Cytibor's Creations, Ideas and Innovations

[taalismn]

Lazlo Aerospace Control..(chuckles)....
"We added it just in case, because you never know WHO's going to turn up next!"
"Should I have a red carpet ready to roll out just in case the Millennium Falcon or Darth Vader comes in for a landing?"
"I'm thinking more Second Stage Prometheans, myself."
"Dude, you're still going on about those guys? They're not going to ask for landing permission and hangar space; those guys would just teleport into Town Hall if they EVER come calling!"

[DhAkael]

Joy.
Death bots of deathly deathyness (sorry; re-read Scott Pilgrim series recently and my brain will NOT recover ..gods what a waste) coming over to have tea & crumpets with the group. NONE of the team knows how to do more than "press red button what makes other things go boomies" on the Void-wolf, and well... did i mention the bots? Cuz the bots are actually mechs.
Yeah.
Gotta love that.
Eris; "Have at thee!"
Bot; *looks down* -THOOM- scene of giant metalic foot and two arms & two legs sreadout out from under it
Eris: "...ow..."

[taalismn]

"What can you tell me about the 'bots?"
"They got a work boot tread pattern on the bottom of their feet."
"That's actually both more and the wrong kind of information than I was seeking. I was thinking more along the lines of 'Gee, what weak points do they have?'"
"Then go ask them yourself...I'm going to go find some aspirin on this ship and have a lie down."

[DhAkael]

"What can you tell me about the 'bots?"
"They got a work boot tread pattern on the bottom of their feet."
"That's actually both more and the wrong kind of information than I was seeking. I was thinking more along the lines of 'Gee, what weak points do they have?'"
"Then go ask them yourself...I'm going to go find some aspirin on this ship and have a lie down."

Pretty much what I'm predicting is gonna happen.
Thank the Dyce Gawds for 'Invincible Armour' TW additions to power-suits.

[taalismn]

"HEY! This guy's got 'Invincible Armor'! That means I can really have FUN with him!"
"Good, because the last one you picked up is looking a little frayed...It barely came through the washing machine in one piece after Mom finally had it laundered. Try to take better care of this one, okay?"
"...'last one'? 'laundered'? 'Mom'?... "

[Cytibor]

Defending Freedom Station, The End of the CAN Republic,
and a Journey to the Red Planet

- June 12th [cont'd]: With the alarms blaring, the crew got themselves strapped in quickly and prepared for the worst. After the station's automated broadcasts informed them that the station's security hangar had had it's bay doors knocked offline, however, Eris offered to take the Void-Wolf out to face the oncoming threat. Left with little other choice, President Winters agreed, and the civilian hangar opened. Outside, sensors read 10 enemy targets, identified by Eris as VRRDS robots, 8 'Samurai' class and 2 'Mikado' class. The battle was short [well...if 4 melee rounds can be considered short. ] and furious, resulting in the total destruction of the invading robots, though the Void-Wolf lost some hull integrity in the process, and briefly had it's missile systems knocked offline [repaired by Caesar and Mousie during a lull in the fighting.] They also picked up some salvage from the broken robots, including a VX-20 Super Cannon in pristine condition, a broken one, and some of the bots' giant vibro-swords.

Receiving a transmission from Freedom Station, President Winters asked if the DARTs would cooperate in a retaliatory strike against the moon colony. Eris and Co. attempted to explain that the bots were most likely under the control of the Dragon, but President Winters said the people of the station would never believe that and were angry over the attack. Thinking quickly, Eris asked for two hours to think on it, before promptly casting Invisibility on the ship and ordering Persia to take them towards the moon colony for a closer look. They quickly established, via sensors, that the colony was heated and showed life-signs, but the main hangar/airlock had been left wide-open and there were no signals coming from the colony for communications or scanning. Neither Jase nor Arkell could sense any nefarious goings on below, but they were rather beyond typical range.

Wary, Eris contacted the colony below and was received by the 'Colony Administrator' A.R.C.H.I.E. Seven under the false name of 'Astartes-Lupus'. She asked if there had been any significant population changes recently, and Archie assured her there had not been. Unconvinced that all was well, Eris requested to speak to a live person, and was reconnected to the traffic controller for the space hangar, who was initially a little unsure of what to say, given that the CAN Republic had never really had very much to do with outsiders before. After double-checking the station's policy, she offered them the opportunity to land, which Eris tactfully evaded by feigning technical difficulties, using said reason to cover for an active sensor ping, which confirmed what they had found before, and confirmed the presence of a stable atmosphere. Apologizing for taking up their time, Eris closed the channel.

Turning to the rest of the crew, she expressed her concern: "I THINK... I think someone is playing all of us. Not the people on the moon. I think that damned green cloud is trying a triple fake out. Attack the Freedom station, get us AND them to attack the Moon-base, and the moon-people have probably gotten mention that we're ambassadors. We attack them in retribution along with the Freedom'ers? Orbital war, and the Dragon just sits back and munches popcorn."

Any further speculation was interrupted by a signal from the colony, not from the control tower but one of the other buildings across the surface. Bringing it onto the Void-Wolf's screen, they saw a frightened young man looking over his shoulder before looking into the screen, speaking in hushed but urgent tones: "I don't know who you are, and god, if this had been a month ago I wouldn't have cared. You have to get away from this colony. Tell everyone to stay away. Archie started promoting them, and now everyone has them, and...and...oh god, is there anyone left with a soul? They shamble around, doing their jobs, but there's no laughing, no talking, no nothing, only work, then sleep, looking so pale and sick. The cybernetics did it, the-” He was cut off mid-sentence by a glowing green blade-like object thrust through his chest and jerked sharply up, splitting him from chest cavity to skull. The channel was cut off moments after.

Taking a deep breath, Eris contacted Freedom Station and in as few words as possible informed them that the CAN Republic was no more, that they had been 'converted', and to stay away. The Station agreed, promising to set up a quarantine around the moon for the time being, before Eris hung up and retreated to the lounge to lie down with a box of tissues. Caesar and Persia piloted the Void-Wolf back to Lazlo while Jase comforted their mourning Commander. [Landing on June 13th in the very early morning.]

- June 15th: After a two day-rest stop to repair the Void-Wolf, pick up supplies, and wire a third gun into the nose-mount, the crew were ready to blast off for Mars. Before they went, however, Xarl gave Persia some intel Lazlo had gathered on the moon colony [though nobody questioned how] to study in an effort to prevent what had happened there for occurring again. Caesar, looking tired, arrived and promptly gave his co-pilot seat to Tahlor before heading back out with a quick apology, saying he had another assignment that demanded his immediate attention.

After blasting off, Eris had Tahlor set their course so they would arrive at Mars in a week, rather than going at full speed, to allow her some time to work on the ship's new TW systems and Persia to use the information she had collected on the Dragon's 'code' to attempt to create a program to repel/delete it when found. As they neared Mars, Persia gave Legion the 'immunization' she had created as a software update to his firewall, though there was no way to test it.

