DracoLunaris

Project Crossover [Video Game Crossover RP]

Taric

level: 2
day/time: 3 - evening
Location: save point inn
Interacting with: @ONL, @Guardian Angel Haruki, @Zarkun, @Majoras End
Cooldowns:
Bastion: 2/2. linked ally: none
Starlight's Touch: 0/6

Taric supposed that a subtle route, as suggested by Shantea and Bently, might be a better option than just storming down there and making a scene, particularly if there was the potential for other lowlifes to be skulking around trying to get the drop on them. After Bently politely assured Taric he was perfectly fine using the stairs without assistance by showing of his robotic arms, Taric supposed clarification of his own abilities could come in handy.

”Personally I prefer a more head on solution to problems like you seem to Cuphead, but I can see the merit of caution in this situation. As for what I can do, other than general roughhousing, I can use these beauties.” he plucked one of the gemstones floating behind him from its place, bringing it forwards to show it off for a moment. The flawless blue crystal sparkle radiantly, reflecting the rooms light while also giving off a soft glow all of its own. When he released it a few moments later it quickly flew back up to re-join its fellows. ” to offer protection, probably in a similar manner to how you might do it Sparx. Also, if any of you are injured I can provide healing, so long as I get a few hits in on the bad guys with Bravado here first, to charge that power up.” He gently patted the palm of his free hand with the head of the mace to clarify that its was what he was referring too.

”If some of us are to get outside unseen while Shantea is doing reconnaissance, then I recommend the window back there. I imagine I wouldn't be to good at the sneaking about gathering info, however I could probably help lower someone down or give them a boost up so they can do that.”

Taric said as he walked over to said window and opened it, poking his head outside to get an understanding of how tricky getting down to the ground, or perhaps up to the roof, would be.

Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

The Emerald Empire/Kingdom of Shenra

The Vitium - Emerald border

An hour before the dawn of the day of the Vitium invasion the various Calid scouts who had creeped round the rear of the border forest decamped from their hiding places in the marshes and villages to go meet their destinies.

At the heart of the forest into which the scouts where to venture where two great fortresses, bastions of the dreaming forest made of many Trees that had grown together, forming a hub or focal point for the Dreamscape that bound the forest together. At the center of these fortresses, in the most secure place in the forest, where two small Trees that was not their own individuals. Instead these two trees where branches of the Great Tree Yaval, head of the emerald empire, that had been transported from their homeland and planted to forge a psychic link, leading all the way back to their distant home.

It was towards one of these fortresses that Severo and what remained of his Calid Cohort slowly crept as dawn crested the horizon. Despite being so close to the fortification and surrounding settlement, the terrain was still as heavily forested and overgrown as it had been on the way in. Barring a large clearing some way off that featured a single building at its center, from which smoke could be seen emerging, the rest of the settlement had more or less been built around the existing vegetation. The some of the loose knit series of structures used living trees as their central supports, while in others snaked their way in and around the trees, carefully avoiding disturbing them. None of the buildings appeared to be used for housing, but rather they were storehouses, armories, libraries, workshops, meeting halls, markets and so on. The kind of urban housing sprawl that would normally fill the gaps between these buildings was entirely absent, in their place the Dryads seemed perfectly willing to simply hang around outdoors while not working. Standing in groups or sitting up in the branches of trees or on rooftops, the wooden people added to the uncanny feeling the place gave off. A mimicry of the familiar lacking several vital features that left everything strange.

Getting here had not been easy Severo thought to himself, they had lost many to the attrition of the forest’s dangers. Jos had never even rached the forest, a leech like thing, twice the size of a man and covered in spiny armor, had ambushed him while they were traversing the freezing cold swamps behind the forest. When Niene had tried to save him, one of the spikes on the leech’s head had shot out and pierced through her shoulder. She had dropped dead minutes, killed by a combination of severe poisoning and blood loss. Widreth, Burwena and Eerik where tore apart as they walked through a flower bed near the entrance of the forest when small plants with snapping jaws and lashing thorny vines had popped out of the ground without warning to attack them. Asmo and Petra had been stung to death by several giant bees who dive bombed them with drill shaped stingers. Villi had been knocked over by a flying rabbit and subsequently cracked her skull open on a rock, moments after she told Severo about a weird 4 eyed deer she had seen. Putrael, frioc, Rosenwyn and Gurci simply hadn't re-joined the others after they had to split up to hide from a Dryad patrol. Severo was pretty sure they had deserted, but couldn’t be entirely certain. He couldn’t blame them if they had. Only a few minutes earlier Amalia, Cuarto and Nerita had been impaled on the branches of a seemingly mundane tree that had come to life as they passed by.

In the end only Servero, Oto, Patrik, Narella and Saba had made it this far, but now that they were here, all they had to do was pick a good few spots for their arson and then get the hell out while avoiding the dryads bustling about in the settlement.
Those same said dryads where getting rather agitated. There had been a feeling swirling around the dreaming since just before dawn, a feeling that something was wrong that had been building over the past half hour. Atop the battlements, or canopy, of the fortress proper Lord Enzar, (the jury was still out on whether “Lord” was a valid name or not, some suggested Enzear the Lord would be more in line with tradition, Enzar claimed that the “the” was superfluous in this instance) passed to and fro restlessly. The dryad, 8 feet of (literally) sculpted muscle topped with flowing grassy hair that went down to his shoulders, had already responded to the feeling by sending out additional patrols and psychically asking the Trees for guidance. So far neither of the these had yielded results. He was about to try mentally shouting at the Trees again when there was a sudden sense of pressure in the dreaming that welled up from the center of the fortress, a presence so vast and ancient it was almost physical.

