• Event • At the base of the brightest lighthouse

[Mercedes]

After the large object struck the ground before him; Merces knew not what to do and simply allowed the world that surrounded him to be plunged into darkness. However, what seemed like several trials passed although it had more likely been mere bits. The Sorcerer awoke with a feeling of dread, and extreme fatigue beyond anything he had experienced before. Merces felt as if he had been physically exhausted for trials on end without rest, and did not want to move. However, as opposed to remaining on the dockside as if he wanted to die, he rose. Upon his ascension from the ground, The Sorcerer made an attempt to force himself toward the direction of shouts. “They took al-” had been every word that he discerned at the moment.

He did not feel the need to further dabble in pointless, petty tasks as opposed to focus on a single objective. Merces needed to find out what, and or who brought about the disappearance of all the women. Perhaps an immortal decided to seduce every woman at the event amidst the night, and impregnate them all rather than let them go on about their merry ways. However, why would immortals waste time reproducing with mortals? A series of possibilities crossed The Sorcerers mind. Whilst he trudged along sluggishly, and attempted to shake the effects of whatever struck him unconscious. Whatever the substance had been was certainly a pungent one, and he did not expect such a strange event to occur.

Yet, he had obviously not been the only one who awoke with the sluggish motions. He lagged behind the remainder of the group, and elected to take the path less traveled. When he finally did catch up to the other unknown group of males; they seemed to have been held off by another group of men. They all wore what seemed to have been uniformed outfits. Were they members of “The Elements” that Max spoke of frequently? They were the enforcers of the scalvorian “Law”, and they refused to allow the group of travelers to pass.

Merces however, had no fear and approached without hesitation with the remainder of the group. Although The Sorcerer knew he was in a temporarily weakened state he spoke aloud. “Let us through, and if you cannot do that.. Tell us what is going on here?”. Merces spoke for the entirety of the group despite not having made the first attempt to introduce himself to them. He did not know the remainder of the males, and therefore they were simply warm bodies. As far as he had been concerned he was the only not-mundane person available among the group. The locket he picked up earlier had still been on his person, and he opened it yet again. What could he possibly discern from the usage of the item, and why had the woman left it rather than keep her possession? Did she know that she would disappear into the night, and want to leave a clue behind?

What were the true intentions of the disappearing women? Had they simply wanted to evade the men for the remainder of the event? Perhaps them leaving had been part of something far more grand, or sinister. Both of the possibilities made the hair on the back of his neck stand erect, and perhaps he should have left earlier. The drug that had been administered to him via inhalation should have been a strong indication. Yet, he pressed on without a second thought as his stupidity and arrogance did not allow the unknown to remain unknown.

OOC

Sorry everyone in the thread, and my biggest apologies to Pegasus. I know my replies for this thread have been a bit sporadic, but I have been having OOC issues for the past little bit. I corrected them for the most part, and my posting will continue on a consistent basis from nw on.

[Tio Silver]

With a mighty heave Tio managed to pull the mugger out of the water and drag him onto the dock, watching with a grimace as the poor fellow's face slid across the rough ground in a painful looking fashion. It was taking all of his strength to lift another fully grown human in the first place, so it wasn't like the guy could complain about the manner in which he did it, as painful as it must be for him.

"Now, I would pull that thing out of your leg, but between you and me I don't have a clue what I'm doing so I'd probably make it worse." Tio admitted. "Instead I'm going to... psyche!"

With a sudden movement he pulled the bolt out before the mugger had a chance to realise what was happening. It was perhaps a little cruel, but it seemed like it would be a heck of a lot easier for everyone involved if he got it over and done with quickly and while the mugger wasn't ready for it. He tore of long strip of fabric off of the shirt of one of the unconscious people nearby and used it to bandage the wound once the mugger stopped thrashing around in agony enough for him to do so, then gave him a cheery pat on the shoulder. "There we go, that wasn't so bad was it? Now for real this time I'm going to have to go, my people need me."

Picking up his discarded jacket from the floor and wrapping it around himself to keep the warmth seeping out of his wet clothes in, Tio was finally able to get back to the more important task; tracking the kidnappers. He jogged over to the alleyway he'd seen the kidnappers disappear down earlier, only to find that a small group of element guards were now blocking the way. Wow, they showed up fast, and were now standing around doing absolutely no investigating. It was kind of suspicious really. Almost as if they weren't really element soldiers at all.