Arriving in Mars' orbit at last, the group proceeded cautiously. Sensor sweeps revealed pockets of jungle across the planet's surface along ley lines and particularly at nexus points. The Mars base was almost completely wrecked, however, save for a roughly 1 square mile section at the very heart that was still intact. Life forms were exclusive to the pockets of jungle, as well as tunnels underneath the base, and in the intact section. Going by their scan readings, it appeared all lifeforms were variations of mutant insect. Landing on the Martian plane, some of the group spotted a metal figure watching them from a distance before disappearing from view. [Very nice sketch found here. No, I didn't draw it. : http://th03.deviantart.net/fs11/PRE/i/2 ... icetra.jpg] Tahlor and Legion stayed behind to watch the ship, while the others, using Tahlor's hoverjeep, made their way to the functioning colony buildings. Environmental armor in place, they made their way inside the airlock of the first functioning building of the core-section, and turned on the lights. Finding the interior of the building had been hollowed out and coated in some kind of golden honeycombed material.
...Does anyone else hear that buzzing?

[DhAkael]

"...and suddenly
...
BEES!"

[taalismn]

"Oh please...let this be a breakfast cereal ad...."

[Cytibor]

This advertisement rated I.I. for Intelligent Insects, and S.A. for Soulless Automatons.

Coming soon, from the game that brought you "The Parallel Earth" and "Adventures in Near Orbit" comes a new installment: The Insects of Mars and the Death-Machines of the Underneath!
Features:
Exotic Landscapes! See the Martian landscape like never before, complete with pockets of atmosphere-supported jungle!
Impressive Local Sights to See! See our heroes fly through the inner workings of a giant bee hive!
Authentic Locals! I bet you've never had conversations with bees or ants before!
Suspense! Descend with the crew into the tunnels beneath the red world!
Action! Get a front row seat to the battles against the 'Death-Machines'!

[taalismn]

This advertisement rated I.I. for Intelligent Insects, and S.A. for Soulless Automatons.

Coming soon, from the game that brought you "The Parallel Earth" and "Adventures in Near Orbit" comes a new installment: The Insects of Mars and the Death-Machines of the Underneath!
Features:
Exotic Landscapes! See the Martian landscape like never before, complete with pockets of atmosphere-supported jungle!
Impressive Local Sights to See! See our heroes fly through the inner workings of a giant bee hive!
Authentic Locals! I bet you've never had conversations with bees or ants before!
Suspense! Descend with the crew into the tunnels beneath the red world!
Action! Get a front row seat to the battles against the 'Death-Machines'!

I'll have one of the 'Mons Olympus' suites with the personal escape pod package option.

[Cytibor]

Making New Friends, Facing New Enemies

- June 15th [cont'd]: With the four and a half-foot mutant bees closing in to investigate their unexpected guests, Persia knew they had a very limited amount of time before they were determined to be threats to the hive and swarmed. Looking around, she recognized the contents of one of the honeycombs to be a substance she called 'royal jelly'. Without waiting for the group's consent [let's face it, time was much too short to try to convince them to let her] she promptly smeared the jelly over their armor. Seemingly convinced that they weren't a threat, the drones that had come to investigate went back to their business, while a slightly larger bee, identified as female by Persia, landed near them. [Causing the group no small amount of discomfort. I mean...a 5 foot bee is staring at you and probing around you with it's antenna. Sort of...unsettling, no? ] Using her advanced pocket computer, Persia was able to decipher the bee's buzzes and other sounds into words, and, though certainly a ways off from being sophisticated or lyrical, this allowed the party to understand the bee. Further assisting their communication was the fact that, somehow, the bee understood plain old English just fine!

A quick parley and a whirlwind flight later, riding [or in Eris' and Mouse's case, carried :angel:] by the bees at breakneck pace through the honeycombed depths of their hive, they were brought before the Hive-Queen. Persia made the introductions before letting Eris take over, and they quickly identified the bees greatest enemy/fear, something they referred to as the “Death-Machines”. Not quite sure what those were, Eris asked if there were any of the base's systems left online that would let them get a good look around, and the Queen mentioned that the laboratory of the “creator-man” was still there and they could investigate it. Interrupting them briefly was a second female bee who spoke quickly about a “Colony-Queen” wanting to dig a new colony under the hive, and would help the bees defend themselves when needed in return. The Hive-Queen agreed, before the group's drones approached once more and they were whisked off yet again.

Passing through an underground chamber full of plant-life, from giant flowers to towering trees, the group saw an artificial sun suspended from the ceiling, which they were flying towards. Shielding their eyes for a moment, they were soon past it and flying up through narrow corridors encased in metal and looking very much like an abandoned stairwell, made large to accommodate any size of transient. Continuing up, they arrived in the lab, and proceeded to investigate. Most of the lab, unfortunately, was damaged or ruined, including the main computer bank, but Eris located a smaller terminal in a corner while Mouse found what appeared to be a safe set in the floor. After some fiddling, she and Jase managed to get it open, and found inside a short diary entry detailing several of the insect species, as well as the final words of man who created them, a Dr. M. Wallace. Meanwhile, after much frustration in trying to get the terminal to boot up [with some quick rewiring help from Mouse] Eris accessed the cameras. Most were damaged or obstructed, but the external ones were slightly better preserved and she saw that, on three out of four sides, the central section of the base they were in was surrounded by the pockets of jungle with stable atmosphere.

Perusing through the insect lists, Persia asked the drones if they knew of the Dragon, but they said they did not. They asked her if, perhaps, she was referring to the “Dark-bone-man”, which made the rest of the group do a bit of a double take. The Shadowman was still here? Hoo...Things just got worse. Deciding to meet with the ants to see if they knew anything, the group mounted up once more and were brought to the entrance to the new colony being dug. They spoke with a pair of soldier ants [similar language to the bees, but much more passive aggressive] and after a brief wait, the Colony-Queen sent word that the workers were to excavate a tunnel for the DARTs to get down to the lower tunnels used by the Death-Machines. Ants, being the remarkably efficient engine of industry they are, had the tunnel dug in mere minutes, and DART was soon in the darkness of the tunnels, though eased by Eris' Templar suit's external light.

Proceeding along a downward slope, they came across a larger room with other tunnels branching off [though one in particular was much larger and clearly the way further down] and proceeded across it warily. Despite their caution, however, they were ambushed by a pair of the thin, floating constructs they had seen before at a distance. In a flurry of long, razor-like fingers, they struck, scoring several hits against Eris, some more against Mouse, and a bladed tail-tip met Persia's armor as well. The DARTs would not stand for this, though, and retaliated. The constructs proved more challenging than one would guess for their thin appearance, possessing some manner of ability to become intangible to evade attacks. Even so, one of the two received two well-placed strikes from Eris' sword, and a burst of bullets from Mouse's sub-machine-gun. The rest of the group began to gather themselves from the shock of seeing the two metal constructs emerge from the earth just in time for a thirty foot centipede-like construct [http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/Images/Product/AlternativeFW/xlarge/tomb-stalker.jpg] made of the same type of metal to rise from the earth [without disturbing the ground itself, like the two 'scout' constructs did] to join the fray.

