[Nexus] Outside XXIX

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

That one works! The sonic attack causes the demon to yell out in pain. No! Stop the noise....I'll eat your soul! It struggles back up and charges the god. His entire body turns into hellfire, which is incorporeal and completely burns through whatever it touches.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

There aren't any gods here. Just a godslaying madman... and some punk demon.

Tobias turns back into his human(ish) form and rockets up into the air on a gust of wind. Bingo. He gives the demon a vulpine grin and blasts another sonic boom at it.

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

The demon pauses and shrieks in pain. Then it fires a massive fireball at Tobias!

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

Tobias lands on top of the lighthouse and then gets hit by the fireball. It hurts him, burning him rather severely, but he ignores the pain for now. Here I am... The Druid uses an incredible amount of magic to create another sonic blast, louder and more powerful, right on top of the demon. While he strums on an air guitar. Rock you like a hurricane!

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

It cries out in pain...It can't hear...everythin hurts. It has a massive headache. It floats up slowly before inhaling a mighty breath. It seems to be readying itself.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

While the demon is inhaling, Tobias leaps off of the tower. A gust of hurricane-force wind launches him right at the demon's head, boots first. That's right: he's jumping off a tall building so he can epically drop kick a godslaying demon right in the face.

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

(I approve of Tobias's awesomeness. Epic indeed.)

The demon is thrown to the ground and a rib cracks, but then it releases the tension it built up. It explodes in a mass of flaming fury. The ground is blown apart in a 10 foot radius. Sincs Toby is most likely on top of the demon he'll get the brunt of the inferno.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

Tobias' momentum was enough to carry him past the demon, so he's not right on top of it when it explodes. But the blast still burns his back and smashes him into the ground hard enough to plow a fifteen foot long furrow. He slowly gets to his feet and brushes the dirt off his shirt. Ahhh... Okay, that one hurt a little...

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

You know....you don't have to resist. The great fire will claim this world. Stop. The demon rises again before flying toward Tobias. It's in it's fire form and can't be hit physically. It still can't hear a thing. Thendier pops into Tobias's mind, Congratulations...you made it angry.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

Tobias nonchalantly cracks his knuckles. Did I? I thought I was fighting it. Why, do you have some sort of insight into this demon's vulnerabilities that you definitely should have told me before I came out here?

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

Thenadier is obviously annoyed, I would have told you earlier but you interrupted me by burning my corpse off the face of the Nexus. Sonic, which you found out, and try some water. Water coolls the demons fires. It won't kill, but weaken him. Then there's always my idea. The demon floats again in the air and inhales.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

Your idea is to throw this soul gem at the demon, right? Because only you can kill it? Tobias rolls his eyes. If this little story was being told about you, Marty, it would get panned universally for being stupidly ridiculous. What kind of crappy plot says that only one special person can kill the bad guy? The kind that has no place here in the Nexus, that's what. Tobias scoffs and prepares to withstand the demon's attack. However, this story is being told about me now. This bastard hurt one of mine... making me clearly the good guy. And the good guy always defeats the demon.

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

Er...huh?,

Thdnadier sighs, No silly...does it look like I could be very useful? I'm in a gem. Marty...I am not proud of what I did. How do you know him? We collapse the rest of tge tower on it. The demon continues inhaling.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

I mean you, Stu. You said to throw you at it. Tobias idly decides to cast a spell removing all air from around the demon, sucking it out of whatever passes for its lungs. Yeah, I considered smashing it with the lighthouse, but I didn't know if it would just heal right away.

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

Thenadier growls, Yes. Use your head. Throw me...er...the gem at it. Distract it, you do an earthquake or something. Cause the tower to fall. It'll be trapped underneath the rubble...maybe.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

"Use my head"? In the space of a minute I prepared this battlefield to my complete advantage. You are stuck inside a soul gem. Preach not to me about tactics, for you are in the pocket of a master. Tobias now has the demon trapped in a vacuum, completely bereft of air. Meanwhile, more lightning bolts start blasting the base of the tower.

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

Thenadier snorts, Yes, but you're a god. The demon struggles for air. No air means no fuel.

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

No, I am not. What I am, Inspector, is a genius. While the vacuum starts to suffocate the demon, the clouds above start dumping frigid water on it. Not raindrops, but about fifty gallons just falling right on top of it. And incredibly powerful, with more magic than most lesser deities. That does help.
There is now a huge hole right at the bottom of the lighthouse. Its foundation begins to collapse and the tower starts teetering.