As he approached the alley a plan formed in his mind to see if these guys were who they claimed to be. He straightened his back and acted like he owned the place, then fixed his brow into a commanding glare. "At ease gentlemen. Agent Crimson, with the fire troop. Flame Deputy Kastor wants to know what the hell is going on here this second, so start talking."

[/align]

[Arlo Creede]

It didn't require the morning's light in order to take note of the obvious. It was plain to see, all around him as Arlo left the ship that wasn't his and Vega's own. All the women who'd been there before, were gone. And though he couldn't be positive, he suspected that Vega might be with him. He was positive he'd heard her calling out a warning before some sort of toxin had gotten the better of him. And now she was nowhere to be seen. If he was able to find the other women while he was at it, then all the better. But foremost in Arlo's mind was finding Vega.

So. Over there. That's what the girl on deck had told him. That was, in the general direction of an alleyway. A familiar figure was just then climbing out of the water, and Arlo wondered, what was Tio doing spending so much time in the drink? The water had to be beyond freezing at this point. But he wasn't drowning apparently, and Arlo had more important things in mind. The tracks on the ground, many of those plainly made by women who were putting up a fuss as they went, headed straight for the alley, just as he'd suspected.

Except that unlike Tio and others, once Arlo got a good look at the Elements blocking the path through the alleyway, he pulled back a little, out of the way and mostly loitering in the shadows while he watched and listened to the confrontation. The men were well armed, wore good armor and chances were, they were good with their weapons. They also didn't look like the type to throw up their hands and step aside without a fight. On the other hand, Arlo had spied something that filled him with dread all over again, and gave him the distinct impression that these men were in cahoots with the attackers.

One of them was wearing Vega's hat. And according to some passersby, the Elements had been around already, during the chaos. All the more reason now, Arlo thought, to keep a low profile. At least for now. However there was more than one way to get past those men. Sort of. Unseen by others, all but him, Lyova was nonetheless always with him. Courtesy Jesine, of course. They didn't need to speak aloud to one another, in a very real sense, Arlo and the little blue diri were of like minds. And so, in just that way, communicating one mind to another, Arlo called Lyova to him. 'Vega's in trouble, down that alley somewhere,' he told her. 'You can go where no one else can, with them being none the wiser'

Down that alleyway, he meant. Past the Elements that were barring the way. Even through solid walls if she needed to, all in search of the women. Vega in particular. It was what Arlo wanted Lyova to do, quickly as possible, and then return to him with a report of what she'd seen and heard. Meanwhile, Arlo intended to hang back. Part of the crowd, out of the way, not putting himself in front of the Elements or appearing to challenge them.

[Roland Demira]

Roland found it satisfying to see the man take a solid shot. Well, see was a stretch, but the sound of his yelp and the following anger from the Derby champion made it clear enough. Stepping back, he looked around at how to get down to the water without jumping in. the sound of ceramics breaking and a fit of coughing interrupted his train of thought, however.

Soon, he found himself looking at the dark Cylus sky. Roland had a scratch in his throat and felt very groggy. It took him some time to even orient himself and sit up. Once he did, it seemed some time had passed and many people had been killed. Fortunately, he was not one of them. His mind went to the man he had shot, but considering how few were alive on deck, Roland rolled to his haunches and tried to shake the cobwebs out. While he stumbled around, he made sure to land palms first on some of the corpses, relieving them of any valuables they may have. Nothing obtuse or hard to take. Coin purses, simple jewelry, rings. After a few moments of this, he looked down from the side of the ship and saw the man he had shot lying on the shore, his leg wrapped. No way.

Slowly moving down the side of the ship via rope ladder, when Roland found himself near the dock, he had to push off with one leg so that when he let go, he landed on the dry dock with a thump. Whatever had put him down had affected many people, forcing him to unwrap and rewrap the pink scarf so that it covered his nose and mouth while still wrapped around his neck. Once all of that was sorted, he walked over to the mugger on the shore, who was shivering in the cold from his injuries. A small chuckle of retributive delight chittered from beneath the pink cover, Roland's frame standing above the man who had wronged him. "Well, looks like we have a bit of a conundrum here." Looking up, he could see that the Derby champions had moved on, an intelligent guess putting the heroes in flight of the throatcutters.