Awaken children of the forest! Vitium has sent its torchbearers into our lands to bring death and destruction in an act of war! All leave is hereby suspended! Prepare for battle with ember and animal alike! I am assuming direct command of operations in this area till the Vitiums are made to pay for their desecration!

The messages was clear as day in the minds of all those in the forest, from sapling to ancient colossus, they all heard it, and they all obeyed without question. As Enzar received more specific, and thankfully less deafening, instructions from Yaval the settlement became abuzz with activity. Personal projects were carefully set aside as armories where thrown open, armor donned and weapons retrieved. The children of autumn join their brethren of spring in preparation to do what they were where all built to do. In an around the settlement, sleeping eyes cracked open as the ents awoke from their slumber. Right behind Servero a seemingly innocuous tree began to move, its branches becoming arms, its leaves wings, its once ridgid trunk a serpentine body. As Nyranda The Serpent awoke her body slammed down behind the scouts, powerful arms supporting her weight as she withdrew her roots from the earth, the tendrils coiling them together to form a long tail. In the dreaming, meaning and power twisted and danced together as she flexed her magic. Despite her blindness she could sense them all clearly, the intruders, bearing tools of flame.
In response to the cacophonous sound behind them the Candid scouts turned to find a humongous wyvern of bark and moss where moments earlier there had moments before only been forest.

“Firepots!” Servero screamed while reaching down, grabbing, lighting and then hurling his own at the monster in a single, swift, practiced motion. But it was too late. Amber lines of power flared all along the surface of Nyranda’s bark and the winds responded to her call. The flames intended to ignite the fiery weapons were snuffed out in an instant, while the pots themselves hung suspended in the air between the scouts and the Ent. There was a quiet moment of awe before the scouts tried to scatter, only to be hauled skyward like the firepots. Servero tried to scream, but the air had already been forcibly torn from his lungs.

---

From her position in the north eastern foothills of the frozen cliffs Queen Rosabella, riding at the head of her small army of loyal humans, allied harpies, foreign adventurers and well paid mercenaries, could see that the Matharanian plan has succeeded despite the brutal attrition the forest had inflicted. In the north several areas at the periphery of the forest could be seen either ablaze or smoldering. In the south, where the colder climate seeping down from the frozen cliffs which left the vegetation dryer and the inhabitants more sluggish, several fires had been lit deeper in the woods. The Calid scouts there had also had the opportunity to gathered information from local royalists and poachers who lived in land loyal to the Kingdom of Shenra, which had helped them navigate the strange and deadly woods much more effectively, leading to several successful escapes by entire southern Calid Cohorts post firestarting.

Yet the woods where awake now, and the initial individual attempts at firefighting rapidly became coordinated on a forest wide scale. Enchanters worked together, using specially made magic items to douse the flames with torrents of water. Ents used massive swords to cut down mundane trees and then dragged them away to deprive the fires of fuel to spread. The one of the Emerald Empire’s only fire mage, Saberath the mad, started a counter fire around one of the larger edge fires, leaving a semicircle of smoldering wasteland in the south but preventing the fire from reaching deeper to Fort Cher. Other Trees that were threatened by encroaching flame or fires started at their bases activated tiny amber trinkets tied to their branches which acted like a magical sprinkler system, sparing them while the wood around them was consumed. Other fires where smothered, starved of oxygen by wind mages. The battle against their most ancient foe was not without casualties but roughly 20 min after Yaval had begun the forest wide response most of the fires had been extinguished.

---

As the armies of the emerald empire amassed to respond to the inevitable invasion by Vitium army, two ravens flew out of the forest baring messages. One was a declaration of war headed for the Vitium encampment, a force that had been watched by dryads from the forest's edge and by creatures whose minds had been bound to the will of enchanters and mages. The other few onwards, seaking out a tiny encampment hidden in a rocky outcropping somewhere behind the enemy encampment. After passing by the cave entrance and the ring of swords stabbed into the earth and stone therein the bird, a well kept creature sporting a collar which had an amber gemstone as its centerpiece, found only one of of the people it was expecting. Standing at 6 and a half feet tall, the Ent know as Yarvost the Bold was incredibly small, both for his species and age. He wore a rune covered mask sporting 4 red glowing eyes and, somewhat oddly for an ent, a thick padded robe with a belt sporting 13 scabbards The raven landed on his shoulder and, after a short delay during which the distant mage controlling the raven cast another spell, asked: “Where is Xuna?”
The Ent carefully put away the sword it had been sharpening and then pointed back behind himself at the cavern wall. The raven cocked its head to one side in confusion before deducting. “She's in the vale again?” Yarvost noded. “I will never understand how you or the animals can cope without the dreaming” the Ent shrugged “Can’t be trusted to do their duty, the Dreamless. She was supposed to be here for when Vitium made their first move”

“Don’t get your feathers all ruffled, I’ll be here when the time comes” said a young human woman who walked in past the warding ring. The raven fluttered in alarm at the sight of the intruder before the woman touched a hand to her face, revealing the human form to be an illusion, and that she was in fact Xuna the Brave. The 4 ft tall dryad, whose face was obscured by a matching rune marked horned mask who’s two eyes glowed a deep red, was one of the oldest dryads in the entire world. She pointedly refused to act her age.
“That time is now Xuna!”

“And here I am like I said I would be.” she spread her arms wide as if to present herself “You should be more trusting of us ‘Dreamless’ bird brain. Plus I think you'll find my little excursion will serve us all well in this latest war”

“I don't really care what you dug up out of the vale, just get moving already. Yaval’s instructions stand as they where given”
“We’re going. We’re going. Can’t disappoint family after all!”