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

Thenadier comments, You're certainly arrogant. He's still upset. The demon gasps! :Eek:

[FireFox]

Lighthouse

Perhaps. Although I like to think my record speaks for itself. The fox-eyed king smiles and steps back just as the lighthouse comes crashing down on the demon.

[Hattish Thing]

Lighthouse

Touche.

And so the demon is buried!

[FireFox]

The Rubble Formerly Known As Lighthouse

So. Is it dead yet? Tobias cautiously approaches to get a better look.

[Hattish Thing]

Rubble

How the hell should I know!? The demons corpse cannot be found.

[FireFox]

Rubble

I have no idea if you would know or not. Which is why I asked. I'm making conversation; don't be rude. Tobias scratches his chin. Hm. So it either teleported away from under the rubble, or killing it banished it back to whatever infernal plane it came from. The druid looks around the place and in the air.

[Hattish Thing]

Rubble

Hmm...if it teleported you could sense it.right?

[FireFox]

Rubble

Well, if it teleported right behind him or somewhere he could sense, like HALO or underneath his magic storm clouds he would be able to tell... But come on, if Tobias couldn't kill it (or at least banish it back to hell temporarily) with that, all there is left to do is keep fighting it until his magic finally runs out a week from now. And if he can't kill it by himself, what am I supposed to do, get all the powerful mortals of the Nexus together and unleash enough magic power to blow up a planet?

[Hattish Thing]

Meant to put Then to be saying that. And no, the demon has most likely been squashed and banished.

[Rebonack]

[Adventure!]

The commando-crawl is a very useful way to avoid detection! Especially when dressed in drab colors. Is the lad dressed in drab colors? Because that would probably help.

And invisible!

Invisible also makes it harder for you to be seen! Except of course if there are some kind of magical sensors sitting around that would begin caterwauling horribly if someone invisible ambles by. But there's no way a bunch of random thugs would have a mage working with them, right?

...

Sadei decides to go with the army-crawling!

Mostly because she can't turn invisible.

As the party sneaks forward they'll soon spot a pair of watchmen at the bottom of a small valley! Why in a valley? Because they're both asleep and they don't want to get caught slacking. Both are laying prone in the grass snoozing away. Both are also clad in fairly unimpressive armor made of hides and a few iron plates.

[OrchestraHc]

(Has shadowcaller gotten a turn?)

[Adventure]

Not drab, a white night gown, but it's getting very dirty crawling about, that might help.

As Brave Alfred Hee-hee! approaches the tiny valley he peers over it. When he sees the two napping bandits he pulls back and waves Sir Correl, to come and see. He would know what to do about the snoozing watchmen.

[Rebonack]

[Gaius - The Walls of Thessaloniki]

Spoiler

Show

"By Vulcan the waiting is the worst part," Gaius sighs, running one hand through his unkept hair. The initial feelings of excitement and tension had long ago given way to a sort of numb throbbing of inevitability. It had been a week since the forces of the Legion had rolled through their nation, an army come to 'liberate' them from the rule of Flavius Octavius.

Octavius, of course, is quite popular with the people. But the Legion isn't terribly fond of him due to his open defiance of the Legion and their right to govern. Especially their practice of taking first-born children from their parents at the age of eight and enlisting them into military academies.

All it took was one slip-up.

A few demonstrators in favor of the Legion had been killed. Accidentally, of course. But the Legion took that as an excuse to show up in force to 'protect their loyal citizens'. All hog's wash of course. The Legion didn't give a rat's-ass about anyone living out here. All they're interested in are the rich deposits of uranium ore. Everyone else could burn in Tartarus for all they care.

"They're massing their forces. That's what I've heard," Silvanus replies, leaning on the butt of his rifle. "Completely surround the city. Make sure Governer Octavius can't flee. Want to make an example of him."

Gaius shakes his head in disgust. "We'll they're going to have to fight their way through the streets if they want to take the Governor. Can't very well carpet-bomb the city if they're trying to look like liberators."

Silvanus gives a long sigh at that. "Probably send in ground forces. Though they'll have to breach the barrier and the wall to do that. With our geothermal power and hydroponic gardens we should be able to hold off a siege for years if we have to. Gods willing they might just decide it isn't worth the trouble and give up."

Gaius scowls a rather dark scowl, "Snowball's chance in Tartarus of that."

There's silence for a time between the sentries as those words hang in the air like a putrid stench. Though the subject to dispel it is no more uplifting.