"So, I'll keep it short, since someone could come along and try to save you soon. I want my coin purse that you took from me as well as any other articles of value that you may have. I will avoid the obvious pilfering of your personal space, something you could hardly ignore. I would like that and also I would like to know what your cohorts are up to. Why the mass killing and the stealing of people? Even better, what am I to expect should I join the others?" Kneeling down to his haunches above the man, he looked at the wound wrapped in cloth. A gloved finger poked it, Roland hoping to elicit a pained moan from the man. In a hushed tone, he spelled it out clearly. "The information and the loot. Soon. So soon that I don't think about loading my crossbow and shooting you somewhere that no one will want to touch. Chop chop."

OOC

The scarf is now covering the wound as well as Roland's nose and mouth, possibly providing disguise, shooting more for avoidance of more gas effects.

[Pegasus]

[img]/gallery/image ... e_id=12998[/img]

[img]/gallery/image ... e_id=13001[/img]

30th Cylus 718

Time.

Such a strange and fickle companion. They had lost some, gained some; for one of them in particular, time had been particularly important in this evenings' adventure. But now, time seemed akin to a whirlpool and the center of it was pulling them, all of them - men and women, those above and those below, to the inexorable conclusion which swirled towards them.

And what happened, both above and below would determine who was left behind.

If anyone.

Merces

Merces felt the after effects of the yellow gas and he stumbled through the crowds with a feeling of grogginess, yet a clear focus. He considered the possibilities for what had happened here, accepting some, rejecting others, but he simply did not have enough information to form a clear conclusion.

So, he walked up to where the other two were and he addressed the Elements directly. What was going on here?

cont'd

Precision Strike!! - Secret Achievement Unlocked! ~ Merces got right to the heart of the matter! He has unlocked an additional reward at the end of the thread!

OOC

No worries! RL happens and I'm just glad to see you back here posting!

Tio

Tio the medic briefly struck again as he pulled the bolt out of the man's thigh, but then he left him with the others around the area and he made his way to the alleyway. It had certainly been a busy night so far for Tio and he was freezing cold and soaking wet. By the time he got to the alleyway, his teeth were chattering and that made his disguise more difficult, but at least he had picked up his dry jacket and wore that over the other stuff. Not ideal, but better than nothing.

And he stepped forward and introduced himself. Between his demands and Merces' were they actually about to find out what was going on?

cont'd

He gets about! - Secret Achievement Unlocked! ~ Tio has been in a lot of different places this thread! He'll get more renown because of it

Arlo

Arlo had a growing sense of dread as he moved forward and this wasn't made better by spotting the headgear of one of the Elements in the alleyway. He decided that the best thing that he could do was to gather information; in situations like that it was vital, after all, that they knew what they were facing. So, he sent his small companion out past the others, sight unseen, and she did as she was asked. As she made her way past, she kept up a constant chatter in his head, telling him what she saw. It was constant, distance didn't seem to matter and she described what she was seeing.

Once she got down, through the floor and hovering just below the ceiling in the room where all the women were, her excited chatter continued and he heard it all.

Until she gasped in shock and stopped talking.

cont'd

Inch High Private Eye! - Secret Achievement Unlocked! ~ Arlo utilised his small companion to gather intelligence at Just The Right Moment! (or just the wrong one). Additional reward unlocked at the end of the thread!

Roland

Roland moved slowly down the docks and made his way to where the mugger was. Before he did that, he looted the corpses of those who had died on board the ship. As he did, the girl Arlo had fallen on, thereby saving her from the kidnappers, watched him. Every move, she watched him and she spoke a curse in Rakahi and spat on the floor. Looting the dead was a very bad thing in her eyes, obviously. After that, he moved slowly, he wrapped the scarf around him and then, finally, he got to the mugger.

By the time he got there, the man was dead. Bled out on the docks and when Roland searched him, someone had already looted him. No coin purse, no jewelry, nothing. Just a dead man.

On the docks!! (Roland)

The crowd was thinning out now - people were returning home, going to hide. There were bodies laying around, but not many of them, not like on the ship. No, this was a place where something strange had occurred and people had taken advantage of it, but now were running away or leaving as quickly as they could. In the distance were the whistles which told of the Elements calling each other. Because other than those in the alleyway entrance there were still none.