Hoo...what a day.

[taalismn]

Oh jeez...that thing looks frauding outrageous...I'll have to update the EShemarrian Monstropede to keep up...

[DhAkael]

Frikkin' bugs! Seriously... now they done gone and got robocized!
-sigh-
It's gonna be a LOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG day next session.

[taalismn]

Don't pack RAID, pack rust-nanos.

[shiiv-a]

rust nano's?

wouldn't a rust monster or twenty be better?

[taalismn]

rust nano's?

wouldn't a rust monster of twenty be better?

Well, if you don't have access to a D&D universe, rust-nanos are a good second. And you can store them, whereas Rust Monsters get cranky if not regularly fed.
Nanites are more easily carried too.

[Cytibor]

The DARTs, The Shadowman, and the Cosmo-Knight. Oh, and the Void Dragon.

- June 15th [con'td]: The group, rallying now to face the scouts and the centipede [which will be henceforth be known as Wraiths and the Tomb Stalker ], fought well and bravely. After a minor moment of “Awww c'mon!” when Annabelle's ammunition proved ineffective against the Tomb Stalker, Eris threw her a blaster and the action continued at full intensity. Even through the fierce fighting, however, Persia was able to appreciate the sheer complexity of the technology that built these metal warriors able to pass through solid objects like ghosts and who's ranged weapon [sported by the Tomb Stalker] seemed to effortlessly strip their targets of whole layers of armor at a time. Unfortunately for the DARTs, this technology was proving difficult to handle. The Wraiths were fast and lethal combatants, while the Tomb Stalker's raw size and power made it deadly. And when it began “land-sharking” them and ambushing from below, they knew they were in trouble. Fighting the Wraiths off, and bringing one down, they tried their best to keep an eye out for the lurking behemoth, and it was only by a hair that Persia and Eris [who literally went cross-eyed on the Tomb Stalker's pincer it was so close] evaded it's ambush attack, after which it proceeded to go on a rampage, using it's many sets of sharpened legs to pummel the ground beneath it, nearly impaling Jase, who was saved only by his armor.

Continuing her evaluation, Persia concluded that, through means unknown, the green lightning-like energy weapon was literally stripping it's targets at a sub-atomic level, making it effective against pretty much any form of matter. Eris, being the only member of the group on hand with any real understanding of magic, suddenly had a light-bulb moment, and called the group to herself, casting Invincible Armor on each in the hopes that magic's decidedly non-matter base would provide them with some effective protection and then hastily called the retreat. Persia, increasing the power flow of her rifle, delivered a few parting remarks to their foes as Jase picked up Anna and Mouse and ran like the wind. Eris, snagging the good Doctor after her barrage, turned and used a combination of Orb of Cold and Sonic Blast to cause a cave-in, catching their pursuers off-guard and burying them.

Taking a minute to assess the situation, and catch their breath, the group discovered that the ants had indeed closed up the tunnel they had come down in, completely filling it in and leaving the group with no shortcut to the surface. Pacing and thinking, they saw another hallway connecting to theirs that had not been there before, a brighter green glow emanating from it, and the sounds of...swordplay(?) echoing from it. Mouse, being the team's resident stealth expert, slipped inside and down the spiraling ramp inside for a better look. After determining that the fighting was indeed with swords and between two humanoid figures [one in full plate armor, the other wreathed in shadows with the occasional hint of gold shining through], Mouse returned upstairs and the group decided to head down and hopefully assist the knight against who they suspected was the Shadowman.

Getting down below, they arrived just in time to see the Shadowman hammering the knight into the ground, though he could not land the final blow because of a force-field the knight was maintaining. Seeing the knight's blade lying nearby, however, the Shadowman snatched it up and drove it into the knight's chest, as his blade alone was attuned to pass through the shield. The Shadowman stood over his beaten and dying foe and said four simple words that sent Persia running to the knight's side to try to save him: “I win, Cosmo-knight.”

As Persia approached, the Shadowman seemed unconcerned and casually greeted the others as they made their way towards him through the long room, some gazing at the symbols on the walls and the sections reminiscent of an opened puzzle-box. He dispelled his shadows, and they beheld an undead horror in shining gold armor [http://mythicmktg.fileburst.com/war/us/home/images/newsletter/2009_03/Tomb-King.jpg] quite confident in himself. Rather than engage him in combat right away, however, the group opted to talk while Persia worked feverishly to save the knight's life [a difficult thing when one's heart has been recently impaled ]. The Shadowman let them ask the questions, saying that they had already answered his: that his father's half-brother [otherwise known as uncle ] Kyros was not among those present, and by process of elimination Shadowman now knew what he looked like. Eris, gritting her teeth over their enemies revealed deduction, decided to make the best of the situation and ask what the Shadowman's interest in the Dragon was in the first place.

Shadowman then explained his motivations, obviously considering the DARTs unable to stop him. He explained that the Dragon, who's full title was “Void Dragon”, was an ancient god as old as the physical universe and incredibly powerful, and he intended to ally himself with this being to topple his 'master' Set, whom he did not speak of as though he considered him any sort of master at all. Once Set and his followers were thrown out of their positions of power, Shadowman would install himself in his place and his worshipers would be the Void Dragon's food to strengthen itself back to it's full strength after it's millenia long slumber inside this prison.

Eris and Persia reacted in an unexpected fashion, making it very clear that they thought the Shadowman was a fool for trusting in such a being, but he would not be swayed. So Eris tried something nobody was expecting. She turned her back on the Shadowman, and ordered the others to allow him to finish unlocking the seal on the Void Dragon's prison! The Shadowman smirked and got to work while the others gaped slightly at their leader, but meanwhile Mouse's sharp eyes spied a rock that didn't quite fit. Prying it loose she found what looked to be a metal thermos of sorts. Raising it to her ear, she heard from inside a rhythmic beating, very much like...a heart. Realizing what she had found, she quickly drew the others' attention to it. Eris, acting fast, shattered an orb set in the door the Shadowman was working on it the hopes it would stall his work [triggering a planet-trembling bellow from somewhere unseen ], then sprinted for Mouse, drawing her sword and striking the thermos, cutting it open to reveal a simple jar within containing their foes' blackened, shriveled but still-beating heart.

