2017-05-19: Pirates Failing Forward
- Log: Pirates Failing Forward
- Cast: Bart Fatima, Leon Albus, Lily Keil, Cecilia Adlehyde
- Where: Adlehyde City
- Date: 5-19-2017
- Summary: Bart, Lily, and Leon see the city attacked, and go to find Cecilia. The battle does not go well. Until it does.
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
It was, initially, a fairly peaceful afternoon.
And then everything just goes straight to hell in about two minutes flat.
The sound of explosions outside create a rather rude call to arms, and Bart throws himself up and out of his seat. You can never really be prepared for something like this, no matter what you might actually say.
He didn't really think that this was going to happen. That someone would actually attack the city. And yet here they were.
"Lily! Leon!" he shouts, turning to look around the saloon where they had been staying lately. "WE GOTTA MOVE!"
It's at this point when a Spartoi comes running in the front door just in time for Bart to lay the somewhat skeletonish Metal Demon out on the floor with a massive left straight to its jaw.
"Ah hell why is she ALWAYS RIGHT!?!" he growls, and gestures for his two compatriots to follow him. "This way! If I know that loon she's... well we need to find her!"
Wait, she? Find her? Bart's not mentioned this before, but he's already out the door and on the move.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"I'm going to need some information!" Leon calls back to Bart. "Like who 'she' is!"
Really, despite the fact that his voice is raised, he is taking it as well as he can. When the horizon lights on fire -- the work of the assailants attacking the city -- he goes into a mental state he knows. Argent Divider is swung out as he barrels out of the Starfall. A hulking, cat-like creature with armored plates is neatly skewered on the elegant silver broadsword that his ARM folds into.
He kicks it off with one boot, and the body clangs to the floor, before he looks back over his shoulder.
"Lily," he says. "Eyes forward. There's hostiles all over the city. But--who the hell are they...?"
Bart said something bad was coming. Cassidy Cain implied the same. It loomed over Leon, even when he talked with Riesenlied. A feeling of forboding, which he couldn't shake. It dissipates now, but into something else.
Into the grim realization that something did come.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Something like peaceful, anyway; Lily had come downstairs today, largely to have something to eat. But everything went straight to hell.
Upon seeing the creature Lily pulled out her gunbelt and starting buckling it on, rules completely aside. Her satchel is hung on her shoulder, her eyes go down to the creature there as Bart rants about... Something.
Leon speaks, and Lily inclines her head, standing now. Something bad wasn't just coming; it was already here. This.. This is something different. Is it? She doesn't know.
"Leon," she answers. "I have your back."
"Bart. Where is this woman likely to be?" She pulls her firearm and shoots a skeletal Metal Demon straight through the forehead as they move out. Her magic is too brutal for this.
...There's a strange sense she still has, but she knows it's largely herself. But what is it? Well, that can wait until someone in the vicinity can sense it.
She doesn't bother asking what's going on; she has eyes.
<Pose Tracker> Cecilia Adlehyde has posed.
In a way, it's easy to find the Princess of Adelhyde; the main drag of the city runs right up to Adelhyde Castle's gates, and despite all the fire and warfare ongoing, the buildings haven't, at least yet, toppled. So there's a fairly clear view of about 30 of the horrible skeletonoid Spartoi, Metal Demon grunts of the most elemental kind, all clustering around what is presumably someone who's giving them a hard time.
On the other side of that cluster from Bart and his party there is indeed a blonde woman in a white outfit. She wheezes, a wave of Spartoi already dead at her feet. Unfortunately, there's ten more waves.
Staff in one hand, she thrusts forward the other, and a ping of light off the pentagram on it explodes a mote of light in her hand, which erupts into an electric blast; then she whirls about to try and drive the staff with some martial skill into a Spartoi's chest.
It's a skeleton. This isn't going to work. "I won't let you...one step further!"
Not so very far behind her: The gates of Castle Adlehyde, townsfolk sheltering within. The guards at the gates, terrified enough to hesitate as their princess fights.
DG: You have created a party! Your Digger status has been reset! As party leader your presence is very important! If you need to leave, please first promote another player using +party/promote <target>. Remember to set your tools before setting out with +tools/load. DG: Bart Fatima has created a party! To join, type +party/reset and then type +party/join Bart Fatima. DG: Lily Keil has joined your party! DG: Cecilia Adlehyde has joined your party! DG: Leon Albus has joined your party! DG: A party led by Bart Fatima is now entering The Battle of Adelhyde. DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
=====================<* CHALLENGE - The Demons are Here! *>===================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- The Metal Demon attack on Adelhyde has left the city in chaos. The Demons and Adelhyde's troops are fighting everywhere, with the ebb and flow of battle changing what parts of the city are safe and which are battlefields by the hour. There are thousands of civilians trapped here, as well as a number of Drifters who were visiting the city for the festival. The party may simply have been at the wrong place, at the wrong time; they might also have returned to the city in an effort to save those trapped within. Chaos erupts immediately as a group of civilians being chased by a large number of Metal Demon troops lead by a particularly large and spike covered warrior comes around a corner, and heads right towards the party! There's no way to avoid this fight - within moments the Demons spot the party and come right towards them. There's no choice but to fight, and perhaps save some of the people being chased. =Dungeon Conditions: Suffer===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
"If I have my guess..." Bart states as he continues at a fairly fast run, despite the fact that the city is being hammered all around them. "...she's probably going to be... closer to where these things are coming into the city..."