Because Roland had taken the time to do this, he got a vantage of what happened at that entrance to the alleyway. This meant that he could watch and observe and gather information, but it also meant that he was not part of it. Which might also be a good and a bad thing.

cont'd

At the Alleyway Entrance! (Merces, Tio & Arlo)

Merces and Tio asked their questions and the two men who were talking, standing forward, glanced at each other and frowned. "Get lost, loser," was the answer and then the one in the strange black and yellow hat spoke. "Now, now, there's no need to be like that. These gentlemen are like us. They're.... shit."

The curse left the man just as Arlo's companion spoke up again, "Arlo? I'm so sorry... she's dead. They're burning her. Down here, there's a.. she's on an altar and they've burned her. I'm so sorry.".

"Trouble!" The bumblebee hat man said and suddenly, the three of them were not there. There was an audible popping sound, and then they simply were not there.

But the voice in Arlo's head spoke again, her voice shocked and shaking. "They've got lots of women down here, Arlo. They're fighting. I think Vega was fighting when they... the people that did that, they're down here. Through the warehouse ....". And she continued to talk, describing what she saw, telling him how sorry she was, trying to calm him down and never, not once, suggesting that they call the guard. No. The little Diri instead said. "We're going to get them, Arlo, aren't we?"

The warehouse that Lyova directed him to was also the one where the tracks led. Any one of them could see that.

Everyone

If anyone went into the warehouse, then they entered and had to walk through the small open reception area and then through another door. That door led through a corridor and down a long flight of stairs. At the end of that flight of stairs there was a door and that opened up into a very large room. That room had double doors in it, locked and bolted and Lyova told Arlo that the other side of that was covered with earth as far as the women were concerned.

A number of things in that room were important for any of those who were in there. There was the fact that the doors were locked and barred and bolted. There were the crates stacked around the room. But most importantly, perhaps, was the fact that the doors were very obviously rigged with what looked like strange alchemical things. Bottles, jars, potions. Jugs, buckets and baskets. All connected with miles and miles of ropes, twine and other connective materials. And in this room, this very large room, there was enough flammable, combustible material and shrapnel to take this warehouse out. Maybe the docks around it. All connected to the doors which, if the women downstairs got themselves free and got through, would detonate and undoubtedly kill them all. Fire potions and flammable concoctions were undoubtedly the most obvious, but if anyone looked, the roof and floor would go, too, there were crates full of metal shards and shrapnel. Other jars were full of strange substances, perhaps or obviously, poison.

If the women escaped and triggered this, then they, and everyone in a very large distance, would die.

The only other thing of note was a very large mirror, split into two sections. It seemed out of place, there, until one of them glanced at it. It didn't show their reflection, but showed them, in fact, what was happening to the women and, if one of them did, then they saw what happened both a few minutes before (the section on the left seemed to be running about five minutes behind) and right now. For those among them who were mages, the effect of the yellow gas was interfering with their concentration, they were all feeling it, groggy and unable to concentrate well, but for the practitioners of Domain Magic, it meant that their ability to cast was severely compromised.

It seemed they would have to rely on their wits alone and that time ticked along so quickly that, if they did not act themselves, and all those around them, would die.

In Your Next Post:

Please feel free to interact - if you would.
Please be aware that events are happening in a very short space of time and as such you do not have time to do anything other than what you are doing. Conversations can happen whilst people are moving, but actions take time.
If you choose to remain on the surface / docks, that is absolutely fine you don't need to go into the warehouse, I just wanted to give you the option to do so.
Please be awareWhat you do in your next post will impact both threads.
Therefore, I will post on SATURDAY next week, before Aegis posts to his group on SUNDAY.
If you look in the left hand mirror: you can see everything that has happened in the female thread since they woke up in the warehouse.
If you look in the right hand mirror: you see what is happening in the current post. You arrive about half way through the two minutes where Vega is dead, so about 1 minute into the "gap" in Aegis last post. As the pcs post in that thread, you can see that.
Any questions, PM me. Must Do Objectives: 1. ~Ensure that you are clear if you choose to "use" your resources, how you will.
2 ~ Be aware that your actions in your next (and every post hereafter) post can gain or lose you resources.
3 ~ Most importantly, remember that what you do will impact the story.

Tio

Tio has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Slight Disadvantage	Red Stone
Health	Neutral	None
Luck	Slight Advantage	I know a biqaj who...
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Neutral	None

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.

Arlo

Arlo has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Slight Disadvantage	Red Stone
Health	Neutral	None
Luck	Slight Advantage	Gypsy Stone
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Neutral	None

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.

