Rultaos

Revenant: A Sci-Fi Adventure (Always Accepting!)

Stumbled across this among MiracleofSound's many great songs and couldn't help but be reminded of the Revenant team and their intergalactic escapades

lyrics

Come join the party in the dust and the sand
Chip on your shoulder sweat and dirt on your hands
Machines in slumber start to lumber outside
Head full of numbers see the colours collide

Such safest Sanctuary
Droppin' them dollars on you thank you very
Much by the way no refunds
Back into the boneyard badlands we run

I saw a siren singing
Shifting through the shots-a ringing
Frying burning cuts-a stinging
Bringing you the pain

Come on down and join the party tonight
We ain't the kind to turn away from a fight
Chips on our shoulders, sweat and dirt on our hands
Cause we're breaking down the borders
As we light up the lands...

Old TK's shack is just a derelict shell
Ain't nothing left now but his notes and the smell
He used to watch over the fire and the stone
Fan fiction told me that he died all alone

Splash bang so corrosive
Don't get close if it's explosive
Flash gang caustic crew
Simmer and smoke in electric blue

Hiss goes the radio
Vicious malicious a voice we know
Soon to reap the seeds you sow
Bringing you the pain

Come on down and join the party tonight
We ain't the kind to turn away from a fight
Chips on our shoulders, sweat and dirt on our hands
Cause we're breaking down the borders
As we light up the lands

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

I hope you dont mind me following Trainerblue's example and making Ardur's dialogue color yellow @MagratheanWhale xD. If you'd like it different let me know so I can edit my post to reflect it.

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

Cyterius dismounted from his horse as did the others when they were told they were nearing their target destination, and approached the edge of the treeline as Ardur ordered them to. Cyterius followed with his other fellow Inquisitors while leaving behind his scouting team composed of his friends in the Luna Falcons. Nischa Ariteni, an energetic girl with Raven-black hair tied into a ponytail, came with him. Like Cyterius she also had tanned skin, but her eyes were piercing blue as opposed to his green, and her demeanor was almost a polar-opposite to his.

She insisted on tagging along for the initial reconnaissance with an almost childlike curiosity, which Cyterius would have scoffed at had he not known her for years, and knew just how accustomed this girl was to danger. "Stay close and don't poke too far out the treeline. We don't know if whatever besieged the place is still there and we shouldn't give up our element of surprise." He said as he gestured for her to follow behind him. Nischa rolled her eyes at that before responding. "I thought you knew me better than that, Cy. My marks never spot me til I want them to," She replied casually as she jogged along behind him...

The Inquisitors spent a good 30 minutes surveying the area, and had gleamed as much information as they could from watching from a distance. The grisly display of bodies on the walls and ground level were the results of a battle, but Cyterius knew it was more than that. The way they were skewered to hold them high, and those bodies that were kept in a praying position as the weapons were driven through them, it wasn't simply the aftermath of an execution. Whoever did this was trying to send a message. And what better way to send a message than dead bodies... He thought, thinking back to the times the Luna Falcons had employed similar tactics during their mission of revenge to scare their marks into going on the defensive.

A shift in the winds brought the smell of death and decay from the city to where the Inquisitors stood. Most would have backed away from the smell or made attempts to cover their noses, but Cyterius and Nischa merely winced as they had become used to the smell of long dead bodies in their escapades through the criminal underworld of Artuvia. Cyterius sniffed the air to make out details in the scent. The smell was rancid, that of decay instead of smoky like burnt meat. That meant a majority of the people were killed by other means, not from the flames that ravaged the place. The fire was either a distraction, or an after-effect of whatever attack took place there. In any case it wasn't a prolonged siege, as fires and structural damage would have killed more people and left a more noticeable burnt smell in the air. Whatever attacked struck quickly and slaughtered the people quickly.

The portcullis' wrecked debris outside implied that the main attack came from within, not from outside, further supporting his theory that it was a quick and brutal surprise attack that the defenders barely had time to react to. The fires then were likely started after the fighting erupted, as people wouldve fled their homes to escape the danger instead of being trapped and burnt to death. However that still left the question of what was so powerful that the portcullis was blown completely outwards. Cyterius considered explosives or magic as potential causes, as a battering ram was unlikely since it would have had to come in from the outside. If explosives were used then there should be noticeable scorches and blast marks around the gate area, if they're absent then the cause was likely magic, though I only know of it through secondhand knowledge from books. In either case, I would need a closer look to confirm or deny it

A loud whistle drew the duo's attention and they turned towards Ardur's position, walking silently to them in response to his signal.

"The Blight did not befoul this city nor did her terrible monsters breach her walls... Something monstrous attacked this city, and I have yet to figure out who it was. We will wait here for two hours before we advance towards the city. Any questions?" Ardur addressed the gathered Inquisitors.