The raven simply rolled its eyes as Yarvost silently stood and began to march out of the cave. As he passed by the entrance several vines snaked out from behind is back, each grasping one of the 12 unique enchanted blades ringing the entrance, pulling them all free simultaneously and sheathing them all in their respective sheaths. Xuna followed after, carefully stringing her ancient bow with its newly acquired bowstring, a hidden smile on her lips.

Project Crossover [Video Game Crossover RP]

Captain Piper

level: 1
day/time: day 3 - evening
Location: 26th Floor of Tetris Castle, The Reception Hall
Interacting with: @Zarkun, @Holy Soldier

Piper was familiar with the kind of tech used to make the projections, even if she found it a little disconcerting to see again. Her people didn’t use it, but she had seen stuff like it while her crew where blasting through hoards of hive minded bots on voltron’s ships. Once the screen started working it revealed more of the biped animal people that seemed to make up the majority of the population of this and most other worlds. Piper was still getting used to them and their… squishiness.

Piper was however rather familiar with the kind of cabin fever she decided that the people on the other end of communication device where suffering from. Coop a group of people up on a spaceship together for too long away from outside influences and they get overly familiar and comfortable with each others eccentricities, developing a micro culture that comes of as odd to everyone else. That said, this lot where on the extreme end of that process and she was somewhat surprised they hadn’t vented themselves into space or crashed straight into an asteroid as a result of their space madness. Or that none of the died to a ricocheting weapons discharge when their only sane man forced them to stop bickering with firepower. She could only hope that this president person of too many titles calmed down after getting some fresh company, rather than dragging them all down into his insanity.

As for the mission itself, piper had very little perspective to draw on to draw any conclusions from the limited data they where given. She supposed these iron gods might be people like her. Other than that she wasn’t sure how dangerous these dragons where, nor did she have much to offer in the way of ideas as to what the barbarians and their metal masters might want. Whatever it was, Piper decided her goal would be to lift it before they got their hands on it. Aiming to get a jist of what might be considered valuable in the settlement she asked:

”This Markarth place home to anything notable that would make it a target? Recently unearthed ancient structures or artifacts, vaults full of treasure, arsenal of weapons, that kind of thing?”

Like Vent, Piper would forgo traditional clothing, in her case it was because wearing flammable cloth on your body does not mix well with having an exposed furnace on your chest. She also found Vent’s comment about lethality rather disconcerting as a result of her previous mental equating of the steel gods to her own kind.

”Why might you feel like scrapping one is acceptable when the other might not be?”

She hoped it was because her kind could simply be put back together if scraped, unlike animals who would not get up again once sufficiently damaged, no matter how much duct tape you applied, rather than some kind of resentment towards her kind.

Taric

level: 2
day/time: 3 - evening
Location: save point inn
Interacting with: @ONL, @Guardian Angel Haruki, @Zarkun, @Majoras End, Holy Soldier
Cooldowns:
Bastion: 2/2. linked ally: none
Starlight's Touch: 0/6

Taric was a little less befuddled by the existence of cuphead than everyone else it seemed, having pegged him as some kind of eccentrically designed golem. Really, he was not that much more strange than the wheelchair bound humanoid turtle or a glowing talking dragonfly. still, he was glad fate had lead him to see the little marvel or rather that the protector had lead him to see them, as Taric soon found out he had stumbled into a call to adventure.

”I suppose it was optimistic of me to think we might be here just for sightseeing then” he muttered to himself in amusement. It was not much of a stretch to hear laughter in the the melodic tones produced by his follower gems as they moved to avoid scraping the ceiling of the staircase. Once they were in a room Taric sat down on one of the beds, set bravado down beside and him to listen to Spark’s tale of dragons, danger, deception and dark figures. A dark hooded figure that it turned out might be in this very building! Or it might just be someone with similar dress sense. Dark cloaks were the fashion of choice for suspicious figures everywhere, so confronting the one downstairs would probably be good for someone, even if it wasn't them.

”Shall we go confront this suspicious figure then?”

Taric asked as he stood up once more, a process that involved dramatically tossing his mace bravado up from where it was sitting using his right hand, letting it twirl around once in the air before catching it by the handle in his left gauntleted hand.

”and if we do, do you want help down the stairs Bentley?”

He imagined the bumpy ride back down would be most unpleasant if done unassisted.

Naija

level: 5
day/time: day 3 - evening
Location: tetris castle - floor 49 -> floor 75
Interacting with: Holy Soldier

A portal to another world was definitely something interesting. The amount of uses that that could provide where mind boggling.

”have you tried” Naija began before realizing she probably wouldn’t be able to suggest anything the scientist had not already thought of ”Never mind. I’ll leave you to it.”

Naija was a little disappointed to not be getting to keep the bag. She was going to use it as decor for the room she had taken on the 75th floor. A room she decided it was high time she went back to.

”good night Dr. Solus”

She let herself out the lab and headed up to the castle’s Quarters. There she went to the bathroom attached to her room, filled up the bathtub with water and towels and then promptly snuggled into the resulting warm mess to get some much needed sleep.

Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

The Emerald Empire

The Fractured Riverlands

It had taken Selzona’s expedition 3 days to over the ground the sargent had covered in one and in the interim the devastation had spread. On their way the group passed several small groups of refugees and from which they discovered that 2 villages of the main road had also been destroyed. From personally interviewing the peasantry Selzona acquired a slightly better understanding of their quarry and was beginning to suspect that the rumors of a monster where true. While this spooked their human cavalrymen, most of the dryads where getting worked up at the news, thinking of the glory and thrill of fighting something no-one had faced before. Selzona herself tried to avoid being caught up in their excitement, as the leader she needed to stay level headed, but their emotions swirling around the Dreaming got to everyone, somewhat to the annoyance of the Ents who were supporting the Psychic link.

