but far more... intricate. steps through and regards the pair of you sternly, her highborn cheekbones, long pointed ears and short cropped silver hair easily identify her as an elf. You don't have time to admire long though as she turns her silver eyes towards you both. When she speaks her voice is sharp and cutting like a razor, decisive and brutal. "Please Sylandra, tell him. Tell him the meaning of the Storm."
She walks in, her foot falls betraying the fact that her armor weighs quite a bit, each step echoes and causes a small vibration of it's own. Which strangely overwhelms the vibrations that already emanate from the floors and walls of this strange place. She steps forward, the multitude of glass tubes and strange baubles adorning her armor begin to surge and electricity begins to jump from her shoulders to the center of her chest and down to her gauntlets before running up the length of her arms and back to her shoulders once more.
She stands before Talmarren and without warning kicks him hard in the left shoulder, causing him to slide and come to rest laying on his right side. He gives a groan but doesn't rise. "Your punishment will be severe for this Talmarren, as will yours Sylandra. Or have you dilettantes decided to step back into the war? Or shall you continue your screwing up in the old world hmmm?"
"Well, if they're coming, we should be somewhere else."
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Miri's claws extens as she drops into a crouch with a growl, staring down the darkening hallway.
"They're already here....."
|
Crosses
As you reach the end of the upside down hallway, you glance out and find the Red Shields fighting a large group of Thralls and various other types of undead. Among them are your regular thrall warriors, lieutenants and Mechanithrall's. However, your keen senses alert you to the fact that three of them are anything but normal undead.
These abnormal undead move with lifelike grace and cunning, making calculated strikes at the line of the heavily armed mercs that have boarded their vessel. Despite their uniqueness though they fight with the same disregard for their own existence as the other thralls do. Adding to their eerie appearance is the fact that as quickly as you glanced over their forces two of them turned back and spotted Leon. Breaking free of the others and easily avoiding attacks from embattled merc's the two strange undead quickly move to engage Leon across the open galley.
Wielding a pair of vicious looking cutlasses, this rotting and dessicated women is comin towards you quickly with both blades open in a very loose style of duel-wielding. You can easily tell though that, despite being dead, she is lithe and quick on her feet.
Her companion is unknown whether it is male or female, its head is encapsulated by a full body diving suit of strange design. The viewing window on the helmet pulses with a bright red light as it to approaches you, except it is far slower than its duel-wielding counterpart. Aside from their strange appearance they appear to be armed with a bayonet mounted onto some sort of barrel. Several tubes filled with alchemical liquids adorn its gauntleted wrists and forearms...
Roll me Initiative you two! Aurora, you however have a round of surprise and may act first no matter the ending Ini rolls! After your attack/readied action is resolved then you will resume normal actions.
”That’s encouraging,” the bravo sneers as Sil leaves them with only quaking lights and ominous words.
Cassian aggressively tongues the skin from his bottom lip while listening to Ael and Miri’s exchange. His yellow-green eyes dart around the room systematically as he tries to quickly formulate an escape strategy. ”To stand and fight would merely be a waste of our time. We don’t know what our guardian angel was able to accomplish before being disrupted so our safest assumption is to expect none of her assistance. These bastards are soon to be plaguing us from all sides so we must move quickly. We’ll take the servitor pathways. We know for certain there’s ample resistance at the lifts and stairs so why not gamble for something lesser?”
He cocks his head to the floating elven satellite, ”Steven, scout out the pathways. You will return to me the moment you find any of their soldiers. DO NOT ENGAGE THEM. Now GO!” The servitor bumbles off dutifully at his command but Cassian doesn’t waste the time to watch it leave. Instead he turns to face the attack poised Tabaxi. ”Mirrianissa, you take point. Stealthily or otherwise makes no difference. This will end as a blunt and bloody assault regardless of how we advance. Aelessaer and I will be close behind you while Ant and Bera cover our rear.” He approaches the hatch but pauses before entry. ”Keep that pistol dry and loaded, Aelessaer. Bera, you and Ant kill anything that moves. If we’re lucky we’ll see you again at the core.”
I sheathe my blade and heft the firearm, "Bera, be safe." And wait for Mir to lead through the hatch.
Tyrn was certainly worried about the power of the elf, though his excitement diluted the fear. He could not believe what he was seeing. His imagination filled the gaps of what he did not know about this place: the source of the humming. The glass panes. The astounding advanced armors of the elves. He was certainly overstimulated.
"You mean, the elves never wanted to come back to save Argos? That was all Talmarran acting alone? And what will happen to Sylandra? I'm sure for an advanced race, such as yours, that barbaric means of conditioning one's loyalty have been pruned from your society. Understanding the psyche of your subordinates and people will allow you to generate loyalty out of their own free-will; and that kind of loyalty stands the test of time. Please, do not harm them."
Diplomacy:
Aurora raises her acquired pistol once she realizes the two undead have only noticed Leon. Assuming the gun works with the same general actions of a repeating crossbow she pulls the trigger. The gun kicks and bucks along with the firey blast as the lead ball is expelled slamming into the chest of the leading undead woman. She then calmly drops the now spent firearm and falls into a loose fighting stance. Wakizashi at the ready.
Mirrianissa slips into the hatch, quickly taking the lead through the pathways, senses alert for any sign of the enemy.
The Temple Group
The sounds of the approaching enemy continues to grow, it's not a stretch to guess that a host of creatures are coming your way and the lights in the facility apparently aren't slowing them down anymore. As you formulate a plan you can hear the sound of the glass shattering and can easily tell that the further hallways are starting to dim.
Steven bobs as it receives its orders and quickly disappears into the Servitor pathways. Only the faint glow of its internal nimbus orb indicates where it is until it disappears around a sharp corner near the roof...
However as you open the main hatchway, so that your group can traverse the servitor pathways, you find that most of you can fit with nominal difficulty. However you're going to be crawling on hands and knees for the most part but sadly Ant won't be able to follow you. Being far too large to fit in the Servitor Pathways he shakes his head.
::GO. WILL. MEET AGAIN.::
Bera reluctantly leaves the large insectoids side as Ant starts drawing his four swords in readiness for the coming enemy. She however has to sheath her large weapon and will be relying on her natural assets in the combat ahead.
Cassian watches the graceful tigress leap up and into the duct and scurry out of sight. ”Suppose I expected too much leg room up there,” he mutters disappointedly. He waves Ael forward and takes an ungentlemanly advantage of the view as she pulls herself into the ductwork . The captain sheaths his ornate dueling sword and watches Ant admiringly for a short moment. The Immortal is rather magnificent. I guess I’ll give him that.
From a light hop he grabs the borders of the hatch and reels his legs into the duct. The pathway was even more cramped than he had expected. With a bit of effort, Cassian manages to get a hand to the small of his back and loosens his kukri from repose then clambers onward behind the others.