New OOTS products from CafePress
New OOTS t-shirts, ornaments, mugs, bags, and more
Page 40 of 50 FirstFirst ... 153031323334353637383940414243444546474849 ... LastLast
Results 1,171 to 1,200 of 1497
  1. - Top - End - #1171
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Looks like this is one of the trolls that can regenerate. As Mateo clambers up the tree, the troll's scratches and bleeding bite-marks close up. No evidence is left behind save slightly cleaner skin.

    Rather than wait to see what Mateo's up to, the troll decides to take a more direct aproach. With a few lumbering steps he walks up to the tree the vampire's hiding in. Squatting, it grasps the sides of the tree with both hands and lifts. The tree creaks and shakes, slowly coming lose.

    The Crag

    Mercutio smiles, knowing he had the witch's interest. "I shouldn't require you lend any martial aid, if that is what concerns you. If you're willing, then certainly. However I require only that you teach me a curse or charm. He is capable of transforming into a fearsome beast, so great and powerful that even I tremble to think of it. How best to circumvent that by casting a spell on him to prevent him from transforming?"

    The devil can't help but feel a sense of excited satisfaction. This was all going so much better than he could have expected. With Caesa's aid, defeating the brute slivermaster would be much easier. And once he could defeat the brute, Mercutio would make him his minion. Even with the witch as a new Planeswalker, he had little worries of her becoming a rival or enemy. Perhaps she would, and so be it. She'd be a much more interesting adversary than the brute.
    Last edited by Mr. Moon; 2012-08-08 at 06:43 PM.
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  2. - Top - End - #1172
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    That's good; Mateo was hoping for the troll to do something like that. He jumps out of the tree onto the troll's back and tries to stick his claws into the wound his teeth made, hopefully whilst the skin is thinner there than elsewhere, and he bites at the other side of the neck.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  3. - Top - End - #1173
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    Murkus's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2010

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    The Crag

    "I would greatly prefer the latter," Caesa assures him, before suddenly gaining her feet in a splash of dirty snow. "I will deliver a curse upon him. His strength will fail him when he needs it most. But to call up the curse, I must know the Spark." She smiles. "After all, how can I suffocate a power that I don't understand?"
    My avatar was done by Gullara. Thanks again!

    "If you meet a spirit walking,
    Incline your head.
    Do not meet their gaze.
    Do not follow after."

    -Things Our Mothers Tell Us

    Nexus Characters

  4. - Top - End - #1174
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Mateo is certainly welcome to try gouging into the wounds he's already made, but it's a rather awkward experience. The troll is a very large creature, his neck alone is nearly as thick as a tree's trunk and the freshly re-grown skin is on the front of the troll's throat. In order to get to it, Mateo has to reach all the way around. And this makes it quite easy for the troll to give up on his attempt to deroot the tree and flail at his neck and shoulders, trying to catch the vampire in a heavy-fisted blow.

    The Crag

    Mercutio quirks an eyebrow, intrigued by not terribly surprised by this. He hadn't expected the witch to be so observant as to recognize his own Spark - in fact, he'd been hoping against it. That was foolish, he realized now. But how to handle this? There was no point in denying his Spark. But he certainly had no intention of sharing it with her. He would guard this gift jealously, because it was what made him grand.

    "How, praytell, do you propose to become familiar with it?"
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  5. - Top - End - #1175
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Mateo is hit in the right side, and there's a crunch of ribs and possibly other bones as well, but Mateo's quite hardy and ignores the wound and the intense pain that comes with it, at least as much as he can.

    Mateo stops trying to reach around, instead trying to take a bite out of the troll's neck from the back before quickly jamming his fingers into the wound and biting elsewhere.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  6. - Top - End - #1176
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    Murkus's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2010

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Quote Originally Posted by Moon_Called View Post
    The Crag

    Mercutio quirks an eyebrow, intrigued by not terribly surprised by this. He hadn't expected the witch to be so observant as to recognize his own Spark - in fact, he'd been hoping against it. That was foolish, he realized now. But how to handle this? There was no point in denying his Spark. But he certainly had no intention of sharing it with her. He would guard this gift jealously, because it was what made him grand.

    "How, praytell, do you propose to become familiar with it?"
    "Explain it to me," Caesa says simply. She hadn't wanted to propose anything invasive or risky for Mercutio. "Or show me. What does it spring from? How do you control it? What is the full extent of its power?"
    My avatar was done by Gullara. Thanks again!