They arrived in the village which Vertrestin’s group had last been seen in, located next to a river crossing, and set up camp for the night just outside near a small patch of trees. While the Dryads did not need to sleep per say, their night vision was as poor as a humans and they also welcomed the chance to rest, eat and socialize. Through the night, while the humans and Ents slept, the Dryads made plans, using a small number of glowing chunks of enchanted artificial amber as a lightsource. Using a cloth map dotted with stones placed to represent rough locations of the destroyed villages and areas of supposed sightings they managed to work out roughly what their quarry’s path had been over the past few days and in doing so make a guess as to what area it was in now.

Once the dawn came the expedition briefly stopped by the village to underpay some villagers to cook them breakfast and recruiting the local militia. Because of the closeness of the village to one of the estuaries they were better trained and equipped than the average town maitia due to the threat of raiders, but that did not mean many had seen battle before. Roughly 2 hours after sun up the small army set off.

It was just past noon when beast was found, lurking in a hilly area near Loch Finray. After reaching the area Selzona had split their forces into 5 smaller groups, each accompanied by an ent who keeped them all in a psychic link despite the distances between them. It was through this connection that first felt battle adjoined, the relative calm and boredom of part of the dreaming flared up suddenly, excitement and fear burning brightly in their place.

_{Report! Do not engage!}

Selzona tried to push commands though to the group, but even with the ent assisting, her thoughts were drowned out as party engaged whatever they had run into. Bursts of pain, fury and exileration drowned out any attempts to communicate. Instead she was forced to do it the human way, shouting down to the ⅕ of the expedition directly under her command at the moment and ordering them all to assist their kin. Then she drew a bronze bugle horn and sounded it as a signal to attack that would be able to reach the other three groups. Turing to where the engaged group was supposed to be the small number of dryads raced off up the intervening hills, hammers and maces drawn. The ent Selzona was riding, waw slower to react but subsequently caught up with the dryad its long strides. The human militia brought up the rear, encouraged to follow by one of the deer riders who was acting as their captain screaming bloody murder at them.

As her ent crested the final hill she saw their foe for the first time, a truly titanic hydra that looked like it was rotting, its scales had fallen off in may places and a grey ooze leaked from the exposed flesh. It certainly smelled like a corpse, the valley that the monster was in was suffused with a heavy stench into which Selzona and her reinforcements descended. The monster was at the center of a vague ring of about 10 dryads who where doing little more than hold its attention as they barely avoided its 3 snapping jaws. As the reinforcements arrived one was snapped up by a head, the massive fangs of the hydra punching clean through his armor and body as he was carried screaming to the sky before being swallowed whole.

Wrapped in the massive tail of the beast, being slowly crushed, was the first group’s ent. The forest giant, standing 40 feet tall, was rendered helpless as it strained against the coils of the hydra, the wretched grey puss leaking from the hydra’s body soiling the ent’s bark as it attempted to break free and retrieve its sword that had fallen to the ground when it had been ensnared. Of the humans that had accompanied the group, few remained. Some had taken one look at the monster and flead. Judging by the blood and discarded weapons, some had suffered the same fate as the dryad male just had. Those that remained had regrouped up on the opposite side from Selzona, rallied by the captain half of who’s face had been badly burned by a spray of boiling hydra blood.

Selzona ordered the humans with her to go group up with the captain’s lot and then, grabbing a rope hanging from one of the ent’s branches, slid down it to the ground. From there she began to giver orders. The ent she had been riding was sent to try and free it’s fellow, while 3 dryads scrambled up the rope Selzona had just descended from. The rest were sent to join the ones already engaged, where they stopped the 3 heads from delivering a finishing blow on the large ent, shooting the hissing heads with arrows or trying to get in at its legs to smash them. Slezona herself meanwhile began to mutter a spell from her position on the valley slopes, the simple chant was not however the main part of the spell. Anyone who could feel the dreaming would see the complex pattern being twisted within it around selzona, pulsating web of ideas and power woven around her. As the power built the air around her chilled, ice forming on the grass surrounding her feet that began to grow until it formed a jagged ring of knife sized icicles.

As the ent from selzona’s group closed with the hydra its leftmost head ceased its chasing of the nimble Dryads and raised up, hissing menacingly at the large threat and rearing back in preparation to strike. It was then that selzona unleashed her spell, the 24 newly formed frozen blades firing off in machine gun succession, streaming up towards the monsters head and plunging into the side of it. Despite this barrage, the hydra stills struck, its many fanged mouth closing around an arm the ent raised to protect itself. The drayads riding the ent retailated, 2 leaped from it in an attempt to get on the hydra's back. One suckseaded, jamming two long kives into an exposed area of flesh and them climbing up, the other fell short and plummeted to the ground, breaking both her legs on impact with the ground. The third ran along the ent’s arm and delivered a two handed hammer blow to the hydra's eye, causing it to release the arm as it related back screaming. The central head came to the aid of the left, forcing the ent to back off and leaving the larger ent still trapped in the constricting tail. The dryads around the hydra took advantage of two of the heads being distracted to launch attacks on the legs, several being kicked or clawed for their efforts.