And as they run through the city, Bart can already see that someone has been busy. There are Spartoi all around her, and more Metal Demons are starting to pour into the area. Bart looks at the mess for the moment, and calls out, "There she is! We need to..."
That's... that's a lot of demons, and there are people streaming in from other parts of the city as well. The sounds of people shouting, and the terrible laughter of the Metal Demons who are looking forward to wiping them out, echoes all around them as Bart pulls out his whip.
"CECILIA!" Bart roars, pulling out a small bottle of cologne from inside of his jacket. He unleashes the Ether charge inside, infusing everyone in the group with an extra hit of power that should help them to fight off some of these demons. And then he does something that he rarely does.
The pirate pulls a revolver out of the back of his jacket, as an explosion rocks the sky above. Bart looks up, and then back at Lily and Leon. "Hah, I knew he wouldn't let me down!" he shouts. "That was a Bart Missile! The Yggdrasil must be heading towards the city! We just need to..." He pauses, and then whips up his gun to shoot one of the Spartoi in its skull.
"...not... die!"
Given the crowd here, that is easier said than done. But the demons are starting to pile up, and are making getting back to the castle gate unlikely. "Ci, is there another way into the castle from here!?!"
DG: Bart Fatima has used his Tool White Cologne toward his party's challenge, The Demons are Here!.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
Leon frowns. Someone diving into the middle of it? That sounds dangerous. But, when he sees the woman in white, he knows why. He thought he recognized her, in Lahan. The name was familiar. This simply clinches what he suspected: Cecilia, Princess of Adlehyde, and wielding some powerful sorceries. He winces, before he nods -- and sees the people rushing ahead of the horde of Spartoi and other Metal Beasts.
The people, he realizes, that will be cut down quickly if they don't move. He nods at Bart, and then he looks at the distance between them. He reaches into his coat, pulling out his flare gun. He doesn't bother to aim it in the air. He just fires it into their midst.
It explodes in a brilliant white flash, blinding the unfortunate Metal Beasts, before Leon leaps into the air. Argent Divider, with a snap of his wrist, folds up -- and then he fires a trio of shots down into the approaching hordes. He lands, after that, and slams down next to Cecilia. His eyes dart to her. "Princess," he says. "Try to keep behind me. And Lily, when she catches up."
Then, he snaps Argent Divider into its sword-like form again. When he slashes, though, there is a brilliant flash of light -- and a small, ethereal glow of the numbers 26 on the side of the blade. Then, it ceases pretending to be anything like a gunsmoke weapon. A blade of light, once again the length of the sword, erupts.
Leon slashes it in an enormous arc and cuts a pair of Spartoi in half at the waist with one strike.
DG: Leon Albus has used his Tool Flare Gun toward his party's challenge, The Demons are Here!.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"Of course she is," Lily answers, with all the irritation and pessimism that statement implies. She doesn't waste time wallowing in it though; quickly, they reach her, the woman in white with the strange magic Lily doesn't recognize, so very different from her own. But she sees the enemy, too, creatures that Lily has not so much as a name for. She starts moving, holstering her ARM of all things, inhaling the Ether charge and lifting her hands as she comes to a stop. She's entirely in black, nearly from neck to toe, with black hair and golden eyes and obvious signs of exhaustion in her face. She watches Leon move, and she's already moving herself.
Red circles with strange patterns rotate around her hands, and the explosions start amidst the group, one after another. She sprints, not as fast as Leon, as he's moving, coming along the ground through her cleared path.
"Not dying is my specialty. If you're wounded, come to me first!"
DG: Lily Keil has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Demons are Here!.
<Pose Tracker> Cecilia Adlehyde has posed.
Cecilia, with something that can only approximate agility, throws herself clear of a demonic sweep, the blade illuminating a faint sorcerous barrier around the woman. She reclaims her feet, throwing her hair messily around her as she thrusts her arms forward, a blast of fire exploding from the pentagram that shines at her finger tips. And then she almost topples over, rasping for air. So much energy already spent...she glares up, knuckles white on her staff. Is this it? Is this all she amounts to as the one the Guardians chose!?
