"Well, while we wait and prepare we might as well have something good to eat." Roland says, summoning a Heroes' Feast for his compatriots.
Dylen knows his magic won't be very helpful against the infernal engine, but he decides to use it as best he can to protect the other noncombatants and make them comfortable.
::Hey, Jim, where are you?:: Belyu asks after about a half-hour. ::I got a few people, Ripper included, for you to consider. I'll send them your way before headed to the Mountain Kingdom with the other non-combatants.::
"I'm quite capable in a fight. Flying is just the quickest way for me to get around." Oniero explains. "Immune to magic, huh? That makes things difficult for me if I want to stay away from it, but I'll manage. If the death wards are down and I... don't come back, there is a tiny box I keep under my bed. It's important, so I want it with me when I get buried or whatever, okay? I don't plan to die, but I won't go into battle thinking that I won't."
"We all have our paths to follow. If you believe that is yours, I won't dissuade you. If you fall, I will care for this package for you. Good luck, Oniero."
"Very well, I will organize the evacuees. If magic has little effect on our enemy, I will prove less than useful. However, I have powerful healing magic, and I can arrive quickly to treat any who are seriously injured. You may wish to keep in communication with me." Tyrrin was up and moving shortly after giving Jiminy her tactical considerations. Now was not the time for pride.
"[...] I will return as soon as I am able," he says, the final part as much to Vai as to the others.
Vai nods, a bit sad. She hadn't seen him in a couple days, and now he was gone again. Watching the sunrise wasn't quite the same without his rhythmic practice.
"I'm staying to fight." Vai says before either of her siblings can say anything against her. "I may not be the best fighter, and my spells might not work, but I'm not going to hide while everyone else risks themselves. Besides, this machine can hardly be scarier than Khoda, right?"
::I'm not sitting on the sidelines this time.:: Ehos sends to Jiminy. Jumping down to the meeting. The word had spread pretty quickly around camp. A team was assembling to fight the machine, a team he would be part of. Maybe helping to save the entire student body could assuage his guilt. ::Even if I can't use my magic on the enemy, my amplified voice will allow me to provide support even at extreme range. And I'm not a bad shot with a bow either.::
"We all have our paths to follow. If you believe that is yours, I won't dissuade you. If you fall, I will care for this package for you. Good luck, Oniero."
"Thank you." Oniero says sincerely before leaving for the Forest Kingdom to join the other fighters.
"Very well, I will organize the evacuees. If magic has little effect on our enemy, I will prove less than useful. However, I have powerful healing magic, and I can arrive quickly to treat any who are seriously injured. You may wish to keep in communication with me." Tyrrin was up and moving shortly after giving Jiminy her tactical considerations. Now was not the time for pride.
As Tyrrin turns away, Phaezeriel's voice comes clearly into her mind, ::Tyrrin, I am going to be linking those fighting the creature that the Aschen have become. One advantage to that link is that I can know the condition and health of everyone to whom I am linked, and I can divert healing to whoever needs it from wherever on this plane of existence I may happen to be, immediately and at will. If you wish to act as a healer, I will include you in my collective and and you can remain out of reach of the Aschen-creature preventing it from targeting our healers.::
His voice then comes clearly to all those attending the meeting, ::Ephebe, how intelligent is the Infernal Machine?::
Krays assists with the evacuation, and ports to the forrest kingdom.When he arrives he looks around for his wife, and greets her...warmly :P
::Missed you, are you well?::
::Mmm. Better now that you're here...though I wish the circumstances were a little different. This...it brings back bad memories. The Akhenaten Incident was not my proudest moment. Even for an evil overlord that one went a bit far. And now the people I care about most will be facing that monstrosity that I accidentally created...it makes me feel kinda sick.::
::Hey, Jim, where are you?:: Belyu asks after about a half-hour. ::I got a few people, Ripper included, for you to consider. I'll send them your way before headed to the Mountain Kingdom with the other non-combatants.::
Jiminy had been busy explaining the situation and organizing people. With a lot of help from Nala. In a crisis like this people were too busy worrying about surviving to remember to hate her. Which was handy. The evacuations were going well and he'd been able to contact the island kingdom to pass on messages. And to make sure Fi was there safe and sound.