From there, things went downhill for their skeletal friend, with the group literally holding his life in their hands he had no choice but to be taken prisoner. The Cosmo-Knight regained consciousness and was revealed to be Caesar, and the group was glad indeed that he pulled through, though he was utterly spent and needed help walking. [One doesn't just get up and run a marathon after having their heart impaled y'know. ] and before long they had made their way back upstairs [the seal closing itself slowly and steadily after they had left], were met by the ants coming back down to check on them after the planet shaking from the terrible roar, and were soon back up at a more comfortable depth and escorted to the airlocks with messages of thanks and gratitude from the Hive and Colony Queens. Proceeding outside, they were soon back on-board their ship, and heading back home for some serious relaxation. Saving the world and/or universe is hard work you know.

[DhAkael]

AFTER long steam in the sauna / hot tob, the blonde is gonna go and start on doing a "Tanya Stark" and putting a few of her ideas to graph-paper / 3D-hologram blue-prints
OH, and work out how much danger-pay is owed for "Saving solar system from being appetizer"

[taalismn]

AFTER long steam in the sauna / hot tob, the blonde is gonna go and start on doing a "Tanya Stark" and putting a few of her ideas to graph-paper / 3D-hologram blue-prints
OH, and work out how much danger-pay is owed for "Saving solar system from being appetizer"

Don't forget to factor in hazard pay, ammunition expenditure, Undead disposal fee, hazardous waste disposal fee(no need to note that it's the same as disposing of the Undead) etc....It all adds up.

[Cytibor]

Homecoming, Frustration, and Neighbours

- June 16th through 18th [Time skipping. It works. ]: The flight home was an uneventful one, assisted by Mouse's personal flask of gin and Eris' 'borrowing' from it [ ], and Persia sealing the Shadowman's heart in a stasis-container, rendering him inert. The crew touched down in Lazlo and were greeted by General Xarl and Councilor Plato. Understanding that the crew needed their rest, they had transportation waiting [What is it with these guys and limousines? Huh...oh well, I doubt the crew's complaining. ] to take them home, and they were conveyed swiftly to their rest.

After some much needed sleeping in, the crew, save for Mousie and Persia who were up and about early, were awoken later in the morning [the 17th now] by the doorbell. Mouse answered it promptly to discover a Security HQ messenger and a young woman [of not inconsiderable appearance. ] Eris, staggering blearily into view in her robe and slippers, was roped into the conversation and the messenger served his purpose, delivering two messages from the Council: 1] That the young woman was one Alice Sanderson, and would Eris please take her on as the DART's assistant/secretary so they would [finally ] get some paperwork done, and 2] That Xarl was beginning a 'vault' project of sorts to keep dangerous items out of the hands of Lazlo's enemies, and they wished to begin with the Rune great-sword, Calamity, and the skeleton bow found in the Paradox Engine's world. Eris readily agreed, but made sure to warn the messenger to handle them with care lest he come to harm.

Deciding that enough talking had been done before coffee, Eris promptly took Alice by the hand and dragged her into the kitchen to meet the group and get some black gold for herself. Alice introduced herself to all present as they arrived, [Persia from the coach-house outside with some grease in her fur] and before long was directed to set up her office in the study, which she did. Tahlor, over the intercom, then invited the group out to the coach-house and there the group saw Persia's ship for the first time, the Colol Tyl [“Killing Moon.”] The ship seemed to eat the light around it, and appeared perfectly black, featureless and smooth, and was exceedingly hard on the eyes [:angel:] but it helped that Tahlor was standing in front of it and Caesar was working below, as Persia's unexpected landing had damaged some of it's components. Fortunately, the cosmo-knight believed he could repair it with some custom-made parts [the tech level of Lazlo just wasn't sufficient for some of the fancier bits, and it's against the rules to just hand that kind of information out you know. ] Tahlor went on to explain that the repairs were likely to cost rather a lot of money, and he asked the group's help in gathering it on Persia's behalf.

Since all were gathered in one place, Persia decided to reveal some further information. She had awoken the Shadowman [his real name is Xsi'Sandro-Kitaur, a mouthful to be sure. Dubbed Xsi for short.] and had a conversation of sorts with him, describing it as civil and not wholly dislikeable. However, she feared he had gleaned more information from her than she had intended to give, including the group's names, and had made some guesses as to Law being Kyros, and his and Justice's being 'together', though she was confident he did not know they were married or expecting a child. In return, he had told her, quite assuredly, that he was not concerned about his current state of being a prisoner, and that he felt no reason to worry, as the resurrection of Osiris [which he seemed to feel required him] would never happen. He felt very confident that the 14 pieces of the Lawgiver's body would never be found and brought together as long as Set had anything to say about it, and that he had merely to wait until the group died in the attempt or of old-age. His arrogance made Persia suspect he had some last trick up his sleeve, but she wasn't sure what it was, and she counseled the group not to talk within earshot of their prisoner, even while inert, as she suspected he was able to overhear them.

She went on to further mention that after putting the Shadowman back into stasis, she had spoken with Caesar and concluded that this 'doppelganger' the group mentioned having encountered during their battle with Dominus could potentially be a SECOND C'tan similar to the Void Dragon slumbering on Mars. The ease with which it saw the fragment of the Void Dragon within Legion suggested an ancient being of great power, and the only such beings with knowledge of these forgotten, sleeping gods were their own kin. Eris, straight-faced but pale, turned on her heel and walked outside to vent some of her frustration, splintering two trees in the process. Persia felt guilty, believing herself to have done poorly in allowing the Shadowman to glean too much information and in delivering this information, and the others tried to comfort her to little effect. Later in the day, they received a request for them to gather for a briefing at the Security Office in the wee hours of the morning the next day.

The following morning they arrived as requested, Eris apologizing to Persia for her outburst, and Xarl gave them a brief but succinct summary of events: People had been going missing from some small communities near Dweomer, and the city had requested Lazlo [being from outside the Magic Zone and therefor more immune to the political squabbles of that region] to send the DARTs to investigate. The terrain described was marsh-like, bleak and ugly, and Lazlo's scrying was of no help in seeing within it. Tahlor volunteered his hover-jeep to transport the group, and they were soon preparing to leave. Xarl offered them a final piece of advice: he had called the brief so early [6 A.M or so.] because he wanted to give the group as many hours of daylight as possible, due to a recent surge in undead activity in the Magic Zone. He obviously believed it to be more than simple zombie making Necromancers or ghoul summoners, however, and wished the DARTs luck.

A two hour ride at full throttle later, the group entered the swamp-like area denoted on their map. The sky was overcast, and the area dark dreary, but as they proceeded it darkened further until it was a near-twilight. Shadows in the bogs and trees reached and grasped for them just out of sight, and the undergrowth become dense and oppressive. Deciding to find some dry land to land on, Tahlor piloted on a short ways longer before stopping. Getting their bearings, the group found they were at the base of a hill. Sporting a large, ivy-covered, dark-stoned castle complete with slightly disrepaired towers and red stained glass windows.