    "If you meet a spirit walking,
    Incline your head.
    Do not meet their gaze.
    Do not follow after."

    -Things Our Mothers Tell Us

    Nexus Characters

  7. - Top - End - #1177
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    The ogre roars in pain as Mateo gouges into its back. It's quite smart of the vampire to keep digging in to the wound to keep it fresh. Keeps it from regenerating. It's going to take quite a lot of digging if Mateo wants to reach anything useful, but it's a start!

    Meanwhile the troll staggers about, turning in blundering circles as it flails for its back. Massive, meaty hands open and close in the air near Mateo, but can't quite reach him.

    The Crag

    Mercutio is silent for a while, considering his options. He wasn't willing to establish a link between them to let her taste it. But there was a simpler, if lengthier, option.

    Leaning in, the devil begins to speak. First he explains the multiverse, touching on the different planes that exist. Then he explains how a certain class of people called Planeswalkers are able to travel from one to another. It is the Spark, he explains, that allows them to do this. A miraculous phenomenon made of ancient magics. Most planeswalkers inherit their Spark through hereditary means, passed down from father to son. However, thanks to a certain ritual that Mercutio spent a long time perfecting, a Spark may be extracted. Mercutio explains the sheer power of it. How it fills you up, elevates you. Makes you a god. He goes into a lengthy description of the magical properties, explaining how it can be used to siphon the magical energy of physical locations to create armies.
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  8. - Top - End - #1178
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest- Mateo

    When Mateo is satisfied one hand is well-anchored, he'll bite somewhere else and ram his other hand into that wound to keep himself anchored on the troll's back whilst he quickly pulls the other hand away and tries to bite into the wound before it can finish regenerating and stick his fingers in the hopefully-deeper wound again. The best time to flail, as the troll may discover, is when Mateo is anchored only by the one hand after he's removed one hand and before he can bite. Or he could probably just fall onto his back; that might work, too.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  9. - Top - End - #1179
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    Murkus's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2010

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Quote Originally Posted by Moon_Called View Post
    The Crag

    Mercutio is silent for a while, considering his options. He wasn't willing to establish a link between them to let her taste it. But there was a simpler, if lengthier, option.

    Leaning in, the devil begins to speak. First he explains the multiverse, touching on the different planes that exist. Then he explains how a certain class of people called Planeswalkers are able to travel from one to another. It is the Spark, he explains, that allows them to do this. A miraculous phenomenon made of ancient magics. Most planeswalkers inherit their Spark through hereditary means, passed down from father to son. However, thanks to a certain ritual that Mercutio spent a long time perfecting, a Spark may be extracted. Mercutio explains the sheer power of it. How it fills you up, elevates you. Makes you a god. He goes into a lengthy description of the magical properties, explaining how it can be used to siphon the magical energy of physical locations to create armies.
    Caesa listens very intently. This siphoning of mana - while quaint and alien - doesn't sound too different from her own power. Though, at this age, she must draw power from her surroundings just to survive. The spark, on top of her already substantial abilities, could make her nigh invincible. And the power to cross the Void at will, or move freely in the mortal world... gods, she has to have a Spark now.

    After a long while, the old witch stirs once again, this time crouching low near the fire. "Thank you." She stares across the flames at her new ally, smiling. "I need know only two more things. What sort of mana does your great foe use? Is this... power to change shape innate, or does he need his mana to transform?"
    My avatar was done by Gullara. Thanks again!

    "If you meet a spirit walking,
    Incline your head.
    Do not meet their gaze.
    Do not follow after."

    -Things Our Mothers Tell Us

    Nexus Characters

  10. - Top - End - #1180
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Falling onto his back is a good guess, but not quite what the troll has in mind.

    As Mateo digs into the troll's back, he lets out a gut-shaking bellow of pain. The vampire now has both his hands deep in the fat and muscle that makes up the troll's skin, giving him a good grip to hold on to as he starts to bite. It's quite clever, actually. Except it makes it so that Mateo can feel that the troll is now moving backwards, but not see that the troll's target is a very large, very sturdy oak.

    The Crag

    Mercutio considers this for a few moments. It may be entirely possible that the devil's so-called nemesis isn't really an actual nemesis, but actually just a guy he lost to and is upset about. But he's far too vain to consider that possibility, even when faced with the realization that he doesn't actually know what colours of mana the brute preferred. Mercutio was, however, able to glean a taste of his magicks when Vashti carried his scent back. Closing his eyes, Meructio thinks back to carrying the bird of paradise on his arm earlier.

