[Nexus] AMEN XLI: eXtra Large Injury

[Slii Arhem]

Main Room 1

Well hopefully he doesn't have any problems sitting next to Rocid, but just in case our favorite bundle of joy is ignored, he'll attempt to toss a set of kitchen knives to the zombie to make this game of catch a bit more interesting. Nothing says living on the edge like a good old fashioned zombie knife juggle.

[BladeofObliviom]

Main Room 1

While some simply fly past the Zombie, and a few others stab into it, a special few are caught and thrown right back at Rocid! Zombies love newcomers to games of catch!

Cyrus laughs a bit before suddenly being hit in the face with a Zombie head.

[Slii Arhem]

Main Room 1

Rocid begins deftly snatching the knives out of the air and flipping them back to the headless zombie, at least until he sees Cyrus get a face full of head. Then he bursts out laughing, allowing the next two knives to fly through his illusory form and into the couch behind him.

"*snrk* You know something Silus? It was Silus wasn't it? Yer alright for a Gatewalker." while it's been stated that the Fiskes have some unresolved issues with planeswalkers, it seems Rocid isn't one to hold a grudge.

[ThirdEmperor]

Party

Jasper is forced to quickly stumble back to avoid running straight into Black as the horseman steps between him and the door. "Yeesh, watch where you're going already!" He snaps, adjusting his hat so he can see Black properly and shooting the no-goodnick an angry glare. A glare that promptly drops away as the catwalks step out of the shadows, to be replaced with an insincere smile. "I mean, ah, the name's Jasper, nice to meet you, talk to you again sometime gotta be going you heard the lady bye! With that hurried explanation, Jasper attempts to dodge round Black and run through the door, not particularly inclined to stick around in a madhouse full of very angry lunatics.

[Zefir]

Main Room

Zefir is 6'1" tall. He has dark blond hair and brown eyes. He appears like in his mid twenties. He wears some common clothes so a normal jeans and a t-shirt without any writings. On his Side he weras a bad and around his chest lies a belt with a few grenades.

[Murkus]

Party --> Retreat

Provided no one stops them, perhaps the Hatteress or an angry villain, Jasper and Legion run outside.

Main Room

Jack sits on the couch, though Black shouldn't actually remember him crossing the room to do so. The grey man crosses his arms comfortably. "Name?"

[BladeofObliviom]

Main Room 1

Cyrus tosses the head right back at the Zombie, chuckling.

Yes, Rocillithid, it's Silus. You're not so bad either.

Okay, Cyrus, that was probably uncalled for. Maybe he's just glad to have someone misspell his name in a way that actually sounds like his name, and not some kind of Ice Wizard.


Retreat

As soon as Legion and Jasper pass through the door, they will likely notice a fair number of Zombies headed for them. They're coming in primarily from the sides, mainly because Cyra is trying to flush them both into the Van without revealing herself.

Since I do not believe Legion told Jasper about the lady in their car, it might look like a good opportunity to him. To Legion, likely less so.

[Slii Arhem]

Main Room 1

Rocid's face bursts out in a shower of tentacles and slimy bits that cover his expanding grin.

"Really? Lucky guess, seeing as how no one's introduced us yet." 'Cid was just taking a stab in the dark there, but now Cyrus has a nick-name and you bet it's gonna stick.

"Sorry 'bout Greg, he gets a bit exuberant at times. Whatever that lightning trick you did to him sure was neat. I could feel it in my boots, so to speak. If he had any brains to lose you'd've probly left him a drooling loon." Rocid lets out a brief burbling spat of laughter as he flips the two knives that seem to be sticking out of his stomache back to the zombie with telekinesis, "I mean more of a drooling loon. As it is you pretty much shocked all the fight out've him. First time I've seen that."

[BladeofObliviom]

Main Room 1

The Zombie is impaled with knives again! It falls over before it's head lands back in place.

Cyrus smiles.

"It's an old trick of mine. You see, people seem to regard attacks on the mind and assaults on the body as separate things. When you combine the two into a single harrowing strike, no one really expects it."

[Slii Arhem]

Main Room 1

Rocid snorts in disgust, "Bah, the human brain is nothing but a glut of electro-chemical impulses barely held in check by a combination of DNA and the will of the soul. Disrupt any one thing and all the rest falls apart. After all, if you wipe out someone's mental faculties then their body soon falls into disrepair. I don't see why it couldn't work the other way with a few minor adjustments." Wow, that was almost eloquent.

[BladeofObliviom]

Main Room 1

Cyrus raises an eyebrow.