It was then that the rest of the expedition began to arrive, a 10 ft tall beastial ent in the shape of a wolf came bounding across one of the hills, the archers riding on its back immediately opening fire on the hydra, their enchanted shortbows perrering the rightmost head with arrows. The second group to arrive contained an ent sporting long vicious claws instead of a weapon and most of the expeditions enchanters, who hurried over to join her. The third had the smallest ent, only 8 ft tall but also sported the other mage of the expedition, Festar the parliament, who rode up to Sezona riding atop an owlbear, with two owcilots perched atop his shoulders. Accompanying all the groups where dryad food soldiers and militia troops who joined in the fray. With all her troops now on the battlefield Selzona began a plan to actually kill the beast.

Working in tandem the 2 mages worked to try and bind the heads of the hydra, vines erupted from the earth, lashing around the central head while chains of ice extended from the ice knives down to the ground. With every flail of the heads, more bindings broke, but hey where replaced too quickly for the beast to truly escape the spells, the enchanters offering up the mana in their items to help the mages continue their magic. The rightmost head was then tackled by the bitten, clawd, wolf and small ent, who all wrested with it to keep it occupied. While the three heads attempted to break free the sargent lead a charge of the human militia, who, having learned from the sargent’s wounds, stopped short of the distracted hydra and hurled their spears at the tail and legs of the beast, before hastily retreating from the resulting spurts of boiling blood. The dryads harassed the legs of the hydra using their heavy blunt weapons whenever they set down, breaking toe bones and bruising ankles. Panicked by its entrapment and the wounds it was receiving the hydra un-coiled its tail from the great ent and tried to use thrashing it to help it escape. With lethargic speed, the now freed ent picked up its massive sword, hefted it, and then swung the 20 ft long blade at the hydra’s necks.

---

It was approaching even by the time the decapitated hydra's body stopped twitching, and for the pool of blood it had collapsed into to cooled down enough for it to be safe to go anywhere close to the corpse. Most of the surviving expedition had moved, or been moved, out of the valley to avoid the smell of the thing, which was now worse than ever. One of the remaining deer riders had been sent back north with an initial report of the incident, but for the time being the rest of the force would remain near the site while Selzona and Festar conducted an investigation of the hydra in an attempt to work out why it had already looked like a corpse before it had been killed.

Project Crossover [Video Game Crossover RP]

Captain Piper

level: 1
day/time: day 3 - evening
Location: 26th Floor of Tetris Castle, The Reception Hall

Just as the sun was setting Piper’s ship came in for landing, the antique and haphazardly maintained royalist spaceforce cargo hauler. Not made for planetary landings, the steam powered ship creaked and groaned in protest as it was gingerly set down by its pilot. Standing just behind that pilot was the captain of the ship, Piper Faraday.

“An excellent landing Wonkey”

“Thanks piper. I’ll be honest, it was touch and go for a bit. Never had a chance to land on a planet before after all. “Hope you don’t tellin me all about what being on one is like when you get back captain?” responded the pilot, who was welded to the chair dangling before the wheel of the ship.

“I’ll do just that”



Piper bade farewell to wonky and climbed down the ladder at the far end of the bridge that lead to the level that featured the crew quarters and main airlock. There the rest of the small ships crew was gathered.

“Alright gentlemen, the rest of you get shore leave while I go find out what the council needs me for.” she addressed them, referring to the message they had received earlier that day. “Enjoy yourselves, but please try not to start any trouble” With that said she opened up the hatch leading to the outside and stepped out into platform city, which was for the moment decked out in christmas spirit and with the evening dark coming in places around the town where lit up with lights of all colours. As she headed for the castle her crew dispersed among the crowds.

After a brief delay caused by an argument with a mechent over what they would accept as currency (water no, bullets yes, something Piper found rather absurd) she arrived at the entrance to the castle now wearing a santa hat in place of her captains hat. She had no understanding of the meaning of the headgear, but every steambot worth their coal knows a nice headpiece when they see one.

Piper wasn’t one for architecture, but she had to admit the castle was impressive, dwarfing even the royal palace/space station of the red queen that she and her crew had stormed some time ago. Hopefully this once contained no ancient threats to accidentally unleash. She was lead through the grand halls by a small creature of some kind that seemed to be wearing a green mophead as a hat. She liked its style.

Once she entered the room it became clear that her hat purchasing adventure had made her a little late, most of the other seats at the table seemed to be already taken. She quickly found a place herself and, after some confusion from the lemming, got them to acquire some water and coal for her, which she used to restock her boiler.

Taric

level: 2
day/time: 3 - evening
Location: save point inn
Interacting with: Shantae@Guardian Angel Haruki
Cooldowns:
Bastion: 2/2. linked ally: none
Starlight's Touch: 0/6
level up:
Stats: (P)Defense +2, (M)(E)Damage +1, (M)(E)Defense +2
Ability: Starlight's Touch

Taric, by divine coincidence, happened to enter the Save Point Inn just a little after Shantae had amassed a crowd of heros around her. He had spent the time since they seperated turisting about the city, visiting various concept art galleries, parks and other places of beauty, and was just now arriving at the inn he was planning to spend the night in.

“Hello again miss Shantae, it is good to see you.”

Naija

level: 5
day/time: day 3 - evening
Location: tetris castle - floor 49

After Guile had ordered them all to the 49th floor she had shoved the bag into her inventory and headed off there with the others. She she arrived she had hoped onto the first table she could find and popped the bag down onto it, helpful informing them that ”I brought you a thing”.

Naija’s attempt at distracting the scientists failed, and so she still had to go through the medical check like everyone else, much to her chagrin. After a debriefing filled with plenty of words she did not understand like like “fan bases” and “illegal” during which she spent most of the time twirling the mystery vehicle key around on her for finger, she returned to the 49th floor. There she went and found the scientist who had investigated the bag thing.

”Did you happen to find out anything interesting Dr. Solus? Also, can I keep the bag if you are done with it?”

Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

Map update

Project Crossover [SMASH ARENA - Only PXO members allowed]

Naija

level: 5
day/time: day 2
Location: Smash Arena
Level up:
Stats: (P)Defense +3, Dexterity +2
Ability: Beast form

Naija set of down the tunnel the others had gone down, leaping along the tunnel in a series fo quick hops. It was while doing this that there was a sudden flash of light as a deadly glowing arrow soared down the corridor towards her as she was mid leap. Trapped, unable to change her trajectory, she could only watch as it hurtled towards her, closing the distance in a heartbeat before it missed, flying far beneath her. She landed, shaken, tensing to leap out of the way of the follow up shot, but after a moment it became clear it wasn't coming. A little flummoxed Naija picked up the pace, jumping from wall to wall to race down towards the group.

Najia landed with a dull thud behind the group, spoiling for a fight that it quickly became apparent was not to be had. Instead she found a bunch of dead people, a dead thing that was probably the egg stealer and a very angry Guile. Rather confused and a little concerned she unknowingly echoed Guile’s question

”So I destroyed the blob things. What happened here? Did we get them all?”

At the same time she displayed energy form, returning to her natural turquoise complexion. Then she noticed the hungry bag on the floor and, out of curiosity, picked it up.

”also what is this thing?”

Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

Kingdom of Shenra

The Frozen Cliffs, The Holy Summit
@Terminal

Within the vast and freezing mountain range in the southern reaches of the Emerald Empire’s continental holdings resided the last bastion of the Kingdom of Shenra, a nation the Dreaming Forest had brought to its knees scant 50 years past. The capital of this rump of a kingdom was the Holy Summit, a rather ancient monastery that had been adapted to the argenism faith some 250 years ago.

This monastery sat at the end of a long treacherous staircase that carved into the side of the mountain itself. This attempt at civil engineering alone indicating its importance in the region when it was compared to the foot worn paths that were most of the Frozen Clif’s equivalents of roads. At the end of the climb sat the Holly Summit, a temple resting against, and sometimes carved out of, the mountainous peak itself. Its entrance was a pair of massive wooden doors, reinforced with iron studs and decorated with carved murals of the primordial gods. To either side sat two large braziers and next to these were stationed the lion headdress wearing guards of the royal court, standing attention to with their halberds. At the sight of the approaching Vitium envoys one Guardswoman slipped inside to inform the guard captain.

The insides of the temple where a reprieve from the cold outside, heated by a system of hot water pipes running beneath the floor and through the walls. From the insides it became clear that the structures were built of a stone not local to the region, including some spots of marble and obsidian used to create displays of duality for the carvings that covered almost every surface of the interior, some ancient and worn while others, often featuring the prophetess, had been carved in the last decade. The royal court itself was housed in one of the buildings adjacent to the temple proper, located in a converted dormitory that was focused around a large map table, upon which scrolls of intelligence reports, supplied by spies and informants still loyal to the crown, were arranged around depictions of various regions of the Kingdom's former territory.

Upon a simple throne on the far end of this table sat the Queen herself, a mastercrafted bejeweled golden crown sitting just a little to loosely on her head. She was wearing an expensive dress that looked like it was probably older than her, and beside her throne her sat her enchanted twin elemental axe. To either side of her stood her robbed godfather Lord Solgarand and the armored Knight Sir Glenway, her trusted advisor and defender. Next to them where the two harpy mages: Hajnal, who wore a dress that struggled to cooperate with his 4 wings and Faizya, whose body seems to be covered with a layer of eternity cooling lava and little else. Further out along the table and around the walls of the room where a small number lesser nobles and knights, here primarily to observe the proceedings rather than get involved. The entire setup had been carefully designed to display both the kingdoms strength and regal dignity to the soon to arrive Vitium envoys, to visually back up the Kingdom’s value as a strong and reliable ally.

Gathered after a harpy huntress spotted the expedition as it was making its final assent, the mood in the court was a tense one, as all congregated knew full well that they were in the weak bargaining position. There was concern that the delegation was here to force stricter terms upon them in person than had been agreed upon via the correspondence that had set up the meeting. The sound of hushed conversation whispering through the room was brought to an abrupt conclusion as the door at the end of the hall was pushed open suddenly as Captain Tempkin, head of the royal guards, stepped inside and announced the arrival of the diplomatic party. As the party stepped into the room the Queen spoke, her toan formal and regal.

“Welcome, Marshall Design and company. Please, take a seat.”

After food was brought in and the expedition was allowed some time to rest, the diplomatic endeavor began in earnest. The negotiations went well for the Shenran Court, surprisingly so in the opinion of some of the more senior lords. All the previously agreed upon terms were reaffirmed. Those namly being that The Kingdom would assist Vitium in conquering the Glacial Marshes up to the Coastline, that being all the regions south of the rivers that flowed out from Lake Sem. In return for this assistance Shenra would receive favorable trade stipulations with Vitium, get exclusive rights to the spoils of war, and reassurance that none of the land currently under control of the kingdom, namly the Frozen Cliffs, would not be claimed by the empire in the process. Of most interest to the Kingdom was the stipulation that once the Kingdom was in position to make an attempt to reclaim the northern territories they had once held, they would receive support from the Empire.