    "I believe that he uses all manner of mana. Rather than focus his studies on one or two aspects, he spreads his focus to each." Mercutio doesn't comment on his disdain for such undisciplined practices, but his tone says it for him. "As for his ability to transform, it would appear to be an assumed form that covers his true form. I'm afraid I haven't had a chance to study it long enough to be able to say if it is innate or assumed."
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  11. - Top - End - #1181
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Mateo can't see where he's going, but he knows wherever he's going he's not going to like arriving. So he has to not-arrive. Mateo decides to accomplish this by turning into a bear. His hair spreads across his body and his clothes sublime into his body. His entire body bulks up, till he's about three metres tall in a bipedal posture. This causes his hands to grow, and because he's not letting go they'll be growing into the regenerating tissue. Also, he's a lot heavier now, so he's hoping that the troll will fall onto its face. It's possible that, at his new size, his feet drag across the ground; if so, he'll try to get a grip on the ground and stop the troll's movement.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  12. - Top - End - #1182
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    Murkus's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2010

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Quote Originally Posted by Moon_Called View Post
    The Crag

    Mercutio considers this for a few moments. It may be entirely possible that the devil's so-called nemesis isn't really an actual nemesis, but actually just a guy he lost to and is upset about. But he's far too vain to consider that possibility, even when faced with the realization that he doesn't actually know what colours of mana the brute preferred. Mercutio was, however, able to glean a taste of his magicks when Vashti carried his scent back. Closing his eyes, Meructio thinks back to carrying the bird of paradise on his arm earlier.

    "I believe that he uses all manner of mana. Rather than focus his studies on one or two aspects, he spreads his focus to each." Mercutio doesn't comment on his disdain for such undisciplined practices, but his tone says it for him. "As for his ability to transform, it would appear to be an assumed form that covers his true form. I'm afraid I haven't had a chance to study it long enough to be able to say if it is innate or assumed."
    "Very well," Caesa says, glancing down at the circles and scuffs and marks in the snow that she's made while sitting here. She squats to examine the frozen ground, as if reading something in it, before her face lights up like a candle.

    Her hands move independently of one another, one smoothing over the ashen snow while the other buries itself in her knotted black hair. It comes out with a thin gold necklace tangled between its fingers. Without a word, she snaps the length of gold in twain and throws it into the fire.

    "A curse on this trinket, then! A curse for you!" The witch spits venomously. Caesa's body tenses visibly, drawn up, a vein in her neck twitching. She shrieks in an older, greater tongue, crying out to the Crag. The very air feels tight and cold, passing through Mercutio's lungs painfully in all likelihood.

    With a noise like stone on stone, the bones beneath them begin to move. The fire-bowl shudders, cracking underneath Mercutio's feet, and the choking stench of rot seeps through. Caesa is off the ground now, drawn up and toward the fire, her arms outstretched as if prepared to embrace. Her crows have gone mad, raving and screeching, wheeling above the turmoil.

    The fire bursts eagerly, cracking the ground further, rising up in an explosion of heat and light. Bits of burning tinder mingle with falling snow. Then, with a whistling roar, it dies. The flames are sucked down, twisting back into nothing, squashed by some invisible hand. Silence reigns again.

    "Take it," Caesa says, voice strained, as she falls to her knees. She likely means the necklace, untouched and whole, gleaming atop the embers in the dying light. "We must take it to the brute. When he wears it, no magic in this Nexus will protect him from you. When he calls his power, only silence will answer."
    Last edited by Murkus; 2012-08-20 at 12:33 AM.
    My avatar was done by Gullara. Thanks again!

    "If you meet a spirit walking,
    Incline your head.
    Do not meet their gaze.
    Do not follow after."

    -Things Our Mothers Tell Us

    Nexus Characters

  13. - Top - End - #1183
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Turning into a bear is definitely not something the troll saw coming. Also, it hurts. A lot. Especially the hands turning into much larger claws, tearing the holes in its back open even wider. With a tree-shaking bellow of pain, the troll staggers but is unable to compensate for the weight of the ursine on its back.

    Arms outstretched and reaching out in vain for something to grasp, the troll staggers twice then falls forward. He lands flat on his face with a heavy THUD.

    Things aren't looking very good for the poor Troll.