"And what pray tell do you wish to have us do in these hours we waste? And why, if i am to be so bold, two hours? I can spy your curiosity for the portcullis is as much as mine and i would very much like to examine it," The short Lalafellen Elf asked their leader. Cyterius nodded in agreement to the elf as he turned to Ardur. "The sooner we move on the city the better, but we must not go in blindly if we can help it. Something tells me the display of bodies was meant to get some sort of rise out of us..." He said as he glanced towards gory scene on the walls. "If you will let Inquisitor Fontaine conduct his examination, then my team and I would be willing to accompany him. There are a few details I should like to see for myself, given the opportunity. We can remain silent and we will not venture further than you will allow us, Inquisitor Ardur" he added, using Ardur Skor's first name to differentiate him from his sister Anora.

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

Sniper support on overwatch

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

Accidental double post even though I only clicked once >_<

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

@Trainerblue192 I can't speak for the others, but personally I've always enjoyed playing a normal-ish character with not-so-powerful abilities, because I like getting creative with what I have and trying to find ways for them to get on the same level with others who are objectively stronger, despite their lack of powers by using their heads and fighting smartly ^_^

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

@Trainerblue192 I'm pretty sure you can use that name as long as you're not making money off of it. Especially considering there's so many fandom or fanfic RP's in this site already. Using an existing lore name shouldn't be too bad. I mean, half of the lore stuff I come up with and give names to has probably already been used in the past, so it's no big deal as long as you're not making money off of someone else's work.

|| Wargame: Grand Army || Grand Strategy on a Miniature Scale || Inspired by Wargame and Steel Division ||

I am DEFINITELY interested in this. This is so appealing to my military nerd side. But... unfortunately I'm already in 2 RP's at the moment, plus I feel like I don't have as much history knowledge on vehicles, weapons, armor, and tactics as I'd like to be able to play in this effectively >_<. Will remain subscribed though

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

I added some background on Cyterius' home region on his CS, also tweaked the history and personality section a bit to add a couple extra details. I considered adding more detailed descriptions in his history section but I figured that might make things a bit too long, and I can always reveal the finer details of his history over the course of RP through player interactions and monologues, heh

An Inquisitors Story: The City of Ash and Decay (A High-Casual journey)

Cyterius Yranov

Name: Cyterius Yranov

Gender: Male

Age: 27

Race: Human

Appearance:

Face

Original image courtesy of @iTem

Standing at 5'8, he is tan-skinned with an average body build. He has green eyes, and short black hair that tends to get messy from the hood he usually wears. When not wearing his usual armor with the blue inquisition cape, he wears a white undershirt and leather pants with a brown leather hooded cloak with a black silhouette of a Falcon etched onto the back

Personality:

Quiet, Calculative, Cynical, and Cold. These would be the words to describe Cyterius by his friends. He maintains a practical and realistic worldview, not putting much weight on goodwill or that people won’t have some underlying agenda. He's by no means an easy person to approach, preferring to keep his distance from people until he's sure about them and how they think. He’s also not one to take old tales of heroism and legends at face value, always trying to see characters from the perspective that a person of their time would, and trying to think of battle tactics and strategies that ancient heroes used instead of simply "jumping in, fighting hard, and killing the bad guy". In terms of leadership, he's the kind of person that would willingly let others die if their deaths served an important purpose or a greater good. The exception to that however would be his close friends in the Luna Falcons; a small group of men and women who he grew up with and faced countless dangers alongside. Cyterius doubts he has it in himself to let them die if there was even a remote chance of saving them.

In combat, Cyterius keeps his cool, and remains calm and collected as he analyzes the situation and the danger he is presented with. He thinks and processes information faster than most, trusting logic more than instincts or feelings, which make him more suited to a tactician role than a frontline fighter.


History:

Born to a poor family in the city of Kyrantes (pronounced Kee-ran-tez) the capital of the Artuvia region of the Human Empire, Cyterius lost his parents early on as they were locked away by the City Guard when they tried to steal from a particularly influential merchant at the marketplace. He was left alone on the streets, though his parents had helped him by teaching him how to survive off the scraps of the street, and to steal what he needed. He eventually found a sense of belonging and brotherhood from a group of street children led by a large kid named Samson Karinus. Their small group of 6 shared food and money together, helping each other survive the cruel realities of their urban environment. One day, they were approached by a relatively famous Bounty Hunter who went only by the name “Sicario” who was tracking a few of his targets in their home city. When he encountered the street children, he enlisted their help by paying them to spy on his targets, and cause distractions wherever it was needed to buy him time to either capture or kill his marks, depending on what the bounty asked.