Alright, I'll concede that you're smart enough to comprehend the truth. Blightning, by its nature, is a dark and dangerous weapon. One aspect, the Lightning Bolt, singes the flesh and disrupts the nerves. However, it carries a payload of Black Mana, which attacks the soul.
It's unpleasant yet resistible to be struck on one front, but absolutely destructive on both. Observe:

Cyrus snaps his fingers, and a soda can attached to a tile by a rubber band appears. He shoves one side of the can, and it moves then returns to it's original position.

Then he crushes it from both sides, compressing the can into a minimal space.

[Slii Arhem]

Main Room 1

That causes Rocid to raise a brow, before he gives up his mirage to just float next to Cyrus serenely.

"The things you folk come up with. Back when we fought planeswalkers, the worst thing they could do to you is throw a lava axe at your head."

[Earl of Purple]

Main Room 1

"I was a member of the Celestial Chorus. I spent all day, every day singing the praises of the various gods of good, although every fortnight I had a day off to rest. On one of those days off, I was approached by another angel who gave me a pamphlet. I was only five hundred or so, and still very naive. I read it, and it said that a group of angels, archons and other various celestials were writing a petition, asking for changes in how they were treated. I put my name down, and then this chap came along, four weeks later. He said that he was about to present the petition, and wasn't sure if the gods would accept it. So, he asked me to remove my name because if it didn't work, he'd rebel and wanted a spy on the Chorus. It didn't work, and the rebellion lasted one thousand years, the first half of which I spent with the other Choristers, sent on top-secret missions. The Chorus is not just a choir; it's also an elite task force specialising in sabotage, assassination, and so on, but the good gods don't tell anybody that. I was feeding information to the rebels; I hate singing. Four hundred years was too much for me. The gods knew there was a spy, but didn't know who, until they gave every Chorister conflicting information and strict orders not to tell another Chorister that information. Because I told the rebels what I'd been told, they knew it was me and I scarcely escaped. Five hundred years later, the rebels were either dead, fled or surrendered. I took a new name and fled to the Abyss, where I asked several different Demon Lords to take me in, and none trusted me. They knew of the war; more celestials were seeking extraplanar sanctuary than at any time previously, but I was the only Celestial Chorister. So I spent four hundred years learning what pain felt like at the hands of the Demon Lord of Torturers. It wasn't very pleasant, and I eventually escaped and gave my story to Pazuzu, who checked with aforementioned Demon Lord who confirmed it. And I've been slowly gaining status for the last thirty six centuries. Oh, and my punishment for siding with the rebels still effects me, though I never really needed my sense of taste so I'm not missing much." That's all true, or at least, that's all true according to how Nephrim remembers it.

[Neon Knight]

[Red Bluff]

Up on a desolate mesa near the AMEN building, the band of dirty desperadoes has pitched a small camp. A series of tents surrounds a brightly burning campfire. A few of the gang are posted as sentries; the cloaked bugbear called Duke and the armored hobgoblin called Kalin stand among the rocks, watching the approaches to the plateau, while the ogre named Black Betty watches the pack of stamping, screaming horses. Vire and Modarmaskin are near the center of the camp, with Doctor Arlington tending to their wounds. The two Indians sit apart from the others, talking in their own language.

Black, the grim, pale cowboy in the longcoat, rides into camp, stopping next to the two wounded black hats. "Swede ain't happy that you two screwed up. He's goin' on ahead to scout out our next job, but when that's over with, there's gonna be a reckonin'. you and the Injuns are gonna make sure that little camp gets put in it's place. And you're going to bring back as many captives as you can get. Swede says our needs are increasin' fast. You'd better start providin' for them or you'll end up turned out, or worse." Black rides off as Modarmaskin and Vire scowl silently.

[The Alexandrian]

[Party]

The Hatteress remains hiding under a large table! She doesn't notice Legion's departure. She is far too busy evading the (mad)woman who just tried to take her captive!

"Silent. Gotta be silent. Can't stop not making noise."

It's pathetic, really.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Party]

At about this point, the love potion wears off of Karyana.

"What? Oh, when I find out what misbegotten child of a pig and a dog did this I am going to kill them..."

The vampire then lets go of the Cat burglar, and looks over at the Hatteress, or at least the table she's under.

"You can come out now. Whatever that stuff was, it's worn off me."

[Shadowcaller]

Main Room 1

Dawn didn't really expect all that, but it was a fulfilling answer if nothing else.

"One thousandths years? Did we really live that long?" She replies, sounding somewhat surprised, "Surely you can't remember everything? I understand if you changed after so long time. How could you possibly stay the same person for so long time if you weren't sleeping all the time?"

[Murkus]

Retreat

As soon as Legion and Jasper pass through the door, they will likely notice a fair number of Zombies headed for them. They're coming in primarily from the sides, mainly because Cyra is trying to flush them both into the Van without revealing herself.

Since I do not believe Legion told Jasper about the lady in their car, it might look like a good opportunity to him. To Legion, likely less so.