::I'm over here, Belyu. Send them over to the big pavilion...if I think they can't handle it I'll port them to the island kingdom myself. ::
"[...] I will return as soon as I am able," he says, the final part as much to Vai as to the others.Vai nods, a bit sad. She hadn't seen him in a couple days, and now he was gone again. Watching the sunrise wasn't quite the same without his rhythmic practice.
"I'm staying to fight." Vai says before either of her siblings can say anything against her. "I may not be the best fighter, and my spells might not work, but I'm not going to hide while everyone else risks themselves. Besides, this machine can hardly be scarier than Khoda, right?"
"Just...be careful. You're our sister and we don't want to lose you. There's no shame in running away if you're in over your head this time. I'd like to keep you in one piece and breathing if possible."
His voice then comes clearly to all those attending the meeting, ::Ephebe, how intelligent is the Infernal Machine?::
"Well, it's not really that smart. It just sort of blindly destroys stuff. I think the whole machine has about as much intelligence as a single aschen. So not totally dumb, just not at all a genius."
Takes his human form, and rests his forehead on hers.
::It's not easy to face past demons, but we'll face them together, and make sure our children won't have to worry about them, k?::
Takes his human form, and rests his forehead on hers.
::It's not easy to face past demons, but we'll face them together, and make sure our children won't have to worry about them, k?::
She relaxed into his embrace, taking comfort from the feeling of him holding her like this.
::Okay. I just hope that in the future we'll be facing past demons a little less literally.::
::I'm over here, Belyu. Send them over to the big pavilion...if I think they can't handle it I'll port them to the island kingdom myself. ::
::Don't waste time if you don't have to, okay? And be careful. Your brothers may be colossal jerks that I want to beat senseless, but you're a pretty nice guy now that the endless pranks have stopped.::
Less than a minute later three people walk into the pavilion. One, covered in spiked black armor and wearing a wolf's head helm, is obviously the Ripper girl Belyu told James about. The others, a guy with a large hammer and another with a greataxe, stay a bit behind her and keep glancing at her nervously. The Triad's ruthlessness is well known, it seems.
"Belyu Shardae sent us, as you know." Ripper says, her voice muffled and metalic inside the helm.
To Phaezeriel: ::... You must be a powerful psion. My Mother has similar powers. I am familiar with using them in a combat situation, and I would be greatful if you could include me. My healing abilities are non-negligible.::
Tyrrin was on Island, ensuring that the enlarging of the Island fortress was going smoothly, and aiding in the disposition of the non-combatants, all the while trying to keep appraised of the combat situation though the collective.
Now some distance away from everyone , Ehos removes the scarf from his face for the first time since he had demonstrated for the Headmaster. His voice boomed through the Forest. "Can you hear me?" The deep bass rumble carried through the ground, but the voice itself came rather clearly, though a bit distorted from the distance it had to travel. Otherwise it was as though Ehos was a few steps away."[/b]
"Just...be careful. You're our sister and we don't want to lose you. There's no shame in running away if you're in over your head this time. I'd like to keep you in one piece and breathing if possible."
"I'd like to be that way too." Vai said with a smile. "Besides, sparring with Sadie and practicing with Mom will only help me so much. If I really want to master my body, I need a real foe, right?"
::I'm over here, Belyu. Send them over to the big pavilion...if I think they can't handle it I'll port them to the island kingdom myself. ::::Don't waste time if you don't have to, okay? And be careful. Your brothers may be colossal jerks that I want to beat senseless, but you're a pretty nice guy now that the endless pranks have stopped.::
Less than a minute later three people walk into the pavilion. One, covered in spiked black armor and wearing a wolf's head helm, is obviously the Ripper girl Belyu told James about. The others, a guy with a large hammer and another with a greataxe, stay a bit behind her and keep glancing at her nervously. The Triad's ruthlessness is well known, it seems.
"Belyu Shardae sent us, as you know." Ripper says, her voice muffled and metalic inside the helm.
He has his suspicions about the real identity of Ripper, but he was keeping that to himself. No time to mess with it now.