But she scents a familiar cologne and feels her screaming muscles calm. "Bart...!" she calls. Leon slams down next to her, and she eyes him. She remembers the face; no time for more than that. She nods. "O, of course," she says, and takes a few steps back to let Leon take the bulk of the pack. Lily's arrival gets a look as well, and for just a few heartbeats, she lets herself feel something like hope.
Bart's explosion means the Yggdrasill's en route. OK. Plan. Plan... ....no time for plan. "The castle!" she says, looking back. "We have to get as many people inside as we can before they close the gates!" She bunches a fist around the Teardrop, and breathes, "The castle will hold. For now."
That might have been a prayer to Zeldukes, more than anything. But once she says it, she holds her staff forward again and it whirls on its own axis before the ground at her feet rises up and fires off in boulders.
DG: Cecilia Adlehyde has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Demons are Here!. DG: The party led by Bart Fatima has failed this challenge! The party gained 16 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
The Metal Demons clearly have something in the area that they want - logic would say that they want to breach the gate to the castle, but there is always the possibility that there is something else that they want to get their hands on here. The Princess, perhaps? She would make a tempting hostage...
The civilians push and shove as the Metal Demons come at them, a few knocking each other over as they rush towards the sound of someone who might be able to defend them. The explosions rock the Metal Demons as Lily and Cecilia unleash their magical arts, and Leon's ARM cuts through their ranks... but the Demons just keep coming, like some relentless tide that seems intent on washing humanity away.
"...alright, we gotta go! Down the road everyone!" Bart shouts at the civilians who are still following them. As for the rest of his group, he holds the line as best he can for a moment, but they're getting pushed back. "Damnit... back, back! We'll regroup down the street!" he calls, trying to grab Lily, Leon, and Cecilia and hustle them after the civvies. As he only has two hands this is probably an impressive feat.
DG: Leon Albus has drawn a new Challenge.
======================<* CHALLENGE - The Floor is Lava *>======================= |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- The floor is not really lava, but the Demons have left a number of caltrop style spikes here to slow anyone who wants to pass through the area and ambush them from behind. The Demon squad is too big to fight before the party is swarmed, and there's no time to try and clear the traps - the party needs to make progress through here as fast as possible before the Demons ahead realize that someone is trying to slip behind them. =Dungeon Conditions: Slow=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Go, go!" Leon yells. He doesn't have to be told. He waves, directing some of the fleeing civilians -- and he only just keeps from crying out in shock, when a Metal Beast leaps into a man falling behind and gores him, sending blood splashing down. He vanishes, quickly, under the wave of them coming. He can see they have to fall back, and he starts running at Bart's urging.
He has a long gash on his shoulder -- where a dart fired from one of their ARMs struck into him, at some point, in the horde. He keeps running, turning to move ahead after a few last shots from Argent Divider's shotgun. One tears the leg off the Beast that cut a man down.
When he does, he spots something glinting.
"That's--SPIKE TRAP!" he shouts. It's too late for one of the civilians at the lead. The young man steps, and a caltrop three feet long shoots out, taking form suddenly from where it fell. It slashes open his side and he stumbles back.
Leon quickly pulls his climbing rope off, then hurls it, catching onto a street lamp. He secures the other end on a second, and looks at the civilians and allies alike. "Climb over it!"
The first starts, using her hands to pull herself over the vicious spikes below. Leon, for his part, steps past the first -- and then the second, before he turns. He fires another shotgun blast, blowing down another of the Spartoi on their heels.
DG: Leon Albus has used his Tool Climbing Rope toward his party's challenge, The Floor is Lava.
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
Whomever has set this up is clearly decided that they want to make the lives of anyone who is trying to cross through this area even worse. The fact that there's small, six inch long spikes on the ground that will go straight through someone's boot if they step solidly onto it is not a good sign, and Bart curses as the first civilian goes down.
"Good idea, Leon!" he shouts, pulling out his own whip and lashing it around a street lamp. "Use that to get across and try to use it so support your weight! You shouldn't be hurt even if you do step on one, but don't step down hard! Tip toes, use your damn tip toes!" he calls to the civilians as they start making their way across.
The pirate turns around, pulling out his coin purse and removing a handful of gella. Holding one between each finger, he concentrates, charging them with Ether and flicking them at incredible speed towards the oncoming Spartoi.
The coins turn into manhole cover sized projectiles as they crash down, flattening several of the skeletal looking creatures. But there's just so damn MANY...
DG: Bart Fatima has used his Tool Bart's Whip toward his party's challenge, The Floor is Lava.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
There are some similarities to her own magic in what Cecilia does; a part in the back of her mind rattles through them as she measures distance as best she can, fires away her magic, and tries to ignore the claw that bites through her side as she's casting.