...Did anyone else see that shape moving across the ramparts?

[taalismn]

Be grateful it's a castle and not the Mountains of Madness.

[shiiv-a]

*back from Mars* - *whisked away for intensive training that occured in a hidden pocket of time and space* - returns and discovers that things are indeed all messed up*

. . . o 0 ( what to do when you lives in a shoe? )

[taalismn]

. . . o 0 ( what to do when you lives in a shoe? )

Carpet with Odor-Eaters?
Check for scorpions?
Warn the kids to stay away from the lady who lives in the stilleto-heel down the street?

[Cytibor]

Chapter update in the next couple days.

[Cytibor]

Sorry for the wait folks, figured in this particular instance would be better to merge last week's session with this week's. *nodnod*
And, well...Okay, I kinda forgot.

[Cytibor]

Fangs For Dropping In

*Title pun is followed by a chorus of groans.*

- June 18th: With Eris and Tahlor remaining behind to mind the jeep, their only means of hasty retreat in this cursed swamp, Jase opted to take command for the time being and pressed into the castle with the group close behind. [GM Note: We're in the Magic Zone, so I should probably clarify, no the swamp is not cursed in the magical affliction sense. It is, however, full of quicksand, murky water, and in all likelihood all manner of nastiness. That is all.] Proceeding inside they beheld a grand atrium complete with sweeping staircase to the upper floor and red carpet, with a hallway in each corner leading into the east and west wings. Jase, looking distracted, informed the others that he was hearing a voice asking for their help telepathically. Deciding to at least see who the girl was, for he believed the voice to be female, the group started up the stairs to the second floor following the voice's directions.

Reaching the head of the stairs they were intercepted by a pair of raven-haired, gray-eyed and pale-skinned people, who introduced themselves as William and Layla. The former was a tall, broad-shouldered fellow with a raucous air to him, and the latter a lady dressed in Victorian finery. After a brief but tense exchange, they called their 'servants' to deal with the group and proceeded through a grand pair of double doors and proceeded deeper into the castle. The group, faced with 6 skeletons at the head of the stairs and 6 zombies at it's bottom, acted quickly, Jase containing three of the skeletons within a telekinetic force-field while the others made quick work of what remained.

Squeezing past the force field, they paused only as they heard a jaw-tightening screech from behind them. Sparing a glance behind, they saw a hulking, bat-like monster with thickly muscled limbs, membranous wings, and vicious fangs. Jase caged it, temporarily, with another telekinetic bubble and the group beat a hasty retreat into the east wing of the castle, shutting the door behind them. They soon drew near to the source of the voice, and soon were fighting with the guards to the room, a pair of vampires in stylized plate armor. [With a bat motif, of course. ] After a minute-long struggle, Jase managed to stake one vampire and Anna laid the other low with a silver bullet, and they moved to open the door, which gave Jase a tremendous jolt of electricity before he got it open. [And yes, you read that right, the second vampire was not staked. ]

Within they found only a sword, a runeblade by the looks of it, with jet-black metal and deep purple runes along its' blade. Its' hilt bore an archaic symbol [http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KBj3Hj4Z4zk/SlvibIolK6I/AAAAAAAAAe8/LqlKRbVj5FA/s400/Tzeentch_mark.png] no-one was familiar with, and after some suspicion Jase decided that the edge the sword would [hopefully ] give them outweighed the risks, and picked it up. Choosing to allow the sword to impart some of her [the blade identified herself as 'Ariana'] power to him, Jase was soon wreathed in dark purple-tinged lightning. After quite a light-show it targeted his forehead, and when it was gone it had left behind a slightly oversized third eye, midnight blue and unblinking. Deciding he could live with this, and indeed seeming somewhat pleased with the added [magical] vision this provided, Jase then opted to allow his new sword to give him yet another essence infusion. Wreathed in lightning for a second time, there was no physically obvious change, but the warrior quickly fell unconscious to the ground from the mental strain.

Shortly thereafter, Eris [having been given a quick rundown of the situation from Persia and swapped with her for guard duty] kicked the door in, gripping a two-handed Zweihander of blue-silver coloration that nobody had seen before. Behind her, the group could see that the second vampire had indeed tried to get back up, but Eris had put a stop to it before it got out of hand, and after reminding the team that one needs to stake [and burn] vampires to keep them down, she let Mouse and Anna fill her in on what had happened since Persia's update. She also took a look at Jase's new sword and was quite perturbed by it, seeming to recognize the symbol on it's hilt as one belonging to a 'Lore of Secrets and Deceit.' They were interrupted, however, when the bat monster arrived and tried to squeeze its' way into the room with them. Fortunately, using her wind-katana, Fujin, Eris was able to force it outside and shut the door long enough for Mouse and Anna to find an old coat-rack to use as a makeshift bar across the door. [Which Eris then proceeded to pretzel. ]

While they were safe from the bat-monstrosity for now, the group now had a new problem: they were stuck inside the room. Anna spotted a boarded over window in the rafters, and with Mouse's help they were soon squeezing into the next room. Hearing the Count of the estate, Von Trappe, whispering to them, the group were invited to the courtyard for a 'proper contest', and informed that should they refuse the vampire's offer they would lose his hospitality and be declared fair game. With little choice in the matter, and hoping for perhaps a fair contest, Eris accepted, and Layla returned to lead them to the courtyard. About this time Jase regained consciousness and was given a quick update on what was going on while en route. [Somewhere between the empty room they had entered and the courtyard they lost track of Mouse as well, but if the vampires didn't notice then the group certainly wasn't going to say anything. ]
Arriving at the courtyard, they met Count Hyram Von Trappe in person at last, a stately gentleman sharing in his 'adopted' family's jet black hair, pale complexion and gray eyes, and dressed in Victorian clothing and a top hat. A brief exchange followed, with Von Trappe revealing that the bat-monster was in fact his first adopted son, Franz, who had given in to their lust for blood. But conversation was not the matter at hand, and William stepped forward for the first duel. Jase opted to take him on, and, as much to his surprise as the onlooker's, won easily, [as in: without taking a scratch easily. ] earning his sword many suspicious looks from Eris. Round two put Anna against Layla, and the demon-hunting gunfighter went in cautious but strong, scoring some solid hits against the vampiress. Unfortunately, Layla had a trick or two up her sleeve and countered with a barrage of black magic from her eyes, catching Anna off-guard. Using this opening to her advantage, Layla shattered what remained of Anna's armor with a strike from her clawed gauntlet.

Seeing that Anna was indeed in trouble, the group were put in a dire straight. Eris, with her respect for honor, could not in good conscience step in, and besides, it would violate the rules of Von Trappe's little game and likely drag him into the fray. Jase, however, held life in higher esteem than honor and, giving his sword free reign once more, unleashed a storm of magic lightning to smash Layla into the wall opposite. Anna, not one to question things until after any immediate danger is dealt with, promptly got up and staked the vampiress to the wall where she lay.