    The Crag

    Mercutio watches with rapt attention as Caesa casts her spell upon the trinket. Leaning forward, eyes transfixed on her, his hands wrapped around the spine of the ancient tome in his hands. Steam billows from between his nostrils slightly parted lips with each breath, what little vapour in his lungs there is freezing instantly in the icy air.

    Once the witch's ritual reaches completion, Mercutio slides his book to the side and rests it gently on the log he is sitting on. Rising to his feet, he steps up to the fire and leans down. With two fingers, the devil plucks the charm from the ashes without any regard for how hot it may or may not be. In fact, he already suspects that it will be cool to the touch.

    "Very well," says the goat-eyed devil, holding the necklace in a flat palm. He studies it for a moment, before gently slipping it in to his pocket. "Now, if you will forgive me for introducing it at this point in time, there is one final matter." With the same hand that was carrying the charm, Mercutio reaches into a pocket on the inside of his coat and pulls out a few sheets of paper. They're folded in three places, making a single bundle. In addition, the devil pulls out a thin metal pen. He holds it out to Caesa. "If you will be so kind as to sign your name on the line at the bottom of page three..."
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  14. - Top - End - #1184
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Lady Serpentine's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    Avatar by Kasanip
    Gender
    Female

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Quote Originally Posted by Terumitsu View Post
    [Hoodoo Forest => Plains?]

    Now this was much better. The forced fatigue of the sun was long gone and with it, the 'curse' changed to become more of a boon. Yes, there was still the relentless craving but it was at least somewhat appeased for now. Long enough for her to find a proper meal at least.

    Still, even with a form she was much more comfortable with, the damage done from the earlier fight had hobbled her. Assuming one would excuse the bad joke, of course. It was unlikely that more.. Prey could be found around here though. It was still odd thinking of things in those terms now for the fledgeling. Although it wasn't much of a change from before her turning, some things still felt out of sorts even when they had no discernible reason to.

    Putting out what had been her third cigarette in the sand, she stored the remainder in the carton and pocketed it before pushing herself to her feet with a groan. The leg still wasn't quite fit for real use but she could at least put a bit of weight on it now. So, using the occasional rock face as support, Ghoul would move eastward in search of something, or perhaps someone, that could help her with the 'problem' of a somewhat empty stomach. With luck, she might even run into them along the way...

    [Hoodoo Forest/Plains Boundary]


    Indeed she will, the characteristic scent of a human reaching her from the top of a nearby rock pillar just before she makes it onto the plains. Though for some reason, the smell contains a sharp metallic tang, perhaps recognizable as steel, depending on how familiar with that odor Ghoul is, which she may realize is somewhat odd, if she's been around large quantities of metal as a vampire, since even were the human wearing armor, the aroma shouldn't be as strong as it is, indicating that something is shunting the scent into the air.

    However, the cyborg likely won't have much time to consider it, as a small something or other, moving only a little slower than most bullets, whizzes past her nose a moment later, flattening itself against the rock face she was leaning against; if for some reason she was able to see it, or one of her implants recorded it in such a way that it can be played back slowly enough to be perceptible to her, she'll be able to tell that it was a small wedge of copper, much like a rather large flechette that somehow veered off from its counterparts.

  15. - Top - End - #1185
    Barbarian in the Playground
    Join Date
    Aug 2007

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    [Hoodoo Forest/Plains Boundary]

    One didn't need to be a night creature to understand the scents of cupric and ferrous oxidation. In fact, by an amusing twist of biology and chemistry, they were both scents that smelled like blood. Sure, they lacked the faint trailing of biological detail but this was a nuance that a person who had spilled quite a bit of sanguine solution would pick up, vampirism notwithstanding. That noted, while she didn't have ballistic tracking sensors per say, all it took would be a look at the impact it made and it would be a simple issue of tracing the path back along it's vector. Of course, she did have a program with which to more accurately read and pinpoint the initial point so as to minimize the time spent looking.

    Unfortunately, the impact would distort the projectile and leave it's initial shape unidentifiable unless the soft metal were reinforced somehow. Either way, it wouldn't change the fledgeling's reaction as she turned on her good heel and looked in the projected direction of her attacker, her night vision not caring that the moon was only a crescent grin. "You want something?" she called out with a wry grin as she coiled for her next motion. But what that would be depended on what this bloody smelling person had in mind.