But her clothes are thick enough not to show much blood there or on her shoulder as her approach is generally to interpose herself between attacks. So when Cecilia looks at her, Lily glances right back at the other woman. "Don't worry," she says, her voice low and her words clipped.
The castle... It looks defensible. But...
It's not happening. The civilians push and shove and some die before Lily too despite her tying to make for a better target. But here they are, pushed back. Bart is able just fine to turn her around, as she glances over her shoulder at him. "All right. The road." And there they are running; Lily lets out a lance of ice crashing towards a Metal Beast chasing along. She tries to stare forward, but Leon spots the trap sooner than she does for sure. She stops and looks short in alarm, seeing the man stumbling back, bleeding heavily from a wound that in this situation, will surely be fatal. Leon starts talking about climbing, but...
Lily rushes to the side of the man who's fallen now, crashing more fire in a wall around them for a moment to dissuade followers. "Stop moving," Lily tells him, and forces him down with her other hand while she sets the right over his side, closing her eyes. "Just..." A red circle forms and crimson light sparks down over him, healing his wound in seconds as if it had never been there.
She lets up her hand. "Now move your ass! Don't make that pointless!" She barks it out and helps him to his feet, letting hm start and looking before her before she starts running again, too. Behind her there's a fan of flames from her fingertips, and then before her she reaches for the rope and starts pulling herself up.
DG: Lily Keil has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Floor is Lava.
<Pose Tracker> Cecilia Adlehyde has posed.
Cecilia bites out a rather impressively sour word (ladies learn such language at school) and then takes to heel as Bart calls the retreat. Her teeth are grit and her eyes have a certain wild focus as she bolts. This dress isn't working. These shoes aren't working. Her thoughts spin furiously - as a man gets gored in front of her. "NO!" she screams, too late.
Bart may recall that usually Cecillia's solution to a need for immediate mobility is to look forlorn until Bart helps her out.
But this time, she doesn't even look his way. She releases a series of harsh, stricken breaths, and produces a small wand from her belt. Then, as well as she can, she runs up to a pair of civilians who've stopped - panicking, screaming.
She takes them both in her arms, letting them see their princess's haggard face up close. But she says, "Hold on to me."
And then she straightens enough that, with her free hand, she can cast the wand forward, and a bead of light flies away from it, floating merrily across towoard the other side. There's nothing there, unless one is magic; the faint white mist of a Leypoint, Filgaia's Ley energy concentrating in a point that appears, to the gifted, as a white jewel.
Which her point of light impacts, causing it to erupt into white light, and Cecilia and her duo of rescuees to vanish, only to reappear where the jewel was.
Cecilia gives them a thin smile. "Now, go! Go!" she yells, and pushes her people away.
She turns her eyes back to the Demons on the other side. No summon can wipe away this many demons, she thinks.
She understands, now. The Guardians on their own cannot fight so terribly much evil.
DG: Cecilia Adlehyde has used her Tool Change Staff toward her party's challenge, The Floor is Lava. DG: The party led by Bart Fatima has failed this challenge! The party gained 29 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
The one that Lily heals looks up at her, eyes wide with terror -- but her sharp words are what gets him moving. He hurries, grabbing the rope, and he stares moving. Her flame shoots through the ranks of the Metal Demons, joined by the occasional shot from Leon and the coins that go flying, smashing into some of the Spartoi.
But not all of them. The demons keep coming -- and then a bird sweeps down on the line, just as the last pair are crossing. Leon fires, but the shot misses, and then sharp steel talons shred through the climbing rope. A young woman screams as she drops down -- and gets impaled through the midsection by one of those rapidly-appearing spikes of metal. Her body slumps.
"Move! Quick!"
Leon shouts, as the line starts to fall. Another civilian is gashed on the arm -- but the others drag themselves, weakly, across the entrapped section. Leon leaps, landing again on the other side, and takes Argent Divider to shoulder. He fires at the bird -- and blasts it through. It crashes down into him.
It isn't a bird, they'll find, after it finishes its kamikaze attack. The wings aren't leathery, but made of fibers -- and the hide is plated in steel and stranger metals, with eyes like a Gear's oculars. And, worse, its impact has thrown Leon into a building. He stumbles away, hand over his side. It comes away wet with blood.
"Gh... we need to keep moving," he says. "You have the right idea, Princess. Let's hope the castle's walls can hold against these things."
Riesenlied has arrived.
DG: Cecilia Adlehyde has drawn a new Challenge.
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Way Too Many Teeth *>===================== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- There is a terrible roar, and a massive quadruped Hunter Killer Metal Demon crashes to the ground in the middle of the party. The beast-like Demon is all fangs, claws, and terrible fury, and it lashes out immediately in a killing frenzy. The party has only moments to collect themselves and drive their attacker off - if its allowed to keep attacking who knows how much damage it will cause? =Dungeon Conditions: Maim=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Cecilia Adlehyde has posed.