Merces

Merces has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Neutral	None
Health	Neutral	None
Luck	Neutral	None
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Slight Advantage	Locket

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.
NB: Pocket watches don't exist, I believe, so I've made it a locket

Roland

Roland has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Neutral	None
Health	Slight Advantage	Scarf
Luck	Neutral	None
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Neutral	None

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.

Group

Group Resources are currently as follows:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Time	Significant Disadvantage	Tio's informationDrugged[/color][/glow][/b]
Crowd	Neutral	None
Cohesion	Neutral	None
Information	Neutral	None

OOC Info

!

Message from: Pegasus

You get 1 post each, any order is fine. Please only control NPCs as described above in your posts. Bonus None this round! Roland & Merces: you have missed one round of posting. Krest & Victor: have been written out of the thread at this point. Please pm me if you wish to re-join. I'm going to post again on the 17th March. I might post sooner if everyone here has posted. Any questions, please PM me

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[Tio Silver]

Tio had thought that he was prepared for anything these element soldiers, real or fake, might try. Maybe they would notice the trick he left in his words and arrest him? Maybe they wouldn't and he'd have to fight them? But what he hadn't expected was for them to suddenly swear loudly and then just... pop out of existence. What the heck just happened?! It must have been magic or some kind, that much was obvious, but had it teleported them or just straight up killed them? Well whatever had happened the way into the alley was now open, so that was a blessing... right?

"Huh. Did-... Did either of you guys do that?" He asked Arlo and the stranger who'd arrived before him, looking at each of them questioningly. He turned his gaze to Arlo. "By the way it's good to see you again Hat Stuff. I take it you're trying to catch the kidnappers too? What do you say the three of us team up for a while? I make a hell of a good sidekick."

Whether they replied positively or not Tio led the way down the alley, only to find a warehouse at the end of it. Inside the warehouse was a flight of stairs, which led down to a large room with a set of heavily bolted doors at the end and holy cow were those explosives! Yes, they definitely were! By the looks of things they were all linked up to a product of some kind of alchemy, which looked like it was designed to explode when the door was opened. There were enough explosives in here to incinerate not just the warehouse and everyone in it but half the city as well!

"... Quick question guys. Do either of you know how to disarm a bomb?" He asked, unable to keep his fear at the sight of all these explosives completely out of his voice. Thinking about this logically all these other explosives were set to go off when set alight when the ones attached to the door detonated right? So if they could disarm the explosives on the door, wouldn't that neutralise them all?

Sadly Tio didn't make a habit of walking around parties with a cutlass. He did however keep a few throwing knives on him in case of emergencies, which he had never been so glad he did before today. Taking one of these from his pocket, Tio went about severing every bit of rope or cord he could see that looked like it wouldn't set any explosions off.

[/align]

[Arlo Creede]

There was no question that Lyova was a devoted companion, a fierce defender in Emea and even a want to be protector in the waking world. She was good company too, and in the months after he'd first left home, she'd been the only one he'd had. A good conversationalist, though usually not as funny as she thought she was. But Arlo sometimes forgot about how genuinely versatile and helpful she could be under just the right circumstances. This was one of those times. She could go where he couldn't, see where he couldn't see, and speak with him over the distance. And it was working pretty well, until she suddenly went quiet.

'Lyova?' Arlo called through the silent link they shared.

Lyova never stopped talking. Even if no one but him ever heard it, she was a chatterbox that sometimes just couldn't help herself. Her sudden silence was enough to fill Arlo with a sense of dread, even though he hadn't stepped out of the shadows yet and shown himself to the guards. Then at the very same time that one of the men shouted a curse, and they were all gone in a flash, Lyova renewed the link between them. What she said though, it was as if he was witnessing her say that to anyone else but him.

It wasn't conceivable, therefore it hadn't and wasn't happening. "That's not true, Lyova," he hissed under his breath. He wasn't accusing his little diri protector of lying or making it up. Only of being mistaken. She had to be mistaken and because the dread and the onslaught of grief that threatened to wash over him would have been overwhelming, Arlo chose complete denial. Get them? "I'm on my way Lyova," he said, still unwilling to face what must be reality, if Lyova had told him it was.