Any changes to the deal suggested by the Kingdom, such as Sir Glenway’s suggestion that they attempt to take the two cities Fenreforst and Crinwaley that were just north of the river line, where quickly shot down. As a result of this rigidity the Queen became convinced, incorrectly, that the Marshall had only been sent as a glorified messenger capable of rubber stamping the deal. Her opinion of the man changed somewhat when it became apparent that he was expecting to be staying with the royal court with his party to facilitate better cooperation with the Empresses main force, something they readily accepted. The internal security of Vitium was infamous, anything to expedite getting massages though it, such as messengers sent by the authority of the Marshal himself in hand, was greatly appreciated. As was the possibility to use any bonds formed over the man’s stay to tighten the diplomatic relationship between the two nations.

After discussions have run their course and the delegations have been shown to quarters for the night most of the court that have gathered round the table went on their way. Those reaming where the Queen’s inner circle: Lord Solgarand, Sir Glenway, Captain Tempkin and the two Harpy mages: Hajnal and Faizya. A few notable additions to the room where gifts brought by the Delegation: an Agate Spider silk cloak, light yet strong as steel, that was draped across the Queens shoulders, a Mithral headed spear now held in the hands of Sir Glenway, supporting him as he remained standing, and a small bottle, that the Vitiums claimed contained pure starlight, which sat in the center of the table as a paperweight because nobody knew what to do with it.

“So. That went well”, began the Queen who was visibly relaxed now that she was in the presence of her trusted associates rather than beholden to important guests or the court in its entirety.

“Perhaps too well, there was an opportunity for them to force us to back down on some of our requests, to demand concessions or perhaps even to force a degree of vaselation. That there was no attempt at any maneuvering to benefit themselves concerns me. What underhanded plans might they have that we are unaware of I wonder? ” Lord Solgarand respond, his hand running through is finely groomed mustache. The old man was well versed in the art of diplomacy and court intrigue, he believed, somewhat paranoidly, that there must be more to the empire’s plans than me the eye.

“They clearly know that we are indispensable, and that no empire, be it Emerald or Vitium, can take these mountains” Sir Glenway interjected boastfully

“The threat is still there, either to use force against us or leave us out of their conquest.”

“Their war will be won or lost depending on how well they adapted to fighting foes not made of flesh and blood. No amount of strength on our part will save them if they are not prepared, and if they are, then their numbers will surely carry the day. All we can do is make a victory easier. This alliance is, unfortunately, not a deciding factor in the war. If it where we would have considerably more bargaining power.” The guard captain, well versed in the Kingdom’s actual military capacity, explained calmly.

“In joining the fighting we will save lives, both those of their soldiers and those of our kinsman forced to serve under the Forest’s banners. When they see us join the fight my people will turn on their masters, and be spared from the war machines of Andromache”

“Yet those same people are going to be put into the chains, as are the citizens of the lands they will conquer. This is no liberation, not as you desire it, it is but a new form of oppression, a new slavery.” Hajnal finally spoke, bringing to the forefront the issue the court in its entirety had been skirting around. That not only were their countrymen to be conquered by slavers, but they were assisting in that conquest. There was a sullen silence loomed large over the group until at last Faizya, who was really only here because the queen like her rather than because of any hierarchical importance, could stand it no longer and burst out with.

“We had to do something. There’s no way we could have stopped it, so we have to go out there, kick some wooden ass and try and make the best of it!”

“Your... Your right. We have no choice. It was either sit here and let it happen or take advantage of the situation. With the resources we plunder, most notably Magic Wood, we can strengthen the treasury. With Vitium acting as a buffer we have breathing room to build up our own forces unmolested using our newly acquired wealth, and with Andromache’s support we might subsequently have a chance at taking back the north. I don’t like what will happen to those in the lands they will conquer. None of us do. But this is a chase we have to take. For the sake of the many, the few will have to suffer. But we will not ignore their sacrifice, they will not be forgotten as we strive to move forwards.”

This last part struck a chord with the Harpy, for their religion put a lot of emphasis on remembrance of the dead. The center’s of harpy villages contained great stone monuments upon which all that came before them where commemorated, be it by name, eulogy or depiction.

“I apologies for my comment your highness. I did not wish to infer that you had forgotten them.”

“You are forgiven. You were right to bring it up, we can't go on without considering the fate of those in the Glacial Marshes”

“With luck, the Vitium ownership of that land may not be permanent. The empress is old, and she has no heir. Whether her empire can withstand her passing remains to bee seen.”

“They might even sell it back to us, I don't much like the odds of getting a navy running when the Emerald Empire controls the way out of the Sea of Lights. Nor do I like their supply route to Dreich port, far to exposed in my opinion, running right past two fortified enemy positions.”

“Exactly why I suggested taking them!”

“Though perhaps their engineers have plans of how to make the roads safer or the rout shorter. At any rate, if I were them I would like any southern ports far more than the one they intend to take up here. They might well abandon it, if the costs are to high and the benefits to low.”

“Perhaps. But I think we are straying into long term planning here, something I suggest we leave till the morning?”

There was a general course of agreement, what little light breached the cloud layer of the mountains had long since dimmed. Night had set in and the candles were burning low, it was time for them all to retire.

“Then I bid you all goodnight.”

The group rapidly broke up after that, the members of the Queens inner circle each going their separate ways. The Queen then retired to her quarters, thankful to finally be able to finally be free of her uncomfortable formal dress.

Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

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Legend of the Silver Legion Redux (Open)

The Emerald Empire

The Fractured Riverlands, Nor Fort

In the north of the empire’s continental holdings was Norfort, a castle of living wood sitting at the joining of two estuaries that split the land, a bastion against the disparate clans that lived on the opposite shore. A little way outside from the castle proper, and surrounded by an area where all the plants had been carefully moved away from, was a long hall made of stone and whalebone. A well worn path connected the fort and the long hall, down which Selzona the Cold, current military leader of the fort, walked hurriedly. She pushed her way past the small set of double doors and enter the hall, the inside of which featured several long tables, on either side of which benches were placed, all carved from stone, making the inside of the hall something between a banquet and mess hall in appearance.