  16. - Top - End - #1186
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest- Mateo

    Mateo-the-Melanistic-Kodiak-Bear tries to clamp his jaws around the troll's head. If successful, Mateo will try to tear the troll's head off. He has no idea if this will work, given that it regenerates and Mateo doesn't carry any means of creating fire with him, but if it doesn't it will give Mateo time to think of something. He hopes.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  17. - Top - End - #1187
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    Murkus's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2010

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Quote Originally Posted by Moon_Called View Post
    The Crag

    Mercutio watches with rapt attention as Caesa casts her spell upon the trinket. Leaning forward, eyes transfixed on her, his hands wrapped around the spine of the ancient tome in his hands. Steam billows from between his nostrils slightly parted lips with each breath, what little vapour in his lungs there is freezing instantly in the icy air.

    Once the witch's ritual reaches completion, Mercutio slides his book to the side and rests it gently on the log he is sitting on. Rising to his feet, he steps up to the fire and leans down. With two fingers, the devil plucks the charm from the ashes without any regard for how hot it may or may not be. In fact, he already suspects that it will be cool to the touch.

    "Very well," says the goat-eyed devil, holding the necklace in a flat palm. He studies it for a moment, before gently slipping it in to his pocket. "Now, if you will forgive me for introducing it at this point in time, there is one final matter." With the same hand that was carrying the charm, Mercutio reaches into a pocket on the inside of his coat and pulls out a few sheets of paper. They're folded in three places, making a single bundle. In addition, the devil pulls out a thin metal pen. He holds it out to Caesa. "If you will be so kind as to sign your name on the line at the bottom of page three..."
    Caesa's expression wrinkles in suspicion. A written contract? Mm. How... shady. But it is a deal with a devil, and she hasn't promised anything beyond knowledge...

    The witch bends down and plucks a crow feather from the broken earth. With it, she pricks her index finger, drawing some blood before dabbing it on Mercutio's page. The name scribbled there - in strangely accented handwriting - is Miss Adalia Scae. Mercutio should be able to sense from the power in the written word alone that it is her true name. "I go by Mother Addy these days." Adalia says with a curt little smile that betrays some slight annoyance. She doesn't like giving that name up, whatever the circumstances.
    My avatar was done by Gullara. Thanks again!

    "If you meet a spirit walking,
    Incline your head.
    Do not meet their gaze.
    Do not follow after."

    -Things Our Mothers Tell Us

    Nexus Characters

  18. - Top - End - #1188
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    There's a lot of tense, tough flesh to dig through. Tearing the troll's head off is more like gnawing it off, and is quite a grisly process (if you'll pardon the pun). Lots of blood, lots of screaming from the troll. Blood and bile, bones crunching in Mateo's powerful ursine jaws. If this were television, this scene would be so heavily censored it wouldn't even exist.

    Finally, the troll's head is removed from the body. It rolls onto the ground, still gently spewing blood from its arteries.

    From both the mangled neck on the body and the torn stump on the head, skin begins to re-knit itself and bones begin to regrow.

    Crag

    Mercutio can only barely keep a wide grin from bursting onto his face. She didn't read it. Oh, how he loved it when they didn't bother reading the contract. It gave him so much room to play.

    Taking the contract back, Mercutio folds it back up and slips it in his pocket. "Very well then, Ms. Adalia Scea. I bid you au revoir."
    And then, in a poof of dark blue smoke and the smell of sulphur, Mercutio is gone.
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  19. - Top - End - #1189
    Halfling in the Playground
     
    Murkus's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2010

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    The Crag

    If that Devil wasn't already damned, there would be some vehement cussing about now. The old witch glowers at the space where Mercutio used to be, and her face screws up in thought. She could always track him by that little trinket, but perhaps he can actually be trusted to deliver on their deal.

    Fat chance. Mama Scae will have to check in once she has some of her strength back. For now, it's off to find another source of that strength.
    My avatar was done by Gullara. Thanks again!

    "If you meet a spirit walking,
    Incline your head.
    Do not meet their gaze.
    Do not follow after."

    -Things Our Mothers Tell Us

    Nexus Characters

  20. - Top - End - #1190
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest- Mateo

    Mateo walks off the troll's body towards the head. He'll pick it back up and start digging a hole in which to bury the head. It might not stop the troll regenerating, but it'll give it a lot less room to do so in. Especially if he finds a large enough stone to roll over the head as Heracles did to the last head of the Hydra.