The alleyway was no longer blocked by the guards and he saw Tio there and another man he'd seen earlier but didn't know personally. Most of what Tio said to him was as if through a haze, but the more help the better. "They took Vega," he said, still unwilling to acknowledge what Lyova had said to them. "Down there, through a warehouse," he added. That's what Lyova had said. When they got there, it was the mirrors that first got his attention, and Arlo stared for a long few trills in horror.

Lyova hadn't been imagining anything and he could only watch so long in shock before turning away and catching a glimpse of the other mirror. "Vega?" he whispered, and realized that there was a time discrepancy between the two. He couldn't begin to sort it out, to untangle the emotions when what mattered now was getting through those doors. But, as he told Tio, he knew not a thing about explosives. Except that fire was needed to set them off, along with fuses to light. So while Tio went after coils and lengths of rope and twine, Arlo used his dagger to cut away the connections at the source, wherever all of those fuses connected to the explosives themselves.

[Roland Demira]

Poking the wound did little, the bastard had expired. Roland felt a little pride in that, though he was disappointed in himself for not noticing the man was dead, choosing to spit words at a corpse. He noticed the bolt lying nearby, however, choosing to give it a little wash in the tide to clean it before replacing it to his person. No reason to have evidence lying about. The only one who saw him was the Derby champion and he was much to great a hero to trifle with the likes of Roland. Standing from his haunches, he looked around, noticing that many others had started to flee the scene, the telltale whistles of the Elements echoing through the streets.

He could see the heroes as they seemed to parlay with some scruffy versions of elements, though Roland doubted some of their attire. nevertheless, they were blocking the scene. He moved close enough to see the interactions but not close enough to hear. Since the gas seemed to be mostly gone, he unwrapped the pink scarf and tucked it into the side of an open crate nearby. He wasn't going to succeed at being on the sideline wearing a bright pink scarf around his face. His wound stuck to the fabric a little, making him wince slightly before removing it completely. His eyes remained fixed on the group of men until it was halved. Just like old Akeeyari, these men completely vanished out of sight. It was more than enough omen for Roland. These events were the stuff of champions, heroes and the high hearted. Besides, he had robbed some corpses and that little brat could finger him anytime.

It was an easy choice to make, his back turned to the scene. He joined the general procession out of the docks and into the Scalvoran night.

[Pegasus]

30th Cylus 718

On the docks!! (Roland)

There is a lot to be learned from watching. A lot to be gained from observation. Roland looked up from the man who had divested him of his money and he came to some conclusions and he made some decisions. Were they the right ones? Who knew and only time would tell. On the deck of the ship, a young girl spat again and whispered another curse to the man who she had watched looting bodies, but other than her no one paid any attention to him as he unwrapped the pink scarf and made his way into the night....

Thread end for Roland. Thanks so much for taking part!!

In The Warehouse (Tio & Arlo)

Alchemy, chemistry, physics and even a bit of poisons were the skills used by whoever had created this trap. Trap making at it's finest and the two of them had precisely no skills at all between them which might help. And so, they had a moment of desperation and yet they knew that they had to do something.

Because if they didn't, everyone would die and a lot of people around here.

It seemed that only Tio and Arlo had run in here in the first instance, although of course Arlo had an invisible companion. As he stood and stared at the mirror, Lyova spoke to him as she always did, her voice an almost-constant in his life. "I'm sorry Arlo. Don't look. Don't look, don't listen.". As they were in there, they didn't need the mirror to project sound in any way (which was fine, it didn't), because they could hear the screams which finally stopped. But the two of them got to work, the human and the Yludih. Tio cut ropes and cords, Arlo started to separate explosives or flammables or... totally unknown stuff from other totally unknown stuff.

Bits passed. In the first one, they worked. There was so much. So very much that it was almost impossible to even comprehend. If they were paying attention to such, some piles of unknown liquids and shrapnel had three or five or even ten different cords and ropes and flints and tinder attached to them. Others, just one. Trying to untangle it was impossible and all they could do was break connections, sever cords which led to other cords, and hope.

They were about half way through the second bit when two things happened. Lyova let out a strange almost-wail and then screeched in his mind. "Vega! Arlo look! LOOK!" There, in the mirror was the very clear scene of a familiar red haired woman. Lyova didn't wait for him to ask, she shot away from him and through the doors. From in the warehouse itself, where the battle was raging but drawing to a close, the little Diri yelled back to him, though she had no need to shout. "It's true!! I can see her - I can see her! She's alive, Arlo." Then followed an extensive exposition on everything that was happening, but all around the tinkling laughter. "Come on, Arlo, open the doors!!"