"Thanks for coming. We're assembling here. The giant guy....I forget his name....the one does earth bending....anyways we have him working on some stuff making canals and such, and Morrivan is on stand-by waiting to flood them. The infernal engine doesn't like water so that should help us control where we're fighting it. Those of us who are planning to fight, and some of the ones who are planning to help with healing and support spells are assembling here. Just be careful once the fighting starts. The wards are almost certainly malfunctioning, so no crazy risks. Also this thing is immune to magic and most energy attacks. Stick with straight up brute force. And good luck."
Now some distance away from everyone , Ehos removes the scarf from his face for the first time since he had demonstrated for the Headmaster. His voice boomed through the Forest. "Can you hear me?" The deep bass rumble carried through the ground, but the voice itself came rather clearly, though a bit distorted from the distance it had to travel. Otherwise it was as though Ehos was a few steps away."[/b]
::Loud and clear.::
"Just...be careful. You're our sister and we don't want to lose you. There's no shame in running away if you're in over your head this time. I'd like to keep you in one piece and breathing if possible.""I'd like to be that way too." Vai said with a smile. "Besides, sparring with Sadie and practicing with Mom will only help me so much. If I really want to master my body, I need a real foe, right?"
"Yeah, but between Khoda and this...you don't really do moderation well, do you?" he teased.
"You know, while I'll grant that you guys always make things interesting, it would be nice if we could go a couple of days without anyone needing me to bail them out of trouble. Again," he drawled, sounding bored.
"You know, this will work a lot better if you put people into teams before the fighting starts. Free-for-all doesn't really favor our side," she said, walking into the pavilion and looking around. "Oh, and Morrivan said to tell you that she found an underground river and water pressure is not going to be an issue."
So, are we going to need to use only non magical weapons on this thing?
::You can use magical weapons, but their enchantments won't help you.::
Takes his human form, and rests his forehead on hers.
::It's not easy to face past demons, but we'll face them together, and make sure our children won't have to worry about them, k?::She relaxed into his embrace, taking comfort from the feeling of him holding her like this.
::Okay. I just hope that in the future we'll be facing past demons a little less literally.::
::<chukles> We'll do whatever is necessary. Actual demons or no.::
When finally found and informed of the recent changes in the strategic situation, Wyrd shrugs unconcernedly and slips back into the ground, heading for the chosen battlefield.
Soon thereafter, anyone in the vicinity can see the land sinking in wide channels. raw stone from the bones of the earth rising along the edges of the channels to make reinforcing walls to keep the water from under cutting the walls. It is slow going, but steady.
::I will need to get everyone who is going to be actually fighting this creature to come close to me for a moment. This includes anyone who will be acting in a support role, healing, or actually attempting to bring this Infernal Machine down.::
Those people from the Forest kingdom who were in Phaezeriel's first collective hear him speak, no matter how far they are from him, ::As we get closer to fighting this Infernal Machine, I must disband this collective. Good luck to you all.:: Then the sense of connection to the sixteen other minds fades from them.
"I'll stay out of your little group, if it's all the same. It wouldn't do me any good anyway." Ripper tells Phaezeriel. "I may be a werewolf, but I rarely run with a pack. I'm just paying a debt."
Sadie joined Zren and Rikken where they were piling up rocks to throw.
Jeran waved to Oneiro, keeping a wary eye out. Some of his former subordinates were practically growling at him, so he was doing his best to keep his distance. This wasn't the time for infighting.
Sadie joined Zren and Rikken where they were piling up rocks to throw.
A few rocks begin to float over to the piles on their own as Michael walks over.
"I don't think I ever apologized to you three."
Jeran waved to Oneiro, keeping a wary eye out. Some of his former subordinates were practically growling at him, so he was doing his best to keep his distance. This wasn't the time for infighting.
Oniiro waves back, flicking a paper bird over to Jeran as he goes over his paper supply once again.
"If we get through this, I think I know where the fourth book can be found. Up for a trip to the norther mountains?" --O
Feeling the void in the earth where the water waits, Wyrd raises a temporary stone dam in the channel and then opens the finished sections to the water. Then he goes back to making the channels, flooding them every 100 feet or so as he goes.
Sadie joined Zren and Rikken where they were piling up rocks to throw.A few rocks begin to float over to the piles on their own as Michael walks over.