Indeed, upon the benches sat varios dryads partaking in smorgasbord of meals prepared from all manner of ingredients, from exotic wild meats to locally grown vegetables. Rather ubiquitous in the meals was a certain dull fruit, its flesh almost gray in complexion and Dryads seemed rather displeased about its presence. Selzona’s expression notably soured at the sight of the fruits as she walked down between the rows of tables, exchanging brief words with some of the diners, as she head towards the far end of the hall. There sat a small freestanding building inside the hall proper, with a no man's land between it and the tables. The only link between the two buildings where a series of columns leading up to the roof. Inside it where the bravest Dryads in the whole settlement. Selzona steeled herself for a moment before the entrance and then went to join them.

Inside the small building was fire. Hideous, horrifying, hellish, deadly fire. Also some chefs. Asisting the chefs were about twice the number of apprentices, many of them armed with buckets and hovering near water barrels. To her credit Selzona only froze up for about 3 seconds before closing the door to the kitchen and approaching the head cook, a Dryad called Forsent. Forsent was rough in appearance, grown a berserker his body was a crude facsimile of the human form with a flat, almost featureless face housting two lidless eyes and a gnarled mouth full of stake like fangs. Despite his looks, the man was quite the amicable fellow and also her elected equan, currently leader of the fort’s civilian affairs.

Normally those coming to get food would have gone round the side to a hatch, where they could collect food they had ordered telepathically while avoiding seeing to the horror held within the kitchen. Selzona was only in here because she needed to have an actual conversation with Forsent, something the dreamscape made rather slow and at times unhelpfully vague.

”I see that we’re running low on palatable food”

“Aye. Vertrestin hasn’t come back from her run to Sen Port yet. We were already running low after that business with those Tarkiman raiders last week. Tell you the truth, we’re growing concerned, she should’ve been back two days ago.”

”ah, so that's what that disconserting feeling in the Dreaming’s been about. Have you sent someone...”

“Yesterday, they’re running late too though”

”That is concerning.”

“Agreed”

Despite the extensive safety precautions Selzona was already growing uncomfortable at being in the room with the flames, and so after a few more words with the chef asking him to let her know when the group investigating the disappeared party returned and left as quickly as her dignity would allow. Once out of the kitchen she joined some of Dryads she had passed on her way here, some of them being subordinates/advisors of hers with which she discussed the disappearance. She was about half way through her meal, steamed trout and a small plate of dull Fruit, which Forsent had attempted to add flavor to using a honey and strawberry jam glazing, that the chef came out of the kitchen approached her. Accompanying him was a middle aged human that she thought she recognised from the deer rider cohort attached to the fort, though the human's tendency to change in appearance as they aged left her a little uncertain of that.

”This who you sent to look for Vertrestin?”

“Aye. Tell her what you told me captain.”

What followed was a detailed description of the man’s attempt to locate the Dryad group, which had lead him to follow their rout down the main road to Sen-port, checking in with the locals to see if the group had been sighted, until he had found the last village they had departe for but never arrived at.

“place was ransacked mam, houses smashed and most of the people were gone. Only ones left hadn’t been in town when the place was attacked”

”A Tarkiman raid then?”

“Maybe, but they didn’t take any of the valuables, there weren't no bodies left behind and its too soon since the last one I reckon. Also, the people there and in nearby villages ‘ave been talking about some kind of monster in the woods. Couldn’t get no stright description from em, but something had em scared real fierce.”

”And no sign of Vertrestin and his group.”

“No mam, if she’s alive then he’s not on the main road or in the villages. Definitely never made it to the port, I ‘ad someone check while I was asking questions.”

“We should have a party scoured the woods near where they went missing, that's what I think.”

“You’ll need more than me and mine to do that sir, particular if them rumors are true.”

”mmm. Thank you captain. You’re dismissed, though I may have use of you later”

After the man saluted and left she turned her attention back to Forsent.

”Your man trustworthy?”

“He’s paid well enough to be. But I wouldn't worry too much of the loyalty of the humans rough these parts. This isn’t the Glacial Marshes, they don’t have that Rump of Kingdom’s agents stirring up trouble, and we’re the only thing standing between them and the northern barbarian hordes. They stopped trying to kick us out years ago. I helped make sure of that”

”I’ll take your word for it. hmm. If there's raiders, or a ‘monster’ about, I think this becomes a military concern, don’t you agree?”

“I have no argument there.”

”Good. Then I’ll be taking over the hunt for our missing kin and we won’t need to bother the Mediator. Agreed?”

“Agreed. Good hunting.”

With that, the autumn and spring leaders of the fort parted ways, Selzona to prepare an armed search party, Forsent back to the kitchen to make one more round of meals. In the eyes of the Dryads, both equally noble and dangerous tasks.

---

An hour later, Selzona’s expedition had been organised. She had called back the sargent and his men, roused a few Ents from their slumber and gathered together any Dryad Soldiers that could be spared from the fort’s gerision. From astride the shoulders of the tallest ent, Selzona the Cold looked down at the group, who while numbering 50 odd individuals represented a force considerably more powerful than that raw headcount would suggest. Satisfied with the force she had assembled, she turned back to the road south and raised her hand, giving the signal to move out, with the Ent mirroring her action. With that, the small force set out down the path that would lead them to their first encounter with a threat far larger than any the fledgling empire had faced before. Greater even that the looming threat on their southern borders, where even now the former rulers of the land schemed with their slave empire neighbor to reclaim what was rightfully theirs.