{Nexus} GLoG LXXIV: Back to the Numerals!

[Reinholdt]

[Main Cabin]

"Blech. Paladins and their lack of sense and tact. Ok, here's the thing. YOU HAVEN'T TOLD HIM YET!"
Despite the emphasis on the words, Reinholdt keeps them fairly quiet.

[The Bushranger]

[Main Cabin]

Quinn for a moment looks confused, then sighs, and looks down.
"I keep meaning to! But...there's never been a good time when I had a chance to!"
She falls into a chair, and hugs herself tightly.

[Reinholdt]

[Main Cabin]

"And there never WILL be a good time. Good times don't come from stuff like this. The longer you put it off, the worse for everyone. ESPECIALLY you."
Reinholdt sighs, and looks at Quinn with concern.

[The Bushranger]

[Main Cabin]

Quinn nods, looking down at her hands folded in her lap.
"Yeah. It's just, he was away, and it's almost like I hardly ever see him sometimes...I don't want it to stay secret because then it will come out at a bad time, but..."

[Reinholdt]

[Main Cabin]

Reinholdt frowns. He's reasonably sure his point on the issue's been made, so time to move on.
"Do you remember a being... part metal, part something else, that came here talking about having to eat people to survive?" Sussurrus. That's probably horribly misspelled.

[The Bushranger]

[Main Cabin]

Reinholdt uses CHANGE OF SUBJECT!
Quinn is CONFUSED!
...for a moment. Then she nods. "Yes. I believed he was willing to reconsider his ways when he left. How come?"

[Reinholdt]

[Main Cabin]

"You're going to have to be real specific. Define change his ways."
Reinholdt's look is not foreboding at all.

[The Bushranger]

[Main Cabin]

"Only kill evil people," Quinn says, totally believing that were so.
Poor Quinn...

[Reinholdt]

[Main Cabin]

"And you believed that someone that ate people to survive would somehow be able to actually have the proper moral compass to understand which people are good and which are evil and EAT THEM APPROPRIATELY?! Monsters like that Quinn, you don't let go. You cannot AFFORD to let them go! You get rid of them."

[The Bushranger]

[Main Cabin]

"I tried!" Quinn protests, throwing her hands up. "I even killed him once! But he came back and used logic to make me feel horrible for having done so!"

[Reinholdt]

[Main Cabin]

"You don't feel guilty for doing what you have to! You can't afford to feel guilty for doing what you had to do! You kill whomever you must to save who you can and you don't. look. back, dammit! You can never look back!" Reinholdt shouts, clenching his paws tightly and trembling.

[The Bushranger]

[Main Cabin]

Quinn stares at Reinholdt for a long moment. Looking rather surprised.
...then the most likely reason for this line of questioning pops into her mind.
And she buries her face in her hands. Crying.

[Reinholdt]

[Main Cabin]

Reinholdt opens his mouth to say something, but... just stops, his anger dissipating away and his features softening again.
Dang crying people always got to him.

"I... I'm sorry..."

[Lex-Kat]

[Main Cabin]

"Well, you can come along if you want! But you have to promise to get along with Oddball," Jamie says seriously.

Yay!! the onion says, literally bouncing up and down. Then it stops, looking up at Jamie confused. Who's Oddball?

[happyturtle]

The Kitchen

A delicious smell starts wafting over the camp. Brand Applehill the halfling is teaching his 7 year old daughter Lily and 8 year old son Tito how to make caramelized onions. Yum!

Dr. Burnett's Office

"I think it means I like a lot of sex." Jack says, a chuckle coloring his words. The wizard looks at her seriously. "I tend - at least generally - not to overanalyze."

"You liking sex doesn't mean other people want to have it with you." Dr Burnett says. "But perhaps it is that simple. You may simply be using up testosterone that would otherwise be spent aggressively, and thus turning down the hostility of the situation."


She really sounds like she doesn't have a clue what she's talking about.

[Lost_Deep]

Main Cabin going Outside

So. The girl. Kate Kyland? She is in the main cabin, albeit far away from the discussion the the cat and Quin are having. Which is probably for the best, since her mind would run wild with what the cat was shouting. She steps back outside, and looks for someone who looks like the know what's going on here.

[Morty]

[Lakeside]

This player has completely lost track of the fight with the demon bugs. Then again, it's not like Sophie can do much.

[Outside]

Kate Kyland could run into Reelshka, a goblin woman in green clothes and a big green hat who's leaving the Main Cabin with some papers.

[Lost_Deep]

Outside

Kyland sees the goblin woman. "Umm, excuse me? My name is Kate Kyland. I understand that this is GLoG? I found a flyer for it."

[Morty]

[Outside]


Hm? Oh, yes, it is the Good League of Good. How may we help you?

[Lost_Deep]

"Well, I'm new to the nexus. I need a roof over my head until I can get on my feet. I found a flier for GLoG, and was wondering if you have an extra bed. I don't have any money to spend on this, but I am skilled with technology and computers. I'll gladly help if you need any kind of technical assistance."

[Morty]

Hm. Well, actually, we're planning a big charity fair. So technical expertise would be very handy indeed. If you're willing to help with it, we can put you up, for now at least.

[Lost_Deep]

"Oh, cool! Sure I'll help with that! What's planned? Is there a movie? What do you-"

She stops. Sensitive goblin ears might hear a hungry tummy remind Kate that, y'know, the body has certain needs. She's been here... well... she should probably have had a meal or two by now and all she's had is a sandwich and a glass of pop.

"Er, can we discuss this over a meal? Please?"

[Morty]

Reelshka smiles a little.
Of course. Follow me. I think someone is cooking something delicious in the kitchen, in fact... And she will lead Kate there.

[Lost_Deep]

Kate will be led! She can smell the cooking, of course. On the way, she wonders at the existence of goblins.

Well, we have already determined the existence of skeletons, eldritch waitresses, anti-imp customer service robots, and giant evil hell beetles. If anything, she should be surprised at her surprise at goblins.

She then realizes that she is not, in fact, surprised at goblins. How surprising.

[The Alexandrian]

[Lakeshore]

Battle Music To Set The Stage (Ideally, This Music Would Span The Whole Of The Brawl): Velocitron by Two Steps From Hell

Compilation Of Most Recent Battle Posts

Zach

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Simon's eyes begin to glow with an eerie yellow light. His mouth opened and sparks of electricity came out, electrifying the beetles without hurting Valaira. This should eliminate all the bugs while keeping the shield up.
Simon used Hidden Power!
"You alright?"
Due to Hidden Power's lingering effects, Simon briefly spoke in a language Valaira would know.

Zach glowered at the bug demons. They were hurting innocents and Simon was in there. If he had a hat, he would turn it backwards.
"You guys seem to have a good friend of mine......."
He took out three Pokeballs.
"....you're going to pay for that....."
He throws the Pokeballs into the air and out comes Voltron the Vulpix, Sting the Wurmple, and Megan the Eevee.
"......pray for mercy, not from me, but from them."
His pokemon looked extremely pissed.
Megan used Tackle!
Wurmple used Poison Sting!
Voltron used Flame Charge!

Zero

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Zero will turn into blue sparks if anything makes contact with him and then moves directly to the demon going after Valaria. He reforms a few feet above the demon and attempts to use the force of his fall to drive a kick into the demon's head. The demon killing energy might increase the damage caused if the kick hits.

Friend

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The cry awakens an armoured individual meditating near the lake. They subsequently look up at the scene near it.

"That is a matter novel to me"

They stand up and notice Sophie in the beetle-hand's grasp and sarcastically remarks.

"I shall have to assist this mortal, shall I not?"

Before running closer and attempting to use their armour's lasers, sending two beams toward the hand's base to sever it.

Their aim is not very good, but it will probably hit a large target.

((I may have read the description of what the bugs are doing wrong, if so, then Friend is just firing at the largest amount of bugs not attacking anyone ))

Sophie

[Lakeshore]

Well, now's probably a good time to call for backup. So Sophie yells: Over here! Help! She doesn't really have anything better to do, with her handgun and minor powers.

[Lakeside]

This player has completely lost track of the fight with the demon bugs. Then again, it's not like Sophie can do much.

Across the whole of the torn battlefield the beetles suddenly burst into plumes of colorless, suffocating smoke which settles around the combatants, trapping them in a noxious haze. All is silent, spare a chilling yelp in the distance. Suddenly, a low whine can be heard all about coming from every direction as the very atmosphere were to begin its assault on the bold, heroic team. The earth begins to shiver. Instantly, the heroes might find themselves in a trying situation.

A human head pops out of the haze near Zach and his brood. Something is wrong with it.

First of all, the head, while being well-developed, has a malformed jaw. It hangs low, attached to the skull only by several bloody sinews of flesh. Burning red eyes have mounted themselves in the leaky eye sockets. The head's meaty cheeks have been altered. Rows upon rows of jagged teeth dangle upon them like pikes upheld by the frigid ground. Great white locks of braided hair hang from the head, accentuating the former beauty of the bearer's face.

As more of the creature lumbers out of the mist, the gruesomeness of the monster becomes clear. The creature does not walk upon two legs, nay, but on six, most of which are not its own. The torso is suspended between these six human legs, three hanging on each side, grafted onto its back. The creature's arms resemble tiny, deformed antennae flicking back and forth each moment, like the pendulum inside an antiquated clock.

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

Upon staring at the creature, that much can be heard.

The creature's distended stomach adds to its repugnance. The jiggling, flab that shudders with the movement of each leg.