    Of course, the body will regenerate faster and may be back on its feet before Mateo has finished this task, but he'll look for a stone when he's certain the troll is dealt with.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  21. - Top - End - #1191
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest


    It's easy enough to dig up a hole in the peaty dirt. It's more difficult to find an heavy enough boulder to roll over it. There's a few heavy looking fallen trees. Looking for a well-sized boulder will take precious time, though.

    Mountains

    The devil Mercutio appears at the edge of a cliff. Vashti, the bird of paradise, perches on the arm he holds at chest height. "You have his scent," The devil instructs. "Find him."

    With a cry, Vashti alights from the devil's arm and into the over-cast sky.
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  22. - Top - End - #1192
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest- Mateo

    Then Mateo will focus more on ensuring the head is buried very deep. The main time he looks for a boulder is just before and as he digs the hole. Besides, he was planning on defeating the rest of the troll first.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  23. - Top - End - #1193
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Slii Arhem's Avatar

    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Where indeed
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Mountain Peak

    As if in response to Mercutio's command, a gout of searing, vibrant pink fire wheels out of the direction of the mountain's top. The unnatural flames scream unholy murder as they set the air ablaze, twisting and turning in a lazy arc that will, if nothing is done to stop it, intersect with the bird's flight path.

    "BWAAAHAHAHAHHAHA!!!" Following the echo that the flame's screeching flight emits, a booming, boisterous laugh bounces off the mountains.
    Julie, everyone's nth favorite succubus, by Gulaghar.
    An amazing Misha, Mimi, and Riss painting done by Ofride.
    For anyone in plots run by me, know that I always tailor solutions to those in the plot. The answer may not be obvious, but it's there, and doable by the displayed abilities of the present characters. If you need help or hints, I'll try to be available to provide them.

  24. - Top - End - #1194
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Well, the hole is dug and the head is deposited. Even as Mateo drops it into the dirt, the neck has regrown to half it's full length. It lands in the cloddy dirt, one eye blinking lazily up at him.

    Meanwhile, how's the rest of the body doing?
    Well, the worst of the gouges Mateo dug into its back have almost finished healing over, turned into fleshy welts. The places where he bit the troll's hide is impossible to spot anymore. And just as the severed head is regrowing a neck, the body's tattered neck is regrowing a head. The bottom portions of the troll's jawbone are now clearly visible.

    Mountain Peak

    Well. That's certainly convenient.
    For varying definitions of convenient, at least.

    Vashti lets out a startled squawk, pulling back and stretching her wings out in an attempt to slow or halt her motion but not quick enough to escape the fire. Muttering foul Abyssal words under his breath, Mercutio focuses his attention on the arc of pink fire. Specifically, he targets certain inefficiencies and short-cuts Jakob may have used to cast it. Unless the brute is able to muster up twice as much mana as he used to cast it, the flames will shrivel and dry.

    "Where are you hiding, Brute?" Mercutio calls out, turning to face the mountain. "Come and meet damnation!"
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  25. - Top - End - #1195
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Slii Arhem's Avatar

    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Where indeed
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Mountain Peak

    The fires shrink and gutter against Mercutio's counter, and Jakob doesn't seem to care enough about maintaining them to fight the inevitable. Instead he answers Mercutio's challenge with one of his own.

    "If I am to be damned, then what are you? No, Riftwalker, you have not damned me. Instead, you have brought me from the damnation of solitude and into the bliss of battle.

    Now let us dance through fire and WAR, AND REND EACH OTHER ASUNDER!"
    Jakob's final few words reverberate from the mountainside, sending shale and round stones tumbling down after them. With it, Mercutio can feel a working of magic high on the mountain's top where Jakob waits for him. There's a permanency to it that the flame didn't hold, a gate to some other plane or another wicked enchantment no doubt.
    Last edited by Slii Arhem; 2012-08-24 at 03:53 PM.
    Julie, everyone's nth favorite succubus, by Gulaghar.
    An amazing Misha, Mimi, and Riss painting done by Ofride.
    For anyone in plots run by me, know that I always tailor solutions to those in the plot. The answer may not be obvious, but it's there, and doable by the displayed abilities of the present characters. If you need help or hints, I'll try to be available to provide them.