At about the same time that Arlo was lost in that particular internal reverie, Tio was continuing to work. He did so, glancing at one of the strange looking fuses which Arlo had been taking off and he spotted that it seemed to be shifting colour slightly. It was...

BANG!

Suddenly, there was a cloud of red fumes lifting up into the air. The two of them would need to cover their mouths, to continue to work. It was a race against time for them because it seemed that, somehow, some of the groups of explosives were just set to go off randomly. Maybe because they were mingling with colder air (it had been quite warm in here when they came in, now the freezing temperatures outside had dropped the heat level in here), or in response to the gas from another or even the vibrations.

Either way, the two men worked and they did so at the constant risk of things simply blowing up around them. Neither of them got away free of injury. Tio cut a rope and, as he did there was a small but unpleasant explosion which knocked him off his feet and left a ringing in his ears. Then, Arlo grabbed a piece of cord which seemed to be coated with some sort of acid or something and left a nasty burn across the palm of his hand.

But, eventually, after a few more moments, they could open the doors.

When they did, they found themselves faced with a wall of earth. Through there, though, there were cracks and Lyova assured Arlo that the wall wasn't thick, they could get through it and beyond it were the women.

Assuming that was what they did, it took the pair of them (and realistically, more of Arlo's strength than Tio's) until the two of them burst through.

And there? Well what they saw was a scene unlike any other

In Your Next Post:

In this thread there IS no next post.
Tio & Arlo: Please now read the Other Thread, where Aegis also finishes that thread. In there, you will find directions to a new, final thread. You may post there as soon as Aegis has posted. He will give you directions / instructions in there as to where you come into the thread.
Merces: If you wish to rejoin, you will need to PM Aegis
Any questions, PM me.

Tio

Tio has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Slight Disadvantage	Red Stone
Health	Neutral	None
Luck	Slight Advantage	I know a biqaj who...
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Neutral	None

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.

Arlo

Arlo has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Slight Disadvantage	Red Stone
Health	Neutral	None
Luck	Slight Advantage	Gypsy Stone
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Neutral	None

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.

Merces

Merces has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Neutral	None
Health	Neutral	None
Luck	Neutral	None
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Slight Advantage	Locket

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.
NB: Pocket watches don't exist, I believe, so I've made it a locket

Roland

Roland has the following resources:

► Show Spoiler

Attribute	Status	Resources
Energy	Neutral	None
Health	Slight Advantage	Scarf
Luck	Neutral	None
Armour	Neutral	None
Perception	Neutral	None

Please note: These resources do not give auto-bonuses. They must be used, in thread, by the pc. Some of them will work better in some places than others, so use them wisely.

[Pegasus]

The Review

Tio Silver

Overview

The joy of a good party, eh? I love Tio and throughout this event you have illustrated to me why I love him time and time again. He is logically consistent in so much as he is always, uniquely, himself, he is well written and he is great fun - yet he is a personality and his personality shines. You are an excellent writer, playing an excellent pc. Great fun, thanks so much!

Points

XP: 20 (may be used for Domain Magic: Defiance)

Renown: 12 (being seen at the party and helping the fella in the water + 2 bonus from "He Gets About")

Loot

Lucky Eye Patch:	It once brought him good luck in a dire situation. Whilst now it has no magical properties, if ever it did, Tio just always feels a bit better when he's wearing it or has it on his person.
Metal Morph:	When Tio puts his hand in his pocket, he finds a small sphere of metal. This is a Metal Morph as per the Point Bank Item. This is a mod-decided bonus item since you did not choose your own. Good RP!
First Use:	For wise use of resources, Tio has earned 1 Scalvoris Golden Ticket! Scheme explained here
Hang Ten:	When he gets home from all this, Tio finds in his clothes / shoe / belly button / hair a small shell washed in with him. This is a pretty sparkling thing and when he looks at it, Tio feels hopeful. Maybe a little more courageous. No actual bonus, just a RP point for you.
Red Stone:	The red stone Tio found was coated in a rare contact poison which has the effect of making the person who touches it feel lethargic. Not massively, just a little. Three uses remaining.

Knowledge

Acting: Person in authority
Acting: Titles are important when taking a role
Acting: Remember your character's name. Make it memorable
Acting: Confidence makes up for a lot
Caregiving: Trick your patients into
Defiance: Asking water to let you ride the waves.
Defiance: Using your spark when cold and afraid requires focus
Detection: Spotting when something looks dodgy in a crowd
Detection: Looking for racial traits
Detection: A familiar face in a crowd
Detection: Spotting someone struggling
Detection: Seeing someone shoot the person you're trying to save!
Discipline: Maybe don't take free candy from beautiful strangers?
Endurance: Freezing cold water
Intelligence: Gather information on your enemy
Investigation: Use racial traits to determine familial links
Medicine: Foreign objects can often stop someone from bleeding a lot
Medicine: People who bleed a lot, die.
Seduction: All the girls love a pirate
Seduction: Keep the conversation flowing and ask questions
Strength: Lifting a nearly dead man from the water
Swimming: Swimming in the open sea is tricky
Swimming: Cold waters are hard to swim in
Swimming: Rescuing someone else makes things difficult
Swimming: Dark doesn't help
Swimming: Can save you from poison!
Swimming: Treading water

Injuries

Tio has ringing in her ear for the first 20 trials of Ashan (and the trials leading up to that).

Arlo

Overview

Oh, I felt so sorry for Arlo in this thread! He gets aged, sees his lady-love die and all because he went to a party! You write him superbly well and he has such a depth of character. He's such a daredevil and great fun to write with.I hope you enjoyed it too!

Points

XP: 20

Renown: 10 (being seen at the party and helping on the ship)

Loot

Gypsy Jewel	This jewel responds to music and song. It's colours change in time with these, adding another dimension to a performance.
Inch High Private Eye	When Arlo puts his hand in his pocket, he finds a small sphere of metal. This is a Metal Morph as per the Point Bank Item.

Knowledge

Detection: Noting the change in atmosphere at a party
Detection: Spotting sudden change in behaviour
Detection: Spotting a familiar face in a crowd
Detection: Hearing a familiar voice?
Discipline: Dealing with shock
Discipline: Not handling grief right now
Discipline: Not giving in to overwhelming emotion
Discipline: Keeping going until you are sure
Discipline: Witnessing the death of a loved one
Endurance: Being able to partake of a lot of good cheer!
Endurance: Unconsciousness
Endurance: Waking up groggy and moving anyhow
Hunting: Discerning what happened in large groups of bipeds
Intelligence:Gather information from as many people as possible
Interrogation: Asking the most important questions first
Investigation: Gathering as much information as possible
Investigation: Watch and wait where possible
Investigation: Ask for details
Psychology: The feeling of losing time in a split trill
Resistance: Alcohol
Resistance: Aging potions can have unwanted side effects from unknown ingredients.
Resistance: Fact acting airborne poison
Stealth: Using the cover of darkness
Stealth: Using a crowd to blend in

Injuries

Arlo has been aged somewhere between 3 - 5 years, although exactly how much it is difficult to tell.
Arlo has a burn injury on the palm of his dominant hand. It will take 15 trials to heal and will leave a scar across there.

Roland

Overview

Oh I love Roland - he so does his own thing and marches to the beat of his own drum! This whole thing, he was so focused on getting his money back that it's almost like the story moved around him and he just kept that focus. Great writing, great playing of your pc. Great fun! Hope you enjoyed it, too!

Points

XP: 20

Renown: 10 (seen at the party, shot the guy in the water)

Loot

Loss: Please deduct 142gn from your ledger
1 x pink sash: this sash seems to be coated in some strange healing salve or something equally odd. It will fight off / lessen the chance of infection if used. 2 x uses remaining.
Gained: 64gn worth of trinkets / coins from looting the dead.

Knowledge

Acting: Pretending to stagger in a crowd
Detection: Feeling for a seam in a tent
Detection: Seeking out an individual in a crowd
Detection: Checking when someone might not quite fit in
Medicine: Signs of death
Ranged Weapon: Crossbow: Firing into the water
Ranged Weapon: Crossbow: Taking aim
Resistance: Airborne yellow poison
Resistance: Alcohol
Running: Through a crowd
Tactics: Get rid of evidence
Unarmed Combat: The dodge

Injuries

1 x cut across the neck. Takes 7 trials to heal, leaves a faint silver scar

Merces: PM sent.
Krest & Victor: under word count = no rewards.