"I don't think I ever apologized to you three."
"You no mad any more?" Zren asked warily.
"We didn't mean any bad," Rikken added. "Didn't know it was bad play. Just wanted to be friends. Sorry," Rikken added.
"But we've been studying. Learning et-ee-kwett," Zren said, trying to be reassuring.
"Sadie and Vai helped," Rikken said.
"Zren and Rikken get picked on a lot because they look big and mean and having been raised by ogres means they don't understand a lot of social rules. They never meant to bully you. And neither did I. I was ....well, there were some unpleasant circumstances that brought me to Avalon," Sadie said, looking away. She was trying not to think too much about that. This wasn't the time. "I shouldn't have taken it out on you. I'm sorry. I don't think that a few mean comments warranted being pelted with rocks, but I can understand the impulse. You don't owe me any apologies, but Zren and Rikken didn't do anything wrong."
Jeran waved to Oneiro, keeping a wary eye out. Some of his former subordinates were practically growling at him, so he was doing his best to keep his distance. This wasn't the time for infighting.Oniiro waves back, flicking a paper bird over to Jeran as he goes over his paper supply once again.
"If we get through this, I think I know where the fourth book can be found. Up for a trip to the norther mountains?" --O
Jeran reads the note and gives Oneiro the thumbs up sign. Actually the northern mountains sounded interesting.
"It wasn't just you. Since I came to Avalon, things were pretty bad. It just all came out the day I found I actually could do something. Whether or not you were taking out whatever you were feeling on me, it was no excuse for me to do the same. An eye for an eye makes the world blind."
"I am truly sorry, and apologize for my actions that day."
"Is okay now," Zren said happily. "We accept apology. Now everybody can be friends."
Rikken nodded enthusiastic agreement.
Sadie smiled a little in spite of herself. "What he said."
Phaezeriel walks through the gathering force leading a small herd of what are clearly non-combatants and comes to a halt in front of Jiminy.
::Jiminy, a word, please? There are too many people here for me to form them into a collective alone. These here are willing to help me,:: Phaezeriel's gesture takes in the somewhat nervous looking students behind him, ::but none of them should be close to the fighting. Can you somehow cause them to be near me, while still being far away from me?::
Phaezeriel walks through the gathering force leading a small herd of what are clearly non-combatants and comes to a halt in front of Jiminy.
::Jiminy, a word, please? There are too many people here for me to form them into a collective alone. These here are willing to help me,:: Phaezeriel's gesture takes in the somewhat nervous looking students behind him, ::but none of them should be close to the fighting. Can you somehow cause them to be near me, while still being far away from me?::
"Yeah, sure, that's just a little bend in space-time. It won't even take much energy."
Jiminy's eyes take on a draconic appearance for a moment. The members of the group each felt a slight sense of disorientation which passed quickly."That should hold until the end of the day without any further attention from me."
::Thank you, Jiminy.::
Phaezeriel turns back to the group of ten nervous students and with a look of intense concentration, pulsing beams of light spring into existance forming a web between Phaezeriel and all ten of the students. It is somehow clear that Phaezeriel is the center of the web even though he is not in the center of the group. The ten volunteers then wink out of existence and appear back at the Island fortress with a pulsing web of light connecting them, and seemingly connected to someone who is not there.
Still surrounded by a pulsing web of light, Phaezeriel turns to the people who will be facing the Infernal Engine and begins gathering them into a collective. Each member is aware of the presence of the others, and instant communication is available to them.
"Is okay now," Zren said happily. "We accept apology. Now everybody can be friends."
Rikken nodded enthusiastic agreement.
Sadie smiled a little in spite of herself. "What he said."
Michael smiles a bit, relieved, and starts pulling up more rocks to pile.
"Let's destroy this thing then."
Nala clenched her teeth and tried to breathe as something felt like it was trying to squash her.
"I think it's on its way," she gasped.
Enre was waiting for the sound of the thing they had to fight before pulling up his helmet and dropping two things into his mouth. He than starts to chew the things before saying "I am going to need a bigger sword."
Looked like small red tablets.
All twenty-six of those about to fight the IE suddenly feel as if time has slowed just a bit as their perception and reactions speed up.