  26. - Top - End - #1196
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    When the head has been buried to Mateo's satisfaction minus stone, the bear returns to the troll. Clambering back onto its back, Mateo rears onto his hind legs before bringing them down hard on the troll's back, near its hips. It's a powerful blow, and Mateo's rear limbs leave the ground (or troll's back) when the blow lands. Mateo's aim is to snap the troll's spine. It might be regenerating the wounds on its back and regrowing its head simultaneously, but maybe snapping the troll's spine will slow down the repairs.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  27. - Top - End - #1197
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Mr. Moon's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Loving the questions
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    There is an awful, echoing crunching snap as Mateo the bear brings down his full weight on the troll's spine. The troll's torso goes limp. It's too early to say if this had any effect on the troll's rate of regeneration for now, though. Gonna have to wait and see.

    Mountain Peak

    Mercutio's goat-eyes narrow as he stares up at the top of the mountain. What trick was the Brute planning now? Some sort of under-handed and cowardly trap, the like Mercutio would probably set up had he the advantage Jakob did.
    With a poof of blue smoke, the devil vanishes and heads up to the peak.
    "You tied your wings on tightly but they always come undone"
    ~ ClumsyMonkey, Montreal
    Beautiful red panda avatar by Eldar Tsufo!

  28. - Top - End - #1198
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Forest

    Mateo was aiming his blow above the hips, not near the shoulders. The only part of the troll that should be paralysed are its legs.

    Regardless, Mateo tries racking his claws across the troll's back, aiming for the troll's kidneys. I'm not sure how vital they are, but Mateo's currently trying to damage everything important that he can, so the troll has to try prioritising what is most important for its continued existence without a brain.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  29. - Top - End - #1199
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Slii Arhem's Avatar

    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Where indeed
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Mountain Peak

    Mercutio's teleport is greeted with another silent spell and a deathly grin from Jakob in his golem form, standing seven feet tall and brimming with muscles with only a crudely-stitched pair of burlap breeches to cover him.

    Behind him stands a cackling mass of yellowed eyes and teeth, cloaked by sallow green skin and staring out from a mass of shadowy holes. Jakob has pulled forth a panoply of goblins to greet his enemy, and with this last spell bound them, and compelled them to attack madly. One shoots out to meet the blue devil even as he appears, crude spear being launched from its cruelly clawed hand like a javelin as it leaps after the flying weapon and tear at Mercutio's eyes with its gouging fingers.

    "These beastmen know war and little else. How fitting I have secured their alliance yes?" Jakob taunts, his sword glinting in the afternoon sun.
    Julie, everyone's nth favorite succubus, by Gulaghar.
    An amazing Misha, Mimi, and Riss painting done by Ofride.
    For anyone in plots run by me, know that I always tailor solutions to those in the plot. The answer may not be obvious, but it's there, and doable by the displayed abilities of the present characters. If you need help or hints, I'll try to be available to provide them.

  30. - Top - End - #1200
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Lady Serpentine's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    Avatar by Kasanip
    Gender
    Female

    Default Re: [Nexus] The Hunting Grounds

    Quote Originally Posted by Terumitsu View Post
    [Hoodoo Forest/Plains Boundary]

    One didn't need to be a night creature to understand the scents of cupric and ferrous oxidation. In fact, by an amusing twist of biology and chemistry, they were both scents that smelled like blood. Sure, they lacked the faint trailing of biological detail but this was a nuance that a person who had spilled quite a bit of sanguine solution would pick up, vampirism notwithstanding. That noted, while she didn't have ballistic tracking sensors per say, all it took would be a look at the impact it made and it would be a simple issue of tracing the path back along it's vector. Of course, she did have a program with which to more accurately read and pinpoint the initial point so as to minimize the time spent looking.

    Unfortunately, the impact would distort the projectile and leave it's initial shape unidentifiable unless the soft metal were reinforced somehow. Either way, it wouldn't change the fledgeling's reaction as she turned on her good heel and looked in the projected direction of her attacker, her night vision not caring that the moon was only a crescent grin. "You want something?" she called out with a wry grin as she coiled for her next motion. But what that would be depended on what this bloody smelling person had in mind.
    There was nothing to reinforce it, no.

    In any case, Ghoul can probably tell that whoever it is is most likely humanoid, and crouching, though any details are concealed by a long cloak


    "Depends,"
    a low voice, apparently male, though that doesn't really mean much in the Nexus, replies. "Most've the things I've seen out 'ere ent exactly friendly, so it seemed like I ought t' let you know I c'd shoot you 'fore we talked. Make things simpler f'r both've us, y'know?"

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •