Outside 42

[Devixer]

This place is just as it sounds. It's outside.
Want a change of scenery? Go outside.
Always wanted to visit the beach? Come outside.
Looking to have a climatic fight on clifftops? Attempt outside.
Secret meetings being held where there's no cameras? Try outside.
Want an ambush without nasty base defenses? Yep. Outside.

Any and all are welcome here. There are no NPCs unless you bring them in. The major exception is the creepy eyed squirrel. The creepy eyed squirrel does not interfere with anyone. The creepy eyed squirrel is everywhere outside. The creepy eyed squirrel is always watching. The creepy eyed squirrel never sleeps. The creepy eyed squirrel can not be damaged, manipulated, or killed by anyone. The creepy eyed squirrel will eat anyone's very being who attempts to do so. Anyone can god-mode the creepy eyed squirrel. You may pet the creepy eyed squirrel at your own risk.

Other NPCs currently include:
The menacing crabs. These intimidating creatures are usually found by the shore.
The non-existent duck. You'll miss every time you shoot at it.

There is very little you can't do outside. However, like always, please follow the forum rules and general rules of conduct. Private conversations can be held outside. If it seems like a private (secret) conversation, please respect that. Those having such a conversation should do their best to indicate it as such. Otherwise, other characters may stumble upon you. Those desiring to spy in on private conversations should first PM those holding the private conversation, more out of courtesy than anything else.

There are many areas outside, and people can be in multiple places outside. In order to keep areas outside separated so there's no confusion, consider bolding your outside location at the start of each of your posts, like so:









Note Reinholdt and Calublufiok do not interact because they are in different areas outside. They could interact, if Reinholdt moves to the cliffside. Of course, various things like telepathy help bypass this. Also, please note outside has no major buildings, though minor ones crop up from time to time.

And most importantly, enjoy outside. That's what this is all about.

Outside now contains various Outside locations! Such as...

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[Dead Pine Lake]

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This lake lies in the middle of the forest. On the eastern shore, woodpeckers feast on the dead pines that give the lake its name. Sometimes one can find Lady Death here, the Aspect of Eve also known as The Grandmother, or Jedwiga.

(Please PM happyturtle if you wish to interact with Jedwiga.)

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[The Islands]

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An island cluster forms an archipelago along the coast. Some of the islands are settled, some not, but most are at least occasionally visited by the fishermen who work these waters.

[Gersemi's Island]

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Now more commonly known as Melody's Island, since Gersemi has long ago retired.

Where once was a single hut with a few sheep, now stands a single hut, a barn, a few sheep, and a small tented community of orphans. Gersemi's loom still rests in one corner of the single hut.

Melody, like Gersemi before her, is a healer for the surrounding islands.

(Please PM Lex-Kat if you wish to interact with Melody.)

[Redbrick Falls]

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A mountainous, cliffy region with a prominent waterfall. A large quarry once was worked in these cliffs. Now, only a few scattered villages and solitary dwellings remain.

[Norosa, Great City of the Elves]

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A Lawful Evil city with an incredibly strong military and a very charismatic leader (Archmage Tyrion Lannister). It has a few CG resisters, but, otherwise, it is a city of peace and law, despite its evil nature.

[Brillian's Baneful Bestiary]

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A secret series of caves where a mad scientist lives. A mad scientist who creates mutant attack creatures. These can be purchased for the right price.

[Auxiliary MagCave]

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A relic from the days of the Age of Apocalypse, this abandoned cavern was once used by the infamous cyborg Magtok as a back-up laboratory and underground fortress, should Calublufiok have ever stormed the primary MagCave.

[The Katz Motel]

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Located in the middle of Nowhere, our roadside motel is the only decent place for miles near the Taverna that has a bed. Run by a suave anthropomorphic cat, there is a strict No Dogs policy.


A bellhop by the name of Bates is always ready to assist in carrying your luggage. Please ignore his constant mutterings about his mother. Other more unsavory employees can occasionally be found. Please try to avoid eye contact with them.

We at the Katz Motel wish to ensure you have a splendid stay. Any inconvenience due to randomly locking doors, giant spiders, secret passages, vampires, creepy paintings, and the occasional possession and subsequent exorcism are incredibly rare. Just look at our complaint cards! Not a single one mentions dying horribly in their sleep or becoming food for the monster in the basement.

And if you get bored, the owner will always be up for a game of sport, old boy.

((The Katz Motel is a horror filled place with the highest casualty rate of any motel in the Nexus area. Checking in is usually pretty easy and pleasant. Checking out is rare. Anyone can play the Motel and the NPCs within, free to invent their own horror. The NPCs within that can die usually only suffer death temporarily, the supernatural force causing the disturbances bringing them back to life for its own nefarious purposes. PCs get no benefit from this.))

[The Troll Cave]

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A cave in a craggy hill. The undergrowth outside is trampled completely flat, and there's not much wildlife. There's a burned patch where a fire is sometimes there. Inside are a few large caves, linked by surprisingly smooth tunnels that look like something big has been regularly pushing through them.

[Blind Cat's Bluff]

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A sheer cliff dropoff that travels straight down into the water, this is a favored point of people who commit suicide, romantics wanting to watch the sunset and anyone looking to get rid of evidence. The drop is pretty far and there are rocks at the bottom that spell almost certain doom, so watch your step.

[North Forest]

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A magical forest with a mythical spring of beauty. A bit like the Weald, but not nearly as dangerous. For starters, you can find your way back out and the pixies aren't cannibals.

Frozen Forest & Hermitage

Spoiler: Frozen Forest & Hermitage

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A large forest of tall trees and once very pretty flowers lies here. The entire forest has been completely frozen over, and a blizzard constantly storms and snows over the forest, but doesn't affect even an inch past the forest border. The forest is still very pretty; the flowers and mushrooms glittering under a frozen layer. The place is pretty safe, if you're used to constant snow and cold temperatures.

The Rabbit Hole

Spoiler: The Rabbit Hole

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The Rabbit Hole is a portal to another world, located in the forest. It looks like an ordinary rabbit hole, minus it being large enough for whoever stumbles upon it to enter. Some say it originated in a different universe, outside the Nexus, others say it shows up in different universes as a result of the Nexus growing.

If found naturally, it will take you to Underside, a world said to lie beneath the Nexus.

But sometimes, you'll see a white rabbit in a waistcoat. He looks at the time on his pocket watch, and mutters the phrase "Oh dear! Oh dear! I mustn't be late!" and runs off. No matter how fast you are, you always seem to be just a bit slower than him, which has to make you wonder how he could ever be late for something.

If you follow the rabbit and find The Rabbit Hole, it will take you to Planeside. Where specifically in Planeside depends on who fell through The Rabbit Hole.

Either way, you should always survive the fall, even if it seems like you were falling forever.

And a warning, it's a one way trip, so if you want to get back, you'll have to do some traveling.

PM the thread maker if you wish to add locations to Outside.

[Cyber Punk]

Greater Littlewood

"Well if that ain't an invitation, I dunno what is!" Hotaru says, pulling Phil with her so they both cross the forcefield, only letting Phil go when they get to the ladder. "Ladies first!" Hotaru says, getting on the ladder and climbing to the top. Her pet swampotaur follows.

[Nalix]

Greater Littlewood

Phil only barely resisted Hotaru as she pulled him to the ladder. He hadn't decided if he liked that or not, and had other things on his mind in any case. Before climbing the ladder he considered placing a conditional charge on the ground below the tower, but decided now wasn't the time. Meat-shields first, he thought as she climbed up, and he followed after.

[Earl of Purple]

Greater Littlewood

When the forcefield is turned back on, all three of them will feel the crackle of static electricity coursing down the structure. They're fully enveloped by the shield, too.

At the top, they'll find the shield generator dominates most of the space, and there's five people around the edge. There's also several green metal ammunition boxes and a large wooden crate. The five people are an olive-skinned bald man with dark blue eyes and a pair of antelope-like horns growing from his forehead; he's wearing a suit of Galactic Empire Stormtrooper plastic armour; rather than standard white, his has been painted sky-blue, and he carries an automatic shotgun. A pale, red-haired fifteen-year-old girl wearing a green summer dress under a steel breastplate appears to be totally human, despite her bright yellow eyes, carries an automatic rifle with an electric torch slung under it. A male elf with sun-browned skin, green eyes and black hair wearing a pair of leather trousers, a white vest and a pair of cricket greaves carries a clear plastic riot shield in one hand and a sub-machine gun in the other. Another elf with pale skin, long blonde hair and a chainmail hauberk over jeans and a t-shirt has a Tommy gun and finally a bulky male half-orc in loose joggers and a biker's jacket hanging open as it doesn't quite fit carrying a light machine gun easily.

"So. Your names and place of origin, please." The speaker is the antlered man in stormtrooper armour, and they're all pointing their weapons at the three, though the half-orc is resting his on his shoulder, and the only one whose aim doesn't waver is the speaking man.

[Nalix]

Greater Littlewood

"My name is Phil Ashland, chaos mage from the Sun Circle Mages College. I don't know what to call my world or plane of origin, except that I know it is a trans-dimensional nexus much like this one. I am here looking for work, adventure, or any excuse to practice and improve my craft."

Phil says nothing else, but notes the weapons, as that is what they clearly are. He would like to learn how they work, as they do not look like swords, clubs, or any kind of melee weapon.

[Cyber Punk]

Greater Littlewood

Weird bunch. "Well hi there, Mantler. My name is Hotaru. I'm a wandering ninja and what you'd call a technopath. When I'm not teaching miscreants the error of their ways via passing a lot of electricity through them, I'm fixing machines. As it happens, you seem to have a shield generator here. I could help you increase its efficiency and strength."

Hotaru is also a technopath with machine empathy. She'd be in the best position to fix their faulty machines.

"As it also happens..." Hotaru adds as she starts to walk over to the shield machine, "I tend to see those who are pointing weapons at me as miscreants." Hotaru turns and smiles at the group. Her smile looks friendly enough, but her words are meant to make anyone think twice about keeping their weapons trained on her.

((Mantler: The man with antlers. ))

[The Alexandrian]

[Enter the Helix Corporation - Potentially Visible from Locations within Inside and Riverside]

It's no moon. That, anyone with eyes can see. Were it a moon, it would resemble, if only faintly...

Spoiler: This.

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But this is no moon, so I digress.

Why might one mistake it for a moon? It's spherical, it's gigantic, and it's floating. That's enough for some of the less intelligent inhabitants of the Nexus, I suppose, but it's clearly not a moon.

Moons are not armor-plated.
Moons are not armed to the teeth.
Moons do not (ordinarily) have a Helix Corporation Logo emblazoned upon them.
And, last but not least, the vast majority of moons are not incomplete. This vessel is missing sections here and there (akin to the second Death Star). Thus, it cannot be classified as perfectly spherical.

More troubling than this vessel's appearance is that it is accelerating toward the ground at an alarming rate.

As predicted, it crashes to the earth below with what I'll describe as a thunderous thwump for simplicity's sake. The actual sound generated by the crash is a deafening cacophony of grinding metal, animals squelching as they are mashed into a bloody 2D pulp, a handful of centaurs who just so happened to picnicking beneath the space in which the sphere materialized screaming (followed by silence (ah, the sound of forgiveness)), trees snapping, and the earth groaning.

When the dust settles, onlookers may note that the sphere is intact, by and large. Onlookers may also spot a swarm of robotic drones alighting from the sphere before hurriedly flying in the direction of Riverside.

[Recaiden]

[That's no Moon crash site]

Nothing can every crash into the ground from a great height and explode into a billion pieces around here the way it should, can it?
It's a good while before someone who spotted the thing coming down from an observatory away Outside arrives on the scene. Seems to be a centaur, like many of the victims, though with the lower body of a zebra rather than the more common plains horses.

The image of a knight in shining armor, astride their noble steed...at least from a distance. Usually, the knight and horse are two separate beings. Usually, the knight would have a sword and not a red and gold many-barreled gun. Usually there would be a squire with a flag, and none of these things are the case.

She approaches carefully, circling the gigantic structure and looking for ways in, or anyone coming out.

[OrchestraHc]

Enter the Helix Corporation - Enter Tula:

While a great deafening cacophony of tearing metal and rumbling earth may raise cries of fear from most stupid overworlders, to most subterranean communities, it raises the question of "What the hell just fell on my roof?"

A dozen blue lizardy heads peek out from holes not far from the crash sight. Seeing something new and likely horribly dangerous, they all immediately duck back in. After moments of careful deliberation, they decide to adhere to tried and true Kobold tradition and immediately toss the least useful member of the tribe up to go scope it out.

In this particular case, a long-tailed female named Tula has been chucked into the expansive up-above. More than a tiny bit indignant, Tula dusts herself off and reaches down with her (as mentioned earlier) long prehensile tail to grab the few supplies she was granted. Wrapped in her coils as she raises her tail are a stone headed axe and a wooden javelin that's a foot taller than she is*.

Armed as she's ever been, Tula sticks the weapons under either arm and scampers toward the wreck. She's hoping whatever is in there won't immediately kill or eat her, even if her half her tribe hopes otherwise.

*Three feet. Tula is two feet. Tula's tail trumps both at five feet. It's actually fairly inconvenient. Tails that long may seem fun, but they're mostly a drag.

[Duck999]

The moon that's not a moon

Sica the ninja was picnicking with his friend Faeles the cat nearby. Not close enough to be crushed, but close enough to ruin the picnic. He stands up, angry because he was having such a good time. Faeles jumps on his shoulder, and Sica strides towards the crash site. He may look strange to onlookers, standing up from a picnic with a black cat while wearing complete black, leaving only his eyes visible. Then again, this is the nexus.

Sica doesn't care about the results of his actions, his reaction time is pretty good so he can usually get away. He steps right up next to the moon like object, and, if no one interferes, touches it.

[Earl of Purple]

Greater Littlewood

"And we're villagers who wanted to be sure you weren't bandits, raiders, looters, slavers or some such. In case you haven't noticed, our village has not fared well. I'm Mayor Arboverda, not 'Mantler'. They're horns, despite my player making that brief mistake." He motions for the others to lower their weapons, but keeps his own ready to raise. "So... You aren't with Sandy Oaks, just... Random wanderers attracted by the battle?" He sounds suspicious, as the elves and girl go back to keeping an eye on the village below to make sure there's not more attackers in the area.

The main body of the shield generator is a large brass tube with lots of projecting wires and pipes. To control it there's a nineties-era computer monitor bolted to the side, with a keyboard just below it. The keyboard's keys are mismatched; taken from several different keyboards or carefully carved from hard wood. The computer's screen is cracked, and flickering, but everything on the screen is written in Russian.

[Cyber Punk]

Greater Littlewood

"Random wanderers attracted to adventure!" Hotaru corrects. "Apologies, Mant-- I mean Mr. Mayor. Tell us about this Sandy Oaks place. Is that where the stiltwalkers are coming from?" Hotaru asks, an eyebrow raised.

Turning to the machine and examining it on the outside, Hotaru places her hands on the body of the shield generator and closes her eyes, attempting to get the 'feel' of the machine. Should she succeed, she would know the state, efficiency and capabilities of the machine. She'd also know what exactly is wrong with it and what to do to fix the shield gen.

"I'll need someone here to examine the readout of this computer screen. Just so you can be sure that I'm not going to harm this little baby of a machine." She says endearingly, rubbing the body of the jury-rigged machine.

[Nalix]

Greater Littlewood

"I've never heard of Sandy Oaks either," said Phil. "I've been in the nexus for months, and most of it has been spent wandering. I tried a job that led me to Riverside for a while, but that didn't pan out. Then I hung out at Trogg's until an eldritch barfight broke out and I made a break for it. I've been wandering out here ever since. When I saw the smoke and the walkers... I just did what comes naturally to me." Phil tilted his head at Hotaru. "She showed up part way into things. Seems like a kindred spirit, in a way."

Phil took a breath, looked around, his gaze dwelling briefly on the technology which would be almost entirely alien to him, though he has had brushes with super-advanced technology, so the concept is not totally foreign to him. The Russian text is, though. His typical unblinking expression might look startled to some.

"So... I would like to know what's going on and if there is anything I can do about it."

[Earl of Purple]

Greater Littlewood

"Sandy Oaks is another village, not that far from here. They've been stealing our crops and driving off trade by harbouring the group of scavengers you saw here. Don't bother fixing that machine- we're going to destroy it. We're all that's left of this town, and we can't stay here, and we can't let them get their hands on it. There was some resistance when they arrived, but we kept our armoury up here so the others didn't stand a chance." Despite his words, the girl goes to watch what Hotaru does with the shield generator.

[Cyber Punk]

Greater Littlewood

"I assume you know exactly where you're headed?" Hotaru turns to the Mayor. "Why would you want to destroy this beauty? Why not just make a portable version for yourselves, just in case? If you have solar panels, I can fix you up with something that'll charge during the day and keep you protected during the night."

Hotaru goes back to working on the machine while being watched by the girl. "Tell me what the readout says, hon." She passes a few shocks of electricity through the machine, just to see the effect. In addition, her golden eyes glow slightly but noticeably.

[Nalix]

Greater Littlewood

"I'd better not touch it," says Phil, looking at the machine as Hotaru works. "Though as a last ditch effort, I could try to animate it. Actually, speaking of animation, you mentioned 'others'. I assume you mean other people who lived here, and who probably died fighting the bandits. I could try reviving them. My work can be messy, and I generally don't like to use it for healing unless a person doesn't have much to loose, but I've revived companions before and they all agreed that what I did to them was better than being dead. If that's much comfort."

[The Alexandrian]

[Enter the Helix Corporation - Princess Leah]

Oh no! One of the squished centaurs' cousins (a once or twice removed cousin by the look of her) is circling the Helix Corporation mothership! She's clearly a zebrataur on the edge and hellbent on revenge! I mean, she has armed herself with a pimped-out golden minigun and everything! She's so gangsta that she probably has her own Thug Life clip or raps on weekends as a hobby or something!

But...

As bad as Leah may fancy herself, she's not a psychotic murderer (at least, she doesn't seem to be a psychotic murderer), so, if she willingly submits to a rapid (and unannounced) psychic scan, a single woman of average size (for a human), clad in a suit of solid black Helix branded powered armor will teleport outside of the ship to meet her.

As a sign of good faith, the woman is, with the exception of whatever weapon systems might be integrated into her powered armor, totally unarmed. She appears to have survived the crash without sustaining any serious injuries, but, if Leah is decent at interpreting body language, it's no secret that this woman is not exactly pleased with the condition of her ship and her life in general.

[Enter the Helix Corporation - A Slow Death - Tula]

Well, Tula is hoping that her demise isn't clean, quick, and probably painless, right?

At least Tula is well-equipped for battling spacemen with all of their advanced technologies and terrors from the fringes of explored space with her stone axe and wooden stick! Okay, so maybe she's hideously underequipped for fighting space critters. On the bright side, if the aliens inside of this ship were genuinely hostile to her, she might be able to escape them while they laugh at the primitive tools she is dragging along with her!

Thankfully, she shouldn't have to rely on that gambit to save her life from these aliens.

As Tula approaches the third Death Star mothership, a spherical drone identical to the bots that were previously dispatched to Riverside exits the mothership through slightly ajar ground-level cargo bay doors zips through the air toward her. It stops before it invades her personal space bubble and addresses her in a tinny, robotic monotone.

"Pleasantly: Good morning or afternoon or evening to you!"
"Formally: This unit has been ordered to 'greet our guest' while foreign biological contaminants are being contained and quarantined on Decks 235 and 398."
"Politely: How may I assist you today, our guest?"

[Enter the Helix Corporation - No! Anything but the prod! - Sica and Faeles]

Okey-dokey, then! Sica mercilessly prods the titanic metal sphere. This is about as effective as prodding a gargantuan metal sphere with a fleshy finger can be. Astonishingly, Sica somehow manages to dent the metal sphere.

... Eh, the dent might have been there before. It's hard to tell. Nevertheless, Sica could claim that he wreaked his terrible revenge upon the vessel which, without any warning of which to speak, defiled the sanctity of his picnic and then call it a day.

On the other hand, he could practice his Kenshiro imitation on it, but, if he did that, the abnormally big red dragon that's just materialized behind him might be tempted to step on him.

Right now, the dragon is doing nothing more than watching, with an amused smirk and copious quantities of snickering, Sica touching her ship for no readily apparent reason.

[OrchestraHc]

Enter the Helix Corporation - Unwelcome Welcomes - Tula:

Seeing the flying metal ball approaching, Tula clutches her axe in both hands and takes her stick in her tail, pointing it forward like a scorpion's readied stinger. That's about as far as she gets combat-wise though, because unless you count the menacing way her legs shake, she is completely paralyzed with fear as the ball approaches.

About halfway through the robot's pleasant spiel, her stance relaxes and her face changes from terrified to confused. A lot of strange words just got tossed at her at once, and some she isn't even going to pretend she's smart enough to parse.

She'll work with words she actually knows. "Guest? Assist?" Not words commonly directed at Tula, but she knows of them, at least. "Tell Tula what that is?" She asks, extending her claw at the mothership.

[Duck999]

Enter the Helix Corporation-Remnants of a Picnic-Sica and Faeles

Sica hears the dragon, and spins around. First, he takes in the appearance of the dragon: red. Then he looks at the dragon and begins to talk.
Nice to meet you, kind dragon. He hopes the dragon is kind. Could I ask you to stand still for one short second? Faeles runs behind the dragon, grabbing some food that the dragon may have otherwise crushed, then runs back to Sica. Fails starts happily munching on the food while Sica talks.
I have a question, if you are willing to oblige. This orb here just ruined my picnic with Faeles. He gestures to the cat. Is there a reason our picnic had to be crushed, or did you feel like throwing your orb don here for fun? It's hard to tell if Sica is being aggressive or not. His tone of voice sounds happy, but it could be sarcastic. It really is hard to tell his mood when you can only see his eyes.

[Fenric]

[Dwarven Portal Quest]

What a trip! It wouldn't do to go such a long way on an empty stomach. After packing up, but before building up a fire and starting the propellor, they have a little lunch of root vegetables and sandwiches, sitting by the side of the path.

Only then is it to the air that they go, Alex moving very carefully to avoid hitting her burnt skin against anything.
Deserts are fun flying.

Things get a little turbulent going up over the mountains, but it settles down soon enough and the temperature climbs rapidly as they glide out over the Sea of Sand.

Visibility is spectacular: the air is clear, dry, and quite still with only a gentle updraft wafting up from the sun-baked sand.

So very still...

That's not a good thing, is it?

If Archangel has a barometer, she will note that the pressure is already low and still falling.

[Earl of Purple]

Greater Littlewood

"Skyside. I have friends there. The person who made that contraption miniaturised it as best they could using the components available; we can't get it any smaller. And we don't have solar panels, either. It's powered by magic crystals. Our dead are with whatever gods they worshipped. You can try to bring them back if it'll make you feel better, so long as you don't just reanimate them as undead monsters." The crystals are actually magic, highly unstable minerals that draw energy from microscopic planar rifts and convert it into electricity.

When Hotaru blasts the thing with electricity, one of the four powering crystals shatters, and several other components break (or, considering their age and fragility, break worse), making visible holes in the shield around them.

The girl nods and speaks. "Power's down by 25%, eight of the field projectors have failed, and the microwave dampener is malfunctioning, but shield strength is up two per cent and steadier than it's been for years." The girl has a slight Australian accent, and her canines and incisors are sharp and needle-like. Also, all those present are being doused in microwave radiation.

[Nalix]

Greater Littlewood

Phil probably wouldn't notice the microwave radiation.

"With their gods..." Phil says the phrase slowly as if tasting it. "I don't need to bring anyone back if you don't want me to try. I've never heard of someone not wanting to come back. With their gods..." Phil repeats, thinking about what it might mean. He comes from a world where reincarnation is the norm, and the notion of the spirits of the dead going to gods is strange to him.

"The problem is that when I bring someone back, they come back in a completely different body. It beats death, but it can be disconcerting. And while I have worked with undead before, I've always found them too unstable for my taste. If you don't want me to try, I won't bother, though I'm surprised that there's no one here who you would at least want me to try to bring back."

"In any case," Phil continues, looking at the holes in the shield, "what do you plan on doing once you reach Skyside?"

[Recaiden]

[Dwarven Portal Quest]

"Storm's coming."
"I'm supposed to give you the unpleasant news, right?"

They start angling downward.

"What are you doing, Seeker?"
"Getting us down to find shelter? Last time this happened, I crashed into the Nexus."
"What's your plan for the cold and the floods?"
"The what?"
"Low temperatures? No heat? Rushing walls of water covering the ground?"
"That's a -that happens?"
"Yes?"
"......this is a terrible world. Why do people live here?"

Archangel looks around. Are there structures, caves, interesting and useful terrain features? Perhaps their destination, just now coming into sight and reachable just before they crash?

[Cyber Punk]

Greater Littlewood

Meanwhile, Hotaru is focusing on the shield generator.

"Oopsie. This is more beat-up than I thought!" She exclaims. "Less win for more loss. Hmm... Do you have any tools?" Hotaru says as she looks around for the microwave dampener.

"Wait a minute... microwave dampener." Hotaru thinks for a moment, before her eyes go wide. "It probably isn't a problem, but just in case, show me the microwave dampener and let me fix it before we start getting irradiated." Hotaru isn't aware that they are being doused in radiation.

[Beans]

In My Father's House

Aiden just watches Naku disappear, huffing and holstering his pistols. Then he turns to Marcus, doing everything he can to not punch this stupid Roman guy.

"Are you serious?! I finally get to tangle with someone as strong as me and you pull that crap? 'Ooh, I'm big and threatening and I've got a sword, don't mess with me!'" He turns around and starts walking off. "Holy hell, this Nexus is boring."

Carrie just heads for the cave.
... All of that was dumb and I don't even know what's happening any more.

[The Alexandrian]

[Enter the Helix Corporation - Gift of Gab - Tula]

Tula's confusion is understandable, given that several of the words the robot synthesized are a hair bigger than she is. At least the robot isn't programmed to sing about Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia. If it were, Tula's mind might've been reduced little more than a smattering of jam by now.

"Pleasantly: I'm delighted to make your acquaintance, Tula."
"Analyzing request..."
"Hesitantly: You are Tula, are you not?"
"Proudly: That..."

The sphere pivots so that it faces the mothership. It visually inspects the hull of the ship in the general vicinity of the point Tula is gesturing to.

"...is the metal hull of one of the Helix Corporation's capital ships. This vessel, christened David, is currently under construction. The composition of its hull is CLASSIFIED. It houses CLASSIFIED civilians and CLASSIFIED military personnel. It is probable that this is the most advanced technological marvel present in this reality at this time."

The sphere pauses for a second as it receives updated orders.

"DIRECTIVE UPDATED: My employers have asked that I discover who or what you represent."
"Curiously: Who or what do you represent? Are you or your employers interested in allying yourselves with the Helix Corporation?"

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[Enter the Helix Corporation - Faeles Assisted Picnicking - Sica and Faeles]

She's not just red! Bonnie is big and red!

But...

If Sica were to examine this dragon veeeeery thoroughly, he might sense that there's something off about her. It might seem as if there's something more to her than what she's allowing him to see, but he shouldn't be able to put his finger on exactly what it is she hides from him. He might feel something tugging at his sanity, an inner voice begging him to press this matter no further, warning him that this is beyond his ken and that, were he to bear witness to this dragon's true form, his sanity would be forfeit...

Or maybe Sica is simply suffering from a minor headache. Yes, that could be it. The dragon could just be a normal dragon, a dragon without dozens of eyes which transfix the soul, without hundreds of mouths and tongues from which gallons of caustic acid drip as she salivates in eager anticipation of her next meal, and certainly without translucent flesh through which one can just barely spy the remains of her last victims.

"Oh, y'know, I intentionally crash multi-trillion dollar spaceships into the ground at terminal velocity all the time. It's my one true calling in life."

Bonny snarks, glaring at the ninja as if she is somewhat annoyed by his cheeky remark. She isn't hostile to the ninja yet, however. She has more enemies than she can wave a stick at already, so she really doesn't want to gain another.

She sighs. A plume of smoke escapes her mouth, but Sica and Faeles probably aren't standing close enough to Bonnie for it to envelop them.

"Listen, we were just ambushed by about seven pantheons of irate gods and goddesses. We lost seven cruisers to them before we were able to bug out. Our ship was boarded while we pulled out, and we're still repelling boarders on Decks 235 and 398. I can't deal with this right now!"

Bonnie is nearly sobbing now.

I bet that this is a type of situation that Sica has never found himself in before! I'm not so sure about Faeles, though...

[OrchestraHc]

Enter the Helix Corporation - Tula:

Yeesh. This drone is not making this easy for her. Christened, composition, technological? Way over her tiny blue head.

"Tula is... scout for Bluefin Tribe," the Kobold answers not terribly proud to say so.* "What is Helix Corayshun? Why would tribe ally?" Nevermind that the Bluefins are cave-dwelling, stone age cowards. What can Helix do to sway the two foot lizards? There's an attempt at sounding haughty in her voice, but it's offset by a clear lack of confidence in what she's saying. It's what a competent negotiator would say, but it's not how it's said.

*Translated back to her own language from Nexus Standard, the word is actually reth. While scout is accurate, reth is also used to refer to bait, sacrificial offerings, and a stick you use to check the depth of quicksand.

[Duck999]

Enter the Helix Corporation-A new situation-Sica and Faeles

Sica has indeed never before been in a situation like this. Faeles on the other hand... also hasn't. However, Faeles is a cat, so she is better at comforting other animals. She speaks up.
It's okay. There's nothing you could have done. We would have enough trouble with one god, let alone seven pantheons of them.

((Though that reminds me... I did once hear about this organization called KINDER.If they hadn't ended, maybe the gods wouldn't be there.))

[Deathkeeper]

A Stone Table

There's a young man here, a rocky plain a few miles away from the city of Inside. He didn't want to do it in any sort of public place, and a private room he could use and then clean up would cost money that he just didn't have. And he couldn't possibly do it at home with Hearts there! She'd ridicule him for sure even if everything went flawlessly! So to the plains he went, after consulting the weather report to make sure that it would be sunny.

It had taken some searching, but after a few hours he'd been able to find a large, flat-topped stone on which he could draw a summoning circle. The materials were just as cheap as last time, but it would work for sure! He was going to be more specific this time! And so the black-haired teenager drew his circle and lit his candles and chanted his incantation. Just a nice, minor spirit. Aligned with Law so he won't get any more demons instead. And with runes for Speech to ensure that he got the kind of help that he wanted. So with the final surge of magical energy (which involves waving his arms in the air a bit, which looks quite silly), he activates his summoning.

Pleaseworkpleaseworkpleasework
[closed]

[Earl of Purple]

Greater Littlewood

"Yes, with their gods. Don't you have afterlives where you're from? The only people that I cared for died a long time ago, and I've gotten over their deaths. And if it's not their body, are they still truly themselves? In Skyside, I'll sell the valuables we recover here, and then get a job. I won't be a mayor any more, but I've got other skills." The mayor now thinks Phil may be an associate of heretics and atheists, as in his cosmology (and the one I tend to work with) they're the only people that get a 'bad' afterlife. Oh, or maybe he spends it with people that routinely break the rules and regulations put into place by gods upon their worshippers.

"I didn't think to keep a spare set of tools up here. The microwave dampener is this bit, here." She taps a box of copper wires, plastic-coated cables and shards of opaque glass held together with spot welds, carefully bent paper-clips and crocodile clips. Several of the glass shards have been knocked out of alignment, some of the wires are loose and one of the paper-clips has drooped so it touches something it shouldn't.