Cyterius and the other children enjoyed working for him, and liked the amount of money they got as a share from Sicario’s earnings. The bounty hunter in turn liked the kids and their moxie and took them under his wing. Though they began doing the same tasks they did once before, they eventually became full-fledged bounty hunters as they grew, inter-dependent with each other’s skills, as efficient in the shadowy forests and in the tight sun-baked crowds of cities; no target would ever remain out of their sight for long. After their master Sicario chose to go into retirement, Cyterius took on the overall leader role for the group, with Samson acting as his right-hand and leading the others as the others liked and trusted Samson more than Cyterius. They continued their activities as the Luna Falcons, furthering their reputation as a feared group of hunters for those who had the misfortune of being marked as targets for collection by the authorities. When mercenaries hired by a crime group went after Sicario in his retirement home and killed their old master, they sought revenge and went on a bloody campaign of abduction, torture, and killing of the members of the slave-trafficking ring that carried out Sicario’s murder. Those who survived were left battered and broken in the streets of their home cities, with a note telling the local authorities that the Luna Falcons will not ask for any payment for the capture of the criminals.

After their mission of revenge, they continued their usual activities for a time, until one of their members a girl named Nischa Ariteni, convinced them to enlist their group as a unit in the Inquisition’s army. Cyterius was skeptical at first, but eventually relented and they joined the Army, offering their services as a reconnaissance unit thanks to their experience and expertise in observing and tracking down targets, with their reputation as the Luna Falcons being an impressive resume for new enlistees. They underwent training and drills together, as well as exercises and war-games that taught them how to adapt their hunting skills to be most efficient on the battlefield. Cyterius in particular, caught the attention of their superiors with his quick tactical mind, and ability to quickly comprehend situations on the field. He was recommended for Inquisitor training, where they felt his talents would be of most use: directing the movements of both large and small forces in battle. Underneath the banner of the the lead Inquisitors Anora and Ardur, Cyterius specializes in leading small groups on reconnaissance missions along with hit-and-run guerrilla style attacks as a way to support the large-scale tactical sense of the twins he serves with.

Equipment:

• Salvo-Arm: Wrist-mounted, magazine fed custom crossbow that fires by flicking the wrist downward, with a leather strap that is tied to the palm of the hand. Each magazine holds 5 bolts but can be quickly reloaded. Has a tendency to jam with improper wrist movement, needing to pull the wrist upright quickly after firing to reset the string before the next bolt slides down. Bolts will also not slide into the firing chamber properly if not fired with the top-mounted magazine facing downwards to have gravity pull the bolts down.
• Light armor with thin metal plating on the torso, arms, and legs, but leather on joints and thighs. Allows quick and agile movement while providing protection from indirect blows. Blue Inquisitor cape attached to the shoulders and neck-area of the armor.
• Flying Snares: Throwable Bolas With two weights on each side. Used for both tying around a victim’s leg, or hitting them in the head with the spinning weights to disorient
• Officer’s Talon: a Curved Saber Primarily used by the horse-mounted military officers of their home region
• Man-Traps: A variation of a bear trap used by the Luna Falcons. Using a pressure pad in the middle, a vise snaps closed around a victim’s leg. Digging into flesh with small spikes to keep it attached. Cannot be unwound without the Falcon’s unique master-key for their Man-Traps. Often has a chain attached to a tree or other anchor to keep the target in one place

Magic:

N/A

Others:

The Region of Artuvia and its History

Artuvia is a warm region of the Human Empire along its south, nearer the world's equator than the rest of the Empire. The landscape is primarily sandy deserts, dry Savannah-like open plains, and mountain ranges around which Artuvia's few forests are situated. Their primary exports are exotic meats, fruits, and spices grown in the plains and deserts that are not found in the colder climates of the Empire's main lands

The capital of Artuvia is Kyrantes, the walled Fortress-City from which the High-Lord of Artuvia reigns and dictates the laws that lords of Artuvia's cities must abide by. Artuvians are a resilient and stubborn people, braving the harsh sun and winds of their home region. When the Empire came to them to demand submission and tribute the Artuvians responded with sword and arrows, fighting Empire soldiers and citizens alike who trespassed on their borders. The superior strength and numbers of the Empire however made several cities fall, and the Artuvians were pushed back all the way to Kyrantes, the greatest of their fortress-cities towering above the plains and desert that surrounded it. It was there they broke the tide of the Empire's advance, locking them into a brutal stalemate as the Empire's soldiers were whittled down by both the Artuvians' weapons and the harshness of the desert. The Empire decided that committing to a full takeover of the region would cost too much lives and resources, so they negotiated with the leaders of Artuvia, convincing them to become close allies of the Empire along the southern border, maintaining general autonomy over their populace, but the Empire was subtle in its takeover and made their current economy reliant on goods and manpower from them, making it a difficult prospect for the High Lord of Artuvia to even consider breaking the alliance they have, especially knowing the Empire would eventually crush them given time and resources.

They have stood as a powerful independent state under the Empire, holding back the hordes of the Empire's enemies that tried to assault them from the southern deserts. The Artuvian Cavalry would be there to stomp any marching army under their heels and leave the survivors to die in the unforgiving Artuvian sun. In exchange, the Empire provided them with their goods, technology, and aid in the form of money and supplies during times of crisis, such as the back to back sandstorms that ravaged several cities some years before the Blight War, called the "Week of Lynessa's Wrath" in reference to their patron deity of the desert sun.