Eris, suspecting that a preemptive attack would likely be the only way to keep Von Trappe's joining the battle from tipping the scales, leaped into action with a flurry of blows and magic. The vampire, rather than being phased [even after taking a Lifeblast and having a Globe of Daylight put in front of him! ] merely smiled, and gave Eris a warning. “I have lived in excess of a thousand years, girl. My homeland lies on another world entirely, one beset by war at all times, where many relics such as the one the boy holds exist, and are used. I have faced and beaten all that my world had to offer...do you truly think a surprise attack is all it will take to best me?”

The group's been holding their own, but it's time to take on the Count himself, an ancient vampire of unknown potency. Annabelle's armor is shattered, and Jase possesses a sword of...dubious origins. Wish them luck...seems they'll need it.

[taalismn]

"Von Trappe"?!!!!
Okay....that name is so rife with bad humor potential, from the obvious snapper for dungeon-crawlers to images of the 'Singing Vampire'.
"Yeah, Vlad was an impaler, but you gotta admit, he sure could sing a mean hymnal!"

[DhAkael]

Long story short...
-ahem-
*puts on best Eric Idle & Grahm Chapman voice*

"RUN AWAY! RUN AWAY!"

Yeah, it was a curb-stomp on the hero's.
No kills on the group yet but it was CLOSE.

[Cytibor]

"Von Trappe"?!!!!
Okay....that name is so rife with bad humor potential, from the obvious snapper for dungeon-crawlers to images of the 'Singing Vampire'.
"Yeah, Vlad was an impaler, but you gotta admit, he sure could sing a mean hymnal!"

The moment I read your comment, I thought of this poster:

Spoiler:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs754.snc4/65432_10150336582775517_544360516_15871623_3321391_n.jpg

And chapter update with details on the curb-stomping shall be up in short order, depending on holidaze of course.

[taalismn]

"Von Trappe"?!!!!
Okay....that name is so rife with bad humor potential, from the obvious snapper for dungeon-crawlers to images of the 'Singing Vampire'.
"Yeah, Vlad was an impaler, but you gotta admit, he sure could sing a mean hymnal!"

The moment I read your comment, I thought of this poster:

Spoiler:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs754.snc4/65432_10150336582775517_544360516_15871623_3321391_n.jpg

OOOwwwwww.....THat's bad(in a good way).
Happy Holidays...may the Bards treat you nice.

[shiiv-a]

i think i have only 2 chars that MIGHT fall into the 'bard' category.

one is a stellar songstress . . don't ask, i decline speaking about her now.
the other is a psiren [currently on the road to recovery and GLAD to be out of the nightlands] who lived thru darkday when it happened

but thats me . . and NOT at all what's happening in the game.

Mouse discovered the hidden treasure room . . returned to the others with one treasure . . but sadly, the others kinda burnt up.
she also lost her armor in the fracas, and is returning home for a long search for new armor that 'fits'.
her newest friend seems to be lost from the curbstomping we barely survived.

[taalismn]

i think i have only 2 chars that MIGHT fall into the 'bard' category.

one is a stellar songstress . . don't ask, i decline speaking about her now.
the other is a psiren [currently on the road to recovery and GLAD to be out of the nightlands] who lived thru darkday when it happened

but thats me . . and NOT at all what's happening in the game.

Mouse discovered the hidden treasure room . . returned to the others with one treasure . . but sadly, the others kinda burnt up.
she also lost her armor in the fracas, and is returning home for a long search for new armor that 'fits'.
her newest friend seems to be lost from the curbstomping we barely survived.

'Fits'? The parenthesis suggests something..."It this case BREASTPLATE means exactly that! See, we need to fit it like so!" or maybe something like "My character class has a restriction against armor...so can you make this stuff look like linen?"

[Cytibor]

A Near Death Experience, A Heap of Money, and Concerns for the Future

- June 18th [cont'd]: The battle against Von Trappe was possibly one of the hardest the group had yet to face. To recap.

Von Trappe drew two blood-red swords from his vest pockets before discarding his suit with casual ease, dodging several shots from Anna in the process, claiming to be ready to fight the D.A.R.T. as he was [without armor!] Mouse, taking advantage of the vampires cockiness, sprinted towards him with a peculiar chain in hand. Getting it onto the vampire's arm, she shut the lock, and a faerie emerged from Mouse's person in a flash of green, and worked her magic on the vampire; payback for a century's imprisonment in the lock upon the chain.

Robbed of his preternatural grace and agility, Von Trappe found himself in stormy waters. No longer able to outpace the 'mere' humans, he soon had an arrow lodged in his chest from Jase, but he did not fall to it. [General consensus was it had not hit the heart.] The group did their best to slay the vampire in his impaired state, and they inflicted some serious hurt on him, with the blade Mouse had discovered in the castle [“Blutsauger” if you want to translate some German ] performing admirably and causing injuries that actually bled.

Deciding enough was enough, the vampire summoned up his magic and, despite an attempt to disrupt it from Eris, cast Remove Curse to dispel the faerie's Luck Curse. Putting some distance between himself and the D.A.R.T., he then proceeded to summon several ghouls and empower them with some manner of black magic to pose a greater threat while he singled out Mouse as his primary target. Leading his attack with blasts of dark magic, he soon had shattered Mouse's armor under his flurry of attacks, his twin swords closing in a scissor to behead her. The world stood still as they saw the swords stopped scant centimeters from her throat, apparently blocked by a single crimson feather with silver accents. After absorbing the sword's impact, the feather burned away to nothing, and Von Trappe turned away from Mouse, telling her to stay out of the fight or he would finish the job.

Redoubling their efforts, the group hit the True Vampire with everything they had, but even after having a hole blown through his shoulder, silver bullets riddle his torso and more slashes put into him, Von Trappe still fought. Eris, grudgingly admitting defeat, called Tahlor and Persia to extract them with the hover jeep and focused on keeping everyone alive until they arrived. Seeking to assist them in their escape, the little fae worked some of her magic to hold the vampire in place temporarily while the group made a mad dash for their transportation, causing some collateral damage along the way. [Eris discovered her sword could emit waves of magic energy and collapsed the dining hall after Jase lit it on fire.]

Getting out as fast as they could, the group could unfortunately not wait for the faerie, but Eris assured Mouse she had seen her small friend escape at the last minute. Heading home as quickly as they could, the group dispersed for a breather. Alice found Eris to inform her she had finished filing their various financial documents, and while they had some unexpected expenses repairing damages caused by Goji [which the group had assumed responsibility for, more or less] the equipment they had given the local Black Market kingpin [Reeve] had yielded returns. As per their agreement, they had received 15% of the profits: over 11 million credits!