"...you don't think the Wyverns could get in here, do you? Past the barrier, I mean?" Silvanus asks, his voice somewhat shaky.

His brother had been killed by one of those monsters defending Ephesus just a few months prior. Horrible things, easily the worst of the genetically engineered bio-weapons employed by the Legion. Mindless killing machines. Bestial engines of destruction. Even the thought of facing those things...

Gaius smiles and grips his rifle a little tighter. "Our barrier is as strong as Vulcan's own anvil. There's no way those snakes could sneak in. Besides, didn't the Ephesians manage to kill one of them?"

Silvanus just nods absently.

"See? Be brave. We can handle whatever the Legion throws our way. We're Thessalonians after all. And faltering in the face of danger is the last thing we'll do."

[XLV - Forward C&C Bunker]

Spoiler

Show

XLV hasn't ever been terribly fond of these reviews. Especially when they were carried out in the field. It had been explained to him before, of course. The Senators need to see that the project is running smoothly. That their investment in this particular part of the defense budget is paying off.

He always thought their public performance more than spoke for itself. But every four years new Senators were voted in and someone new had to be brought into the loop, so to speak.

Explanations or no, it was still uncomfortable being paraded around in front of a bunch of clueless bureaucrats. It makes him feel like a zoo exhibit. At least back at the labs he couldn't hear these awkward conversations about he and his Century through the walls.

"-oh certainly Senator. We've managed to reduce the mortality rate of the metamorphosis process to only fifty percent. A number of very important break-throughs in reconstructive neurotics have been most fortuitous-"

That would be Galileo, the head philosopher of the project. He's a thin, wiry little man who's very passionate about the work. He always treated the Century kindly enough. Or at least like people. XLV rather liked being treated like a person, all things considered.

"But still, fifty percent? That seems terribly high. And on children no less?" one of the Senators. Sounds female? XLV hadn't ever heard her before.

"Totally necessary, Senator. Too old and the death-rate climbs like a rat fleeing a flood. The adult brain just isn't mailable enough to endure the process. And besides, once the conditioning is done they're as fierce as the most battle-hardened Legionnaires the front lines can produce."

And that's General Festus, the military officer in charge of the program. He's a bit of a braggart as far as XLV is concerned, taking credit for the brilliant minds of Galileo and the other philosophers AND the battle prowess of the Century. The portly, balding man hasn't seen a lick of combat for decades. XLV isn't required to like his commander, but he still has to follow his orders.

"And what about the Decree of the Twenty First?" the female Senator inquires again. She seems to have been doing most of the talking thus far. Well... most of the talking about politics at least. Galileo is always more than happy to chatter endlessly about his work "All children drafted are to serve The Legion until their twenty first birthday. Surely you don't intend to expose the state secrets bound up in the product of these experiments."

'Product of these experiments'. There it is again. Talking about them like they're things. And only a few minutes before she had been acting so concerned. Probably less interested in children and human rights than she is in her future political career.

"No need to worry about that, miss," General Festus pipes up again. "None of them have survived until their twenty first birthday yet. Their missions are exceedingly dangerous and every one of them thus far has died in honorable service to The Legion. We have two that are getting close, though. Well, had two at least!" Festus laughs.

XLV grinds his teeth in silent frustration.

Had two.

The had was LXXX. She had been killed during their mission in Ephesus only recently. She was hit by a rocket propelled grenade while providing covering fire for the infantry. Injured, though not lethally, she was blasted into an enemy-held portion of the city. XLV was sure they could have extracted her given the chance, but General Festus was quick to write her off as dead.

They... were close. From the same batch. From the same City-State before they were drafted. They hadn't known each other before recruitment, but they became quick friends afterwards. They had sworn that they would both survive until their 21st and return home as heroes. The two of them together were like twin-blades of Atropus' iron scissors.

Now she's dead. Hopefully honored for her valor in combat beyond the river Styx.

"But our other star of the program is right through these doors," Festus continues as he pushes the door open and gestures inside. "Senators, allow me to introduce Wyvern Forty Five."

As the myriad infantry and armor of The Legion rolls into position so to do the defenders of Thessaloniki ready themselves for combat. The city has not yet been fully surrounded due to the impressive range on the defensive artillery of the city so it's quite possible that refugees may slip out and mercenaries slip in.

Those seeking to sell their sword to The Legion would best speak with Centurion Legate at the [Command and Control Tent] while those more inclined to defend the city of Thessaloniki talk with Militia Officer Silas at [The Barracks].