"The castle is blessed by the Castle Guardian!" probably "It WILL hold!" on paper
She's not so much taking up the rear as she's falling behind, that dress in her way and the fancy boots doing nothing to aid her mobility. She'd better hope she's right though because slamming into the ground ahead of the retreating line comes a titanic, beastly thing; four legs and more teeth than anything should have, its metallic nature is a small blessing only because its mouth doesn't spray much spittle when it opens its mouth and shrieks, then sweeps once - and completely obliterates a man with one blow.
Cecilia's eyes widen, the spray and sweeping claws crossing her vision in horrible slow motion. She can hear her heart. She can hear her breath. Like the world stopped.
The Teardrop is no defense against this.
That one's beyond healing. The rest aren't. She forces the bile back in her throat and throws her arms forward, screaming as fire leaps from her staff.
DG: Cecilia Adlehyde has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Way Too Many Teeth.
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
The sound of something large, metallic, and angry crashing into the party forces Bart to whirl around in the midst of the chaos of their flight. The thing is large, angry, and seems all to willing to try and shred them.
"GOD DAMNIT!" he roars, shattering the last of his cologne against the ground. They need to depend on the Ether charge to get through this, and Bart gives a single order to the rest of the group: "KEEP GOING!" he shouts!
And leaps onto the back of the metal beast before it can lay into Cecelia. He pulls out his whip and wraps it around the damn thing's throat, keeping its head back for a moment as he strains against its rather significant strength.
"Cecilia! Lily! Leon! Shoot the damn thing!" he states with a grunt as it begins to thrash around with him on its back! "Blast it! ZAP IT! At least stun it, or just kill it! THIS! ISN'T! EAAASSSSSYYYYYY!!!"
The beast rears and bucks, slamming into a wall and leaving a Bart shaped impression in the stucco facade.
"...ow..."
DG: Bart Fatima has used his Tool White Cologne toward his party's challenge, Way Too Many Teeth.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Climbing the ropes aggravates Lily's wounds, a difficult endeavor even otherwise in these conditions, though she forces herself through it. She keeps an eye on the man still moving ahead of her, and makes no move to overtake him.
She falls from the rope at the end, rolling along the ground with new bruises, and forces herself up to her feet, checking her belongings. ...Most of her books she's left in the room, but she has the essential things with her now.
It's only a second as it happens, and when the last come down, that 'bird' comes down, faster that Lily can move. Another falls. So many do. Maybe there's something she could do for them if she moved quickly enough, or maybe...
She shakes her head, focusing. It's a good thing she does; Leon is hit hard. "Leon!" she calls out, and immediatel rushes in his direction. "You--" She looks him over, gives him a concerned look, and turns away. "Let's go."
As she takes a breath she spots the Ley point's white jewel that Cecilia used, and looks to Cecilia a moment longer. She says nothing to her.
Instead she's doing the mental mathematics on how many of these people are going to survive their trip at this rate. She forces herself to consider it.
At the roar she turns sharply, and fangs, claws, and terrible fury all descend upon the black-haired woman in an instant. A rake of its claws sends her flying backwards until she hits the ground, dazed for a breath with blood glistening down her midsection and her side. She was already wounded, but this comes out more quickly, to be sure, and the bruises from the stones beneath her don't do much better.
She doesn't stop to ask questions; she sets her hands down and shoves, getting her feet beneath her and standing back up as quickly as she can. She was already near the rear, but now she's behind, thanks to that strike as it comes for her, too.
The victim fallenfills her vision, too. "It had better," Lily breathes loud enough to be heard at Cecilia on the castle, and extends her right hand. Violet magic fills that space as in an instant, a black greatsword, like a hole in the air around them of perfect void, appears in her hand. She reaches to take it in both. "I'm going in."
Lily charges and starts hacking away with her magical weapon without so much as a battlecry. Well... almost none, given that fire and Bart's whip have helped here along with that Ether charge.
As she slashes as best she can she can with her very large weapon, she calls, "Bart get your ass back up already!"
DG: Lily Keil has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Way Too Many Teeth.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
Leon shakes his head to Lily, though he puts a hand on her shoulder. "I'm fine, Lieutenant. Don't worry." He lets out a breath, as he starts moving again. But he looks back at Cecilia.
"The castle Guardian?" he asks, and running the way he is, he doesn't have the time to sound incredulous. He comes to a stop, though, when he hears a crash behind him. He turns, quickly, and sees the huge, four-legged, clawed thing. People are fleeing from it, their little band of civilians running to get away from it, and he sees the one who is shorn down. He sees the way the princess almost freezes up.