Out of the haze crawl not one of these beasts but five, each setting their sights on Zach and his pokemon and letting loose sounds that no human being had ever seen or heard before.

A different creature steps from the haze to accost Sophie. This one is humanoid, but lacks any ridges or definition to its form. It is like a sketch of a human, an unfinished caricature. Its body is a tone of livid white. Affixed upon its face is an ungodly, mocking, cartoonish smile and a set of inlaid sapphires act as its eyes. It marches up to Sophie and bends down to examine her, being at least 1.5 times her size. It will attempt to slap her in the face if she looks away from it for even a second.

And with each passing second, its features become more lifelike and cruel, tufts of hair sprouting from its head and tumbling down its sides, cheeks growing red with color.

A cruel, crude, lifelike, and mocking doll. That's what it is.

For Zero there steps a clanking suit of armor from the fog. The elaborate, gilded designs on the black armor move freely about the metal plates, swimming first here and then there. The suit seems designed to take quite a battering. It shifts and folds until it appears as though it will fit Zero perfectly. It plucks a sword of still alive flesh and bone off of its elegant back and attempts to slice off one of Zero's arms with a vertical slash.

The oddest part of it is that the sword appears to weep as it is swung about, as though it were a bawling babe isolated from the comfort of its mother.

Friend might notice a ring of blue fire springing up about him. Periodically, a large orb of fire will be flung at him from behind the pillars of flame. An unseen mage hides behind the ring? Perhaps, though it would seem more likely to be caused by that silent child sitting on a log in the ring of flame across from him.

Simon will get no response from Valaira. She has been quite literally vitrified by the green energy leaping to and from each of her apertures. Her crystalline features are fixed in a most agonized expression. Words cannot even do it justice.

-----

[Through the Portal -- Mayor's Mansion]

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That aggression thing a magical effect working on Rein too or just a description of the drumming? It doesn't change much of this post, but it probably will change future posts.

Hundreds... hundreds is a lot of people. No matter what he does, he's going to draw attention of probably more than he can handle.

Violence doesn't seem like it should be the answer either. That'd probably only lead to a cycle which just ends with Reinholdt joining this crazy blood kill cult. Though Reinholdt suspects he might be able to kill a good couple of hundred before they take him down.

No. No, there is one way to try to handle this. It's crazy.
But then.
It's Rein.

Reinholdt pulls out a flute and starts playing. This is a magical flute. In particular, this flute, when played, works to relax people and beasts, creating a euphoria in their calm. It's Pan's Flute. Quite powerful stuff.

Though, as I said before, Reinholdt has no magical talent whatsoever. So imagine someone playing the flute horribly, squeaking and shrilling, and certainly sounding absolutely horrible next to those drums only it's relaxing...

Effectiveness may vary.

The aggression effect might be working on Rein as well.

Pan's Flute! That is potent magic!

Many of the cultists that are near Rein's location turn and face him as he plays, expressions softening from those of ritualistic brutality and hatred to faces of enjoyment and pleasure.

The majority of the cultists, however, are likely uninfluenced by Rein's amateurish performance, probably because of the drumming drowning out Rein's flute.

Oddly enough, Rein might get the impression that these people want to be here. They are not being controlled or manipulated! It was their choice to join this cult...

People are committing savagery that usually is left up to daemons and devils!

In a far corner, a blue crystal begins to gleam, shedding light upon a man. His chest has been torn open. His organs have been removed and placed into containers on some strange machine that he is impaled on. His lips have been. His eyes have been ripped out, leaving two empty pits in their place.

He has been contorted into a position where he no longer looks human.

And he's still breathing.

Upon the altar, it appears as though they have just dissected a woman close to birthing a child. I will not relate that matter here, as the mere thought of the scene makes me nauseous.

Let's just say that Rein might find it somewhat distasteful. He would find it even more so if he knew that the woman volunteered for all of it.

[Mindfreak]

Simon used Subsitute!
Replicas of Zach and his pokemon now take the damage for Zach and his pokemon!
Zach quickly calls everyone back, and then makes a tactical retreat. He was scared, more scared then he had ever been before. He booked it back to the main cabin, using the Subsitutes as decoys.

[Shadowcaller]

[Outside]

Sarah will be nice enough to use her true form to take Alistar to GloG. Silly humans being so fragile.

The silver dragon gently lands on the grounds outside trog's and look for someone that look like a healer. Alistar should be laying on her back at the moment.

[Gullara]

[Somewhere]

Ghar is out and about looking for Sarah, and Terrance too. He has an important lesson to teach them today.

[Halae]

[Somewhere]

Ghar will find Terrance pretty easily - he was just laying in the grass, watching the clouds, and playing with lights between his fingers. He's practicing low-level magic, but he's practicing, nonetheless.

[ThirdEmperor]

Outside

Alistair is indeed being hauled around, too weak to walk at the moment. He's not in any immediate danger of dying though, not for an hour or two.