main plot All Lights Quenched

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

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‘Let us kill this man in the most painful and humiliating way possible, then sit down and maybe have a drink. Sound good?’

 

[+Ark1002]

21 hours ago, I think I am here. said:

Max looked to the warp, to Ajax. His eyes were wide.

Ajax is here, he replied. Looks like he came to us with all of his monsters.

He summoned Sethramir and held it by his side defensively.

Do the Ghostbloods have any anti-aircraft technology? He’s hovering around, and I have a feeling he’s going to be able to repel most things we throw at him. His voice over the link shook slightly.

——-

“Ohmystorms Ohmystorms Ohmystorms!” Wes shouted on the rooftop, looking at Ajax and his posse of monsters. They all look scary. This was the boss battle. The final fight. The end game. Wordlessly Wes swivelled the machine gun to aim and Ajax, and fired away relentlessly.

“Die, die, die!” He chanted.

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"We're in the endgame now"

So, I have a bit of internet access, but not enough to create a response that these justify. So this is, unfortunately, going to have to wait.

 

[AonEne he/him]

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Oh nooooooooooo poor Zokora please don't mean what I think you mean. RIP her house.

Xino, you still there?

@Sorana @xinoehp512

Deteca accepted the water thankfully. Considering the circumstances, this was not a time to be paranoid. After handing it back, she reviewed what she knew of what had happened during the fight as Zokora skimmed through camera viewpoints - Ghostblood ones, presumably.

She had been fighting the gorilla-cat-whatever with Neil and Zokora. Fighting being a relative word, as she wasn't the best fighter - talking was far more her thing. It had complimented her, then apologetically tried to kill her with the excuse that it and its family would die if it didn't. Does this mean I just killed its family? She closed her eyes, opened them again. Didn't matter if she had. It'd probably been lying anyway. She forged on. Condemning her, TUBA, and their lifestyle, it had called them evil hypocrites - or something like that, it had been a bit fuzzier then and she hadn't been concentrating as hard.

She'd been wounded sometime in there too, she reminded herself. Enough to make her faint, which was surprising. And she'd been pretty mad, right up until she suddenly just...wasn't. Instead she'd been tired, unmotivated. And then black splotches had crept toward the thing; that must not have all been her injury affecting her vision after all. But what had they done to it, and what had caused them? Deteca had never heard of Investiture with that description before. Could it have been something to do with Aons or the Dor, something Neil or another Elantrian among the warring groups had done?

"I could take us to a roof a safe distance away. So that we can get an impression of the situation, judge better where to send our troops," Zokora said, and Deteca glanced up. She zoomed in on a few of the destroyed ruins and stared at them, blinking. "We could go there. I know the area well."

Deteca let out a breath slowly. "Sounds good to me. Thank you." Avoiding eye contact by rubbing her frosty arm - why in the world was she so freezing? It wasn't that bad in the tunnels - she added, "I'm sorry."

Edited August 25, 2019 by AonEne

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

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Don’t worry, if Ark has responded by Monday, he’ll definitely do it then. I’ll make him.

 

Edited August 25, 2019 by Darth Woodrack

[I think I am here. he/him]

On 24/08/2019 at 2:31 PM, Sorana said:

Mike rushed over to Wes, took his arm.

"Stop. Just stop Wes. He's too far away. Please. You need to think."

He stared at him, at the boy who was declining his friendship again and again. That kept him at a distance.

"Wes, please. I don't want to loose you."

I want to be your friend, but if I can't be that, then at least let me be your voice of reason.

“Sir!” Wes said, stopping the firing but staying fixed in his position, looking to Mike with a flash of irritation behind his glasses.

He paused for a moment, regained himself.

“He’s attacking the city. He’s attacked the city. What else am I —” his voice broke. “What else am I supposed to do?”

————

On 24/08/2019 at 2:31 PM, Sorana said:

I want to go on vacation.

She told him.

Just a few days. No dying, no deaths, just you and me and no war.

She made sure the door was locked and then took a deep breath. Stay strong, stay calm. No more outbreaks. Wiping the tears of her face she reached for her mask again. She looked even ore awful than earlier, red streaks from crying a great addition to the grime and blood of the sewers.