Training makes him move before he can freeze up. Bart jumps onto the back of the thing, arm around the Metal Beast's throat, and then he gets thrown off -- and Lily moves in, her magically-created black great sword slashing. He fires, again -- and the flare gun shoots its last flare round, which explodes in bright light on the creature's hide.
Then, Leon leaps, jumping high into the air over it, and he aims down. The shotgun fires once, then twice, then a third time as he shoots over the course of his arc, to land in front of Cecilia. He looks over his shoulder, then shouts at her. "Move, move, get to Bart!"
DG: Leon Albus has used his Tool Flare Gun toward his party's challenge, Way Too Many Teeth. DG: The party led by Bart Fatima has failed this challenge! The party gained 16 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Cecilia Adlehyde has posed.
The beats screams; fire batters against its carapace, and Bart's rejuvenating cologne fills the air. Leon strikes swift, releasing that flare gun's light against the thing and then moving to strike at it with his blade. He calls for Cecilia to move, and she nods, huffing and breaking into a run. For some small mercy, the thing's preoccupation with the people fighting back means a few innocents get past it and on the road to safety.
Cecilia gets most of the way to Bart before her dress finally trips her, and she stumbles two steps and falls flat on her face. "OOF!" she wails, and is so caught up in the pain for a few moments that she almost doesn't notice that the Thing heard that.
She mostly notices because it screams before the spiked talons slam down where she was; she gracelessly threw herself the last meter to Bart. She's pretty sure her knees are skinned. Gotta heal that later. She moves to help him up, if he has somehow remained down this long.
"We can't..." ...
The word sticks in her throat. They can't beat it.
"There's an alley," she hisses. "We can cut around the side! It won't be able to follow in that narrow a space!"
She hauls on Bart's arm for a second before forcing herself into a run. "Let's go!"
DG: Lily Keil has drawn a new Challenge.
=======================<* CHALLENGE - The Rooftop Road *>======================= |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Sometimes the best escape is going upwards. There are enough buildings close together here that moving along the rooftop will allow the party and anyone accompanying them to make good time and avoid the worst of the fighting below. However, there are still gaps that need to be jumped, and anyone who falls will face a dangerous scramble to rejoin the party. =Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"...Right, Captain," Lily agrees, but has no time to stop and reflect on the moment. They're moving, and then they're fighting for that matter. For her part, Lily stays with the creature directly for as long as she's able, keeping it apart from those innocents in any way that she can. She doesn't do this unscathed to say the least, battered again as she keeps swinging until she feels and sees her allies retreating.
"Captain!" she says and slips backward, the weapon winking out of existence--she'd had to conjure it again a few times already--as she turns and runs the other way as best she can, already driven back towards Cecilia. It hits her with another slash to her back that knocks her forward and leaves her stumbling, but she darts across into the alley Cecilia mentioned after her.
Only then does it turn out that this is a dead end alley, with just enough space to get well out of claw and fang range. There are, however, ladders...
"Always more climbing," Lily mutters, bleeding now from numerous places and not particularly slowed by it except for having to force herself not to move stiffly. She starts up the first ladder. "At least we'll have a better vantage point."
DG: Lily Keil has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Rooftop Road.
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
Bart groans for a moment as he shakes his head, working to clear it from that impact.
The first thing that he sees coming to is an old and familiar face, and he grins as he grabs Cecilia's hand and pulls himself back to his feet. "They're really not hold back this time, are they?" he asks after a moment. That damn beast. The civilians are already running, and now... they need to make a break for it!
But as they slip down the alley, Bart looks at Lily for a moment and grins as he grabs onto a ladder. "I'll take a climb over having to fight that thing with so many people in tow." He makes his way to the top, and then uses his whip to grab onto a board so he can pull it over and allow people to make their way to the next rooftop.
The scene of carnage spread out around them is terrible - smoke rises from across the city, and in the distance the occasional missile and trail of tracers rise into the sky as the Yggdrasil and its Gears work to try and carve out a safe space outside of the city. The flying Demons are keeping low, but it's clear that the city is swarming with invaders.
Bart lets out a hiss, scuffing his forehead with his hand. "Damn, you said it was going to be bad Ci, but this..." He looks at Leon and Lily, both of whom are battered about as much as they are. "...you two holding up alright? Be careful, a slip here is gonna lead to a nasty fall."
DG: Bart Fatima has used his Tool Bart's Whip toward his party's challenge, The Rooftop Road.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Fall back!" Leon shouts, and he waves the civilians over. Not all of them make it, he thinks; some must have been separated. As it stands, they can't double back to save them. As they rush into the alleyway, though, they find a dead end. His eyes widen a moment, before he looks at Lily.
He nods, once. "We can get away from the ones down here for a moment," he says. "But be careful. They have at least some fliers."