It wasn't all good news, however, and Eris tried to explain to Jase the danger he was in with the blade he had picked up, saying it was a servant of a 'Lord of Change' who's name she refused to speak. Jase claimed he was well in control of his own mind, seeming confident that he was using the sword and not the other way around. Eris, seeming jarred by him not immediately casting it aside, decided to take a shower to relax. Fortunately, Eris had negotiated a 3 week vacation for the team after this mission, though she did ask Anna to head out West to contact her family.

The good: They survived the fight with the vampire, found out they were becoming wealthy, and Eris has a master plan under way that promises to be good.
The bad: Jase's new sword seems to be growing on him and he has yet to discard it even at the asking of his significant other. Will Eris' worries prove true, and the warrior fall victim to the designs of this 'Lord of Change'?

Well...at least the scouting reports said Von Trappe's castle ended up burning down.

[DhAkael]

So far: 2 wins, 2 draws, 1 loss.
not tooooo shabby.

[shiiv-a]

yeah . . Mouse found the treasure . . . then before she could get the others to come grab it . . . . the castle burnt down. bummer.

also, it seems that the trapped fey was last seen escaping hte castle flames, but no sign has been seen since. Mouse found, rescued, . . . then seems to have lost a new friend all in one day

[Cytibor]

Planning for Hope, Dreading the Dark

- July 10th: With their vacation coming to a close, the D.A.R.T.s were rudely awoken by their security systems informing them they had a rather large mansion just outside their grounds. Scrambling to get themselves ready, their urgency turned to relief [and slight irritation at being woken up ] when they saw it was Anna returning with her sisters [all five of them ] and a tall man who was undoubtedly her father. As the group of seven approached, the group quickly realized that the sisters were of the 'squabbling' variety, particularly Annabelle and the eldest, Yara.

Coming inside, Mr. Krios soon met with Eris to discuss her plans for his daughters, and Eris explained.
[Excerpted for your reading enjoyment. ]

“YOU SEE kids... this city has a problem, and I got this twisted thought in my head, based on watching your sister Anna in action, that maybe...JUST maybe, you all can possibly help in solving this problem. Lazlo needs a solid corps of defenders outside of the magi-guilds and mercs. YOU children, will help me create this corps... My team; which I hope to expand on sometime in the future, is dedicated to investigating and neutralizing pan-dimensional threats. We so far have proved we are VERY good at this. Back in my homeland, I was part of an even larger outfit. Our mission statement is for "US" to go out and be first responders. There is a problem with this; it leaves Lazlo, which at the moment has very little in the way of a standing military, vulnerable to these same threats at home. Magi are good for some threats, but many tend to fold on the face of...AGGRESSIVE dangers. I need people who can hold the line and even push back if the city is attacked. Even from within. You have a good solid grounding in daemon hunting. I propose to refine this. THEN, if you are still on-deck with this plan, you will, along with a selected group of other specialists, train other young women to become a force of nearly unbreakable demon and monster hunters. Sister adepts of battle. Females, though told they are weak by many cultures, are faster, can withstand more pain, and are more focused mentally when confronted with the arcane. The greatest psionics? Women. The most creative of magi? Female. The most unrelenting of warriors? Beaudocicae, Artemis, Major Kusanagi. I feel that the young women who have been cast to the side by circumstance and society, be given a chance to be more than victims or baby makers; to truly earn the right to be called 'deadliest of the species.'"

Eris' speech, though leaving the men within earshot feeling a little inadequate, was a good one, and the Krios sisters readily agreed to partake in the training. Satisfied his girls were in good hands, their father took his leave and went back to the mansion to help his daughters transport their personal effects to the Casa until their new organization was granted space of its' own.

During this time, Eris brought Jase aside, and asked him how he was, obviously trying to act aloof since they had not spoken for several days and she didn't want to let on she was upset. Before she could get into what she wanted to say, however, Jase admitted he had been, well, an idiot for keeping the runesword and he wanted Eris' help in being rid of it. Eris was thrilled, though she did an admirable job of containing herself, and of course she would help him.

Unfortunately, the sword seemed to have been listening, and promptly began opposing their plan. Hovering in the air under its' own power, the sword launched a mental barrage on Jase, coursing midnight lightning from its' blade to his third eye in an attempt to possess his body. Jase's “Disc”, a manhole sized frisbee-like object he had acquired during their vacation, also arrived and promptly transformed into a hideous demonic version of itself. Hearing the screaming, Anna burst in and managed to distract the blade with some well-aimed bullets, and the group quickly put the Disc down, and turned to face the blade, which was pulsing with midnight lightning and pink fire.

With a flailing of limbs, the daemon within the blade manifested itself to fight. [http://vnmedia.ign.com/screenshots/warhammer/39574714.jpg] and the group responded as best they could, though the hideous creature stunned most of them with it's appearance alone. [Eris and Tahlor particularly horrified as they were more familiar with it from their old universe.] With Persia's arrival, they managed to put it down, and as it's body dissolved, the mist rose up into a face to swear its' revenge before dissipating into nothingness. [Very Dr. Claw. ]

Eris went into a semi-conscious mantra at the daemon's departure, and Tahlor and Anna got her to bed while Persia pursued a panic and guilt-stricken Jase.

This first encounter with the daemons of the Warp ended fortunately without casualties, but can we say it went in the group's favor if Eris' premonition that the Dark Powers are now more aware of our world than ever? And if they have, how long before they move to make it their own? Time will tell...

[DhAkael]

Yeah, Eris is gonna be a bit freaked next little while.
NOT cuz she saw a 'Horror', but WHY she saw one. YEPPPP... time to get those mastah-planz up & runnin' double-time quick!

[taalismn]

Serious ugliness when they start bringing up the Warp Demons...

[Cytibor]

Serious ugliness when they start bringing up the Warp Demons...

Especially if Nurgle's involved.
Let's not bring Slaanesh into this either.

[Cytibor]

Card Tricks and Grand Plans

- July 12th: Two days after the daemon incursion, Mouse returned to the Casa with an odd little green box made of wood sporting an illegible scrawl on its' cover. Intrigued, Eris and Jase joined her to inspect it, and it was soon discovered that the small chest was a potent magic item, or to be more specific, contained the item. A deck of cards, from which any one person could choose to draw no more than 4 cards from.

Deciding to be bold, Mouse went first, choosing to draw 4 cards. Deciding waiting was pointless, she drew her first immediately, a card seemingly made from marble on the face-side, yet normal from behind. As she and the others puzzled over the picture of a stretch of grass by a lake, a piece of paper fluttered from the card, and upon reading it Mouse discovered she suddenly owned 80 acres of waterfront land south of the city along the lakeside!