"Oh, Jasper, I think Cyrus might be waiting for us in the caaaaAAA!" Legion punches the nearest Zombie on reflex, aiming for it's face. That oughta hurt. She's obviously rather startled.

[ThirdEmperor]

Retreat

"Aw, crud! Where the hell did these critters crawl out of!?" Jasper shouts, drawing his twice-blessed las-revolver and shooting at any zombies that get close, the high tech revolver likely making short work of the undead minions unless they're considerably tougher than standard zombies. Of course, even a las-revolver runs out of ammo evetuakly, and Jasper wouldn't bet on his chances of being able to fight the entire horde. "So, this Cyrus guy, who's he, and is he less dangerous than a swarm of frelling zeds??"

[Murkus]

Retreat

"Um. Maybe? He seemed alright, but we did turn him into a girl, so..." Legion starts toward the truck, likely punching zombies along the way like she tried to do with the first.

I'm just surprised she understood the words 'frelling' and 'zeds'.

[Earl of Purple]

Main Room 1

"I've been alive for five thousand years, so I suppose we do. Though I fell either four thousand or four thousand five hundred years ago, so I might count as a demon, and they're widely acknowledged to be immortal. I remember the basics, and certain important events, but I wouldn't be able to identify the people I worked alongside when I was in the Chorus. I can't remember the name of the guy who led the rebellion, either. I remember more of the four hundred years of torture than I do of the thousand years before." She doesn't mention her original name; either she's forgotten it, or she doesn't want to remember it.

[The Alexandrian]

[Party]

This trickery! The Hatteress refuses to be duped by it! She flips the table she was seeking refuge under and take up a defensive position behind it!

"Don't get any closer! I have a tea kettle and I'm not afraid to use it!"

No hugs for the thug!

[BladeofObliviom]

Retreat

Legion's punch knocks one's head off, and it rather comically stoops down and starts searching for it.

While the Zombies aren't actually unholy and a blessed weapon has no special effect, they're fairly weak and can be mowed down with relatively little effort.

Of course, Cyrus summoned these as a distraction: the Horde isn't incredibly large, but it's enough to be a credible threat. With some effort, the pair could likely escape.

[ThirdEmperor]

Retreat

"Well, only one of him, versus lots of them, so I think we'll be seeing whether or not this Cyrus feller is immune to lasers." With that, Jasper starts making his way towards the truck, judiciously applying firepower to any zeds that try to attack him.

Party

The Cat Burglar runs away so fast he practically blurs, dashing into the kitchen, slamming the door shut, and grabbing a knife just in case Karyana changes her mind and goes after him again.

[ThePhantom]

Gordon's Office

Gordon puts down his work, and takes off his tenchcoat. After that, he presses a button that causes the lava wall of his office to open up. Picking up the gem won by Legion, he smiles.

"Well, the time has come at last."

He walks through the opening leading to the heart of the crater.

[BladeofObliviom]

Retreat

The Zombies turn after them, but begin to slow down in their pursuit. A number of them seem to be trying to cluster around the Van, but not smart enough to block the door.

They'll make it to the van with little difficulty.

[ThePhantom]

Crater

Standing on a hidden walkway hanging over the lava of the crater, Gordon holds the gemstone of time in his hands. He starts chanting over it, and as he chants the light around the whole volcano starts dimming. Whispers of all those slain here start echoing, as the dark forces of this place are acted on by its ruler. A dark purple glow flows from the gemstone, visible for miles.

[Murkus]

Crater

"Gordy, are you enacting an evil plot?" Jack asks from a few feet behind, talking about it as if it were a child's project. Not disrespectful, merely amused, as usual.

Retreat --> Party Van

Legion barges into the van, a few zombie jaws smeared on her knuckles, panting a little. She's not exactly a fighter.

[ThePhantom]

Crater

Gordon ignores Jack, at this point breaking off would be very bad. The whole spirits of the dead floating around, semi-alive in the strange timewarp going on. Plus, the storm forming overhead, with the purple lightning bolts striking the inside of the crater. Messing around with time and space is dangerous.

[ThirdEmperor]

Retreat

Jasper covers Legion's escape, continuing to blast away at the zombies as they approach. He's certainly no legendary gunslinger, nor is he a particularly impressive fighter by Nexus standards, but keeping a few zombies of their backs? No sweat. Once Legion is safe inside the van, he hops inside as well, slamming the door shut and revving up the engine. "So, Cyrus, whaddaya want? Hope you ain't too pissed bout the whole "spiking the food" deal, that was just a bit a harmless fun." One might note that Jasper not only appears to be quite aware of where Cyrus is hiding, despite the planeswalker's invisibility and the fact Jasper isn't even looking at him, but he also hasn't put his gun away.