He starts up the ladder, and then gets to the roof. He takes a deep breath when he does -- then reaches his hand down, and pulls one of the ones who made it with them. The young man shudders, eyes wide, as he sees the smoke and fire drifting up over the city. He swallows. He hasn't seen an entire city under siege, before -- the war was fought over a dedicated front, which rarely pushed into any of the major cities.
This is different.
"We'll be fine," he tells Bart. He unspools more of his rope -- it's perilously short, now, after the line was cut -- and then throws it out, to the steeple of a Granas Church nearby. He tightens it, then looks at everyone. "Hold onto this. We can get to the roof, over there," he says, pointing. "Move fast. If those flyers spot us..."
He shakes his head, not voicing that.
DG: Leon Albus has used his Tool Climbing Rope toward his party's challenge, The Rooftop Road. <Pose Tracker> Cecilia Adlehyde has posed.
Cecilia doesn't look in the mood for small talk, for some reason. "They never did," she croaks. She spins on her heels and follows them up to the rooftops.
She takes in the tableau with a certain dull horror, in a heartbeat that seems to last forever. Stains on the ground that used to be men and women. Two...objects soar across her vision, leaking fluids she forces herself not to examine. Screams. So many screams.
The Teardrop is screaming, too. "Even the Guardians are afraid," she breathes, her hand holding the gem close. "...my people are dying..." she whispers, the moment slowly sinking into her like a knife.
But her fist slowly balls tight, tension running up and down her body, electric, and she whips herself away from the vision. "I had no idea. I had legends."
She pulls out her Change Staff again as Leon decides where they're going, and finds a leypoint on the church roof. "Legends don't kill people this well," she spits, and disappears.
DG: Cecilia Adlehyde has used her Tool Change Staff toward her party's challenge, The Rooftop Road. DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success! DG: The party led by Bart Fatima has successfully explored The Battle of Adelhyde!
=====================<* CHALLENGE - It's Over - For Now *>====================== |Type: Discovery |Dungeon Ability: Discovery |Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- The party has made it out of the city, along with any civilians who were traveling with them. Outside of the city, the line is being held by parts of the Adelhyde Guard, the Yggdrasil Pirates and their Gears, as well as a number of Drifters who have set up defensive positions and safe areas for civilians to rest and prepare to move away from the city. For those who have escaped to Adelhyde castle, the fighting at the walls continues, but food and shelter can still be obtained. However, the fighting continues, and there are more people yet trapped inside Adelhyde City... =Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Bart grins at her, and Lily shakes her head. "Yeah, yeah," she agrees, not quite rueful--frankly as close to casual as she tends to get. ...She's not particularly rattled, to look at her, despite her own injuries. She glances at Leon when he speaks up though. "Mm. Right."
Not for the first time, she imagines it would be easier if she still had her rifle. Regardless, she heads up as quickly as she's able, and sees the devasation from the roof. She stares out at the burning city, mindlessly helping pull up another noncombatant. This is different.
But what Cecilia says... "The Guardians are?" she asks. But then she's whispering what she does, and Lily quiets, not wanting to intrude. Legends...
"Bart," Lily says, "...I think we need to have a talk about what these legends were. What this is."
But she doesn't move to do it. INstead, she moves to try to cross the rope, but blood running down her arms makes her gloves slicker than they should be, and she starts to slip.
She'd fall if not for group help, and she wrenches her shoulder regardless.
But from here they can get into the castle, and bring the survivors with them. The Church is a stepping stone, and while the walls are still violent, there's shelter within for enough of a break to regroup.
Lily immediately starts looking at the survivors.
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
At this point there isn't much to do but try and get everyone over to the church. Bart works on passing civilians through, making sure that their equipment is set as they slide down to their destination. Bart listens as Cecilia speaks bitterly about what is going on, and he doesn't have much he can say back as she slides off towards their egress.
As Lily asks her question, Bart gestures down the rope towards the Princess. "She can explain it better - I just knew there was something coming, and I wanted to prepare as best I could." He looks around the city, and gives Lily that help by wrapping his whip under her arms and tying it off so she can't fall, given all of the blood she has on her. Safety first. "Seems like it was pointless from here."
But Bart turns to look at the fighting on the horizon, and the distant form of the Yggdrasil as his people fight desperately to try and save as many people as possible. They can't charge the city - the Yggdrasil and its pirates are almost entirely oriented for Gear combat, and while that might make it extremely difficult for the Metal Demons to make an assault against the position Sigurd is carving out, that also means they can't go into the city without getting swarmed.
They're burning resources they had husbanded carefully to launch their rebellion against Shakhan. His people are dying in this fight.
It doesn't matter. There are lives on the line.
"But we're here, and we're still fighting. It's like I told you, Lily. Some things are worth fighting for, even if it seems hopeless. Get going, I'm going to see about a signal. Just don't lose my whip or cut that rope before I get down there."