Elsecalling back to Max and Aylitha she replied to his question loudly.

"We might have some motivators to conter his hovering. Maybe a Radiant with Gravitation can help as well. I ordered Tels to try and find out something about his powers. I need to contact our quartermaster."

Her voice was calm and controlled, her face her usual, carefully crafted mask.

We will, Max said. Trying to comfort her.

We’ll go to Iri. For your birthday.

“Would a leecher bomb disable him?” Max asked. Something city-wide, it had to be powerful enough to leech him. The only downside would be it would leech everyone else too. But still, it looked like those monsters were powered by Investiture, maybe a leecher bomb could cripple them.

[+Sorana she/her]

29 minutes ago, I think I am here. said:

“Sir!” Wes said, stopping the firing but staying fixed in his position, looking to Mike with a flash of irritation behind his glasses.

He paused for a moment, regained himself.

“He’s attacking the city. He’s attacked the city. What else am I —” his voice broke. “What else am I supposed to do?”

"Are you even within range? Or maybe wait till your shots counts, I don't know."

Mike asked and looked at the looming figure. It was away from them, and he had no idea how Wes even planned to hit something that far away. But then he barely hit a target on the other side of the room, so he probably was the wrong one to judge that. Judging distances had never been his strength.

"I'm sorry."

He whispered, realized he had panic, had allowed for his fear to control him.

"I'll get you more ammunition. Do you need anything special?"

===============

35 minutes ago, I think I am here. said:

We will, Max said. Trying to comfort her.

We’ll go to Iri. For your birthday.

“Would a leecher bomb disable him?” Max asked. Something city-wide, it had to be powerful enough to leech him. The only downside would be it would leech everyone else too. But still, it looked like those monsters were powered by Investiture, maybe a leecher bomb could cripple them.

"I think so. It would at least buy us some time. Or can you think of something, that's against this? Will it interfer with your plans?"

She asked Aylitha, then typed down a quick order and then sent the contact to Max, telling the young man to work the details out with him.

"I send you the contact of the guy responsible for things like that. He can take care of the explosion as well. It's easier if you communicate directly. As long as we make sure, that we don't cripple us more, than we cripple him, it could work."

I grew up in Iri. Her eyes met his profile, wondered when he had started to plan this. She'd never told him, but of course there were documents where the Ghostbloods had recruited her. With some effort he probably had found it out easily. Iri. She'd never planned to return there, but the thought to show him her past, to let him into that chapter of her life. It was a good thought. And maybe she could close it afterwards forever.

The leecher bomb will leave me unable to do anything. More than unable. I crossed the border into the unhealthy amount of stormlight a while ago.

Sometime when she'd healed all that poison, when she got them out. She would have to protect the metalmind, probably in aluminum. Still she was uncomfortable with the prospect to completely run out. She trusted Max, but he probably had to act afterwards, wasn't there to make sure she was able to move again. Somehow she'd hoped she could get them home and then collapse in their bed.

@kenod

==================

Zokora took Deteca's hand, shook her head in reply to her apology.

"There is nothing to be sorry for. At least nothing, I can remember."

Taking the hand was something Althea had recommended. There was no need for a physical touch to elsecall someone. But for those not used to it, it made it easier, if there was some kind of gesture going along with the change. She inhaled, smiled at the storm and then she reached out for Deteca, for Shadesmar. Althea described it as opening a door, just press down the handle and open it gently. Zokora felt more like taking a two-handed hammer and smash it down on the border, then rip everything apart and force them through. Needless to say that Althea was a lot more efficient when it came to elsecalling.

Still Zokora managed to move them, although it left her dizzy, sinking to her knees, when the stormlight suddenly vanished. She felt weak, but still she lifted her head, looked over the remains of what had been her terrace. The tiles were broken, her plants thrown around, some missed completely. But it was nothing to the sight to her right, when she turned her head and could look down, several stories down, through the different flats. The one below the roof had been hers, and she blankely stared at the remains of her furniture, at the cloths strewn around, the cables, the water drippling over the concrete where the pipes had been ripped apart.

"You can grab a woolen vest."