Semi-satisfied that the box wasn't sinister in nature, Eris decided to go next, choosing to draw only a single card from the box. Upon making this decision, she drew her card, and saw it was made of ruby and sported a large, yellow eye with a slitted pupil. After staring at her for a moment, the eye blinked, and vanished in a cloud of sulphur [making the room smell terribly until Eris and Alice threw open some windows. ]

Jase, having had some bad experiences with magic items of late, opted not to decide one way or the other, so Alice took a turn, opting for two cards and drawing her first, a mahogany card displaying a grinning Deevil. Oddly, after a great gust of wind kicked up and three claps of thunder rang out, nothing else happened, although the noise was quite a surprise to all present.

Mouse decided to go for broke and draw her second card, and pulled from the deck a card seemingly made of a seashell-like iridescent material. As she looked at it, she promptly fell asleep and, despite Eris and Jase's attempts, would not wake. Realizing the card had enforced an enchanted slumber, Jase volunteered to try to communicate with her psionically, and Eris decided to try to come along for the ride, asking Alice to go and fetch Persia if they did not return quickly. Once inside 'the dream', Jase and Eris found themselves near a vast mansion, and found Mouse sitting by the lakeside. Approaching her, they explained what had happened, but the Dream Card seemed to dislike their interfering, and the world around them began trying to expel them. When a darkening sky and rolling thunder did not drive them away, the dream's version of Goji emerged to crush them.

Fortunately Alice had gone to get Persia by this point, and the medical-minded feline soon formulated a theory on the Dream's workings, and, without the ability to telepathically speak to her friends' minds the way Jase had done, had to rely on speaking to Jase and Eris and hoping they could hear her instructions. Her message echoed into the dream world, telling the three trapped there that the only way to dispel the dream was for Mouse to openly state that she did not believe in it, and that she wanted to leave. Once she did this, the three awoke, much to Persia's and Alice's relief.

With things taken care of, Eris gathered the group, and outlined a personally planned mission not requested by the Lazlo Security Forces. The goal of the mission was to disrupt relations between the Coalition States and the New German Republic, cause confusion, and hopefully prolong the period in which the two nations were not formally allied. The methods to do this were subterfuge and masquerading, with just a touch of audacity. The mission? To steal one of the NGR's Supersonic Transports while in North America, and make the NGR believe the Coalition to be responsible.

The group was quickly divided into two teams: Eris, Jase and Anna would be the distraction, causing mayhem and confusion while the second team, Tahlor, Persia and Mouse [disguised as CS soldiers], did their part: stealing the transport itself. The group gathered their equipment and quickly set off, heading for Fort El Dorado, a [mostly] neutral city far to the south-west where Eris' information told her the transport was landing to avoid notice.

The group's first self-appointed mission, and against the Coalition too. As if Prosek didn't dislike us enough after our meeting in the Paradox Engine arc.

[taalismn]

Oh boy...getting between the Dead Boys and the Jerry Juggernaut...what fun!

[DhAkael]

Oh boy...getting between the Dead Boys and the Jerry Juggernaut...what fun!

But would Cloud (either gender) have it any other way ?

[taalismn]

Oh boy...getting between the Dead Boys and the Jerry Juggernaut...what fun!

But would Cloud (either gender) have it any other way ?

I do not WANT to know what Cloud's idea of a relaxing hobby is.....Defusing boobytrapped nuclear weapons?

[DhAkael]

Oh boy...getting between the Dead Boys and the Jerry Juggernaut...what fun!

But would Cloud (either gender) have it any other way ?

I do not WANT to know what Cloud's idea of a relaxing hobby is.....Defusing boobytrapped nuclear weapons?

*fiddle fiddle* -click whirr click click*
Anna; "Ummm.. Boss-lady?"

-beep click whirr click-
Cloud Eris; "...yeah?"
-click click beep-

Anna; "You almost done?"

Cloud Eris; "..."

Anna; "Boss?!"

Cloud Eris; "Look kid; do want me to finish this off, or would you rather downtown Lazlo turn into a nice circular radioactive duck pond?"

Anna; "...no..."

Cloud; " 'Kay then."
-Click whir tink beep click whirr-

[Cytibor]

*Goji picks exactly then to wander into town, meandering between the buildings, the ground starting to bounce and shake as Eris works.*

Anna: "Uhh...boooooss?"
Eris: "Anna, what did I just say about the duckpond?"

Anna: "I know, but..."
Eris: *Sigh.* "What is it Anna?"

Anna: *Points.*
Eris: "Um...daku." "Persiaaaa?!? HELP!!!"

[taalismn]

Bambi (the Borg) Carruthers:(looks at the nuke laying open and ticking away on one hand, looks up, WAAAAYYYY up at Goji wandering the streets...reaches down, opens a compartment in his leg, pulls out a wine bottle, blows dust off it, looks at it fondly) "I was saving this for a special occasion...guess kissing my arse goodbye counts..."(bites the foil and wire off, extracts the cork with his teeth, then proceeds to chug the pre-Rifts vintage down).

[DhAkael]

Cloud Eris; "Now y'see... this is why I used to run solo. Pessimists the lot, and cuz of all your negative Karma...NOW the giant lizard wants to play "find the snacks."
-sigh-
Anna? #2 hydro-spanner please."

[taalismn]

Cloud Eris; "Now y'see... this is why I used to run solo. Pessimists the lot, and cuz of all your negative Karma...NOW the giant lizard wants to play "find the snacks."
-sigh-
Anna? #2 hydro-spanner please."

"See! I told you! I told you they'd blow it up!"
"It was your bad vibes, man....your bad vibes!"
---Donald Sutherland as 'Oddball' in 'Kelly's Heroes'(after watching an Allied plane blow up a German-repaired bridge they were planning to use).

[DhAkael]

Cloud Eris; "Now y'see... this is why I used to run solo. Pessimists the lot, and cuz of all your negative Karma...NOW the giant lizard wants to play "find the snacks."
-sigh-
Anna? #2 hydro-spanner please."

"See! I told you! I told you they'd blow it up!"
"It was your bad vibes, man....your bad vibes!"
---Donald Sutherland as 'Oddball' in 'Kelly's Heroes'(after watching an Allied plane blow up a German-repaired bridge they were planning to use).

Brilliant film and not shown enough

[taalismn]

Cloud Eris; "Now y'see... this is why I used to run solo. Pessimists the lot, and cuz of all your negative Karma...NOW the giant lizard wants to play "find the snacks."
-sigh-
Anna? #2 hydro-spanner please."

"See! I told you! I told you they'd blow it up!"
"It was your bad vibes, man....your bad vibes!"
---Donald Sutherland as 'Oddball' in 'Kelly's Heroes'(after watching an Allied plane blow up a German-repaired bridge they were planning to use).

Brilliant film and not shown enough

One of my favorite all-time films. Between Clint chewing the scenary witb his gruff attitude and Donald Sutherland hippying it up....and 'Burning Bridges' still rings in my mind...

Whe watching 'Three Kings' I could only compare it to 'Kelly's Heroes'(in a positive way; Clooney and company make '3K' shine on its own strengths).