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
Leon is quick to help Lily back up, pulling her up, and then he looks sideways at Bart. He nods, once, to him. "I'd like to know, too. This... this is beyond the pale of anything I expected. Are those really...?"
Metal Demons. He can hardly believe it -- hardly believe that they're real. His brow furrows, for a moment, and then he folds his arms. He looks sideways, back towards the city. His brow furrows further. "...We'll have our work cut out for us," he says. "We don't even know why they're doing this."
He turns, then, and looks back up at the castle. He starts walking, then, and motions for the rest of the civilians. "Let's move."
<Pose Tracker> Cecilia Adlehyde has posed.
They make it, in time, to the castle. Cecilia has an alien look in her eye, focused by sheer need to not stop for even one second to think about what's happening. If she stops she'll break. She can feel it boiling in her chest, emotions that need out.
When she gets inside the castle proper, voices cry out, if there were even a shred of doubt remaining: "The Princess returns!"
Cecilia stops, and sucks in air through her nose like she were taking the last breath of her life.
Then she marches onward, spine straight despite her knees and palms stinging from her scrapes. She hasn't healed them. That would be energy she couldn't use to heal somebody else. She finds the first knight to cross her path and plants a hand on his armor. It stains. It's not her blood. "Where is Captain Ozma?"
He stares at her in shock and stamers. "Manning the gates, Highness!"
Of course. "And my father?"
"His chambers, highness! The throne room is being used to house the townsfolk!"
Her eyes cut to the side. Safe, then. Good. "Go. Tell Ozma he's to hold those gates open as long as he possibly can. I..."
She stops, and a rough breath runs through her, and it's like her mind turns off, her mouth opening and unable to produce a thought to fill it with. "I..." she stammers.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Lily looks to Bart through his explanation, thoughtful, but she can't focus on him for long; she needs her full attention on this rope. She slips through and his whip is tied under her arms, leaving her with the unpleasant feeling of hanging stories up. There is a lot of blood; there's only more as time goes on.
"..." She can't say whether it was pointless or not; she just accepts Leon's help up, uncoiling the whip and offering it back to the pirate. "Thank you." A pause. "...Yes, I..."
Legends everywhere. Legends, and less than legends. Now standing on solid ground, she rubs again at what was once a wound on her left forearm, still an unsettling presence for any of these people who can sense such things.
But Bart speaks up. He says there are things worth fighting for, and she hesitates, looking back at him. "Bart..."
Things worth fighting for, even if it seems hopeless. Lily nods, and starts down the path again. They all get moving. Leon directs them, and she keeps watching for any fatal wounds being concealed by inexpert hands.
Inside the castle though she stops short of following the Princess, instinctively shrinking back from what is obviously the center of attention right here. Lily hasn't healed herself either... But she's not a Princess in white. She's in black, and a soldier. Lily watches Cecilia carefully all the same, until--
She's stammering, and these people need a leader. Cecilia probably needs a moment to process. Lily glances to Leon, and nods, before she steps forward.
"Your Highness!" Lily calls out in a low, Kislevan-accented voice. "...May I speak with you in private?" She curtsies, at the request, bloody-gloved hands on her skirts. "It's quite urgent."
<Pose Tracker> Bart Fatima has posed.
Bart watches as Lily, Leon, and the last of the civilians head off towards the cathedral. It seems like there is a good route here, and they can get to the castle rather quickly. That's good.
Because Bart isn't going to be taking it.
"...heh, other thing I didn't mention, Lily, is that sometimes when things are really bad, there are jobs you can't ask anyone else to do either." The pirate checks the ammo in his pistol, how much change he has for Ether shots, and that his boot knife is still where he left it. All in all, this was a lot easier when he was already up on the rooftops.
Might not even have been possible if he was having to get through the streets. But Bart leaps to the next roof, continuing on down the street a good ways before he finally finds the roof he was looking for.
A heavy canvas bag has been nailed to a chimney atop a private house that had owners who weren't in all that often. Checking on it was hard when you had to sneak, but no reason to sneak when the city was going to hell in a handbasket. Bart digs around for a moment, pulling out three heavy metal pistols with extremely wide barrels. He checks the casings in each one, ensuring they've not been damaged by the weather, and then raises each to the sky in turn.
One after another, the three flares race into the sky, bursting with green, red, and yellow light. And as that sort of thing tends to attract the attention of flying Demons, the pirate immediately jumps off the roof into a large pile of hay, and starts making his way back towards the castle.
Back on the Yggdrasil, a lookout checks his binoculars, and hits the button to hail the bridge. "Signal from the Captain!" he proclaims. "Pattern as follows: Render necessary assistance. Look for openings to render greater assistance. Get me my damn Gear."
Sigurd looks up the command deck, and for the first time a hint of a smile crosses his face. "Young Master... hmph, asking for the impossible again, I see."