She offered, mostly to fill the silence, pointed at the remains of a drying rack at one side of the terrace.

"They were clean when I hung them up this morning."

@AonEne

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If you want to come along, feel free to state, that Zokora elsecalled you to the roof as well.

@xinoehp512

===============

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Ark, just to make sure there is no miscommunication. None of my characters are somewhere close to the 30 feet.

@RayOfSunshine

[Voidus]

Voidus stared back at the Stranger, into the eye and the spike. His eyes darkened as he stared, silently and intently for several unbroken seconds before finally blinking and turning them away, towards the crater that had formed, and the Behemoth that rampaged at its edge. The darkness faded from his eyes and the surrounding air began to settle, the small pools of darkness that had begun forming reverted and they were simply standing there again.

But there was a visible strain in his expression when he finally nodded. He would hold back, for now, but he had no patience left, no desire to drag this out or teach any lessons. This simply needed to be dealt with, and soon. But for his oldest friend, he was willing to give some leeway.

"I heard a saying once." Voidus said softly. "On one of the other worlds. 'Death is lighter than a feather, duty heavier than a mountain.'"

He gave a humorless smile to the ground as he left the sentence to hang before continuing.

"What does that say for those of us who can't die? When does that duty let up?"

He nudged a small rock with the toe of his shoe, letting it teeter over the edge of the crater precariously.

"Well then, let's go teach a lesson to the fool who advertises his whereabouts. Perhaps if we're lucky he's set up some kind of an ambush to at least make it interesting."

As he turned around he heard the rock slip over the edge and clatter into the darkness.

@Fatebreaker

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

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Yeah, I do see the problem with this. When Voidus and the Stranger(and potentially Cam from HR) are fighting someone, not only will it last all of three posts, no one else plays in at all.

 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

4 hours ago, Sorana said:

Zokora took Deteca's hand, shook her head in reply to her apology.

"There is nothing to be sorry for. At least nothing, I can remember."

Taking the hand was something Althea had recommended. There was no need for a physical touch to elsecall someone. But for those not used to it, it made it easier, if there was some kind of gesture going along with the change. She inhaled, smiled at the storm and then she reached out for Deteca, for Shadesmar. Althea described it as opening a door, just press down the handle and open it gently. Zokora felt more like taking a two-handed hammer and smash it down on the border, then rip everything apart and force them through. Needless to say that Althea was a lot more efficient when it came to elsecalling.

Still Zokora managed to move them, although it left her dizzy, sinking to her knees, when the stormlight suddenly vanished. She felt weak, but still she lifted her head, looked over the remains of what had been her terrace. The tiles were broken, her plants thrown around, some missed completely. But it was nothing to the sight to her right, when she turned her head and could look down, several stories down, through the different flats. The one below the roof had been hers, and she blankely stared at the remains of her furniture, at the cloths strewn around, the cables, the water drippling over the concrete where the pipes had been ripped apart.

"You can grab a woolen vest."

She offered, mostly to fill the silence, pointed at the remains of a drying rack at one side of the terrace.

"They were clean when I hung them up this morning."

Neil felt the world shift around him as the Ghostblood lady (Zokora, that was her name) used her power.

He took a look at the surroundings; the scattered plants, the splattered furniture, the shattered floor. He bent over and picked up one of the fallen plants- some sort of flower, it looked like- and cupped it in his hands. 

"You've had your home ripped apart, too, haven't you?" he whispered, eyeing the fragments of pottery on the floor. "Just like we all have."

Edited August 25, 2019 by xinoehp512

[kenod]

6 hours ago, Sorana said:

"I think so. It would at least buy us some time. Or can you think of something, that's against this? Will it interfer with your plans?"

She asked Aylitha, then typed down a quick order and then sent the contact to Max, telling the young man to work the details out with him.

"I send you the contact of the guy responsible for things like that. He can take care of the explosion as well. It's easier if you communicate directly. As long as we make sure, that we don't cripple us more, than we cripple him, it could work."

I grew up in Iri. Her eyes met his profile, wondered when he had started to plan this. She'd never told him, but of course there were documents where the Ghostbloods had recruited her. With some effort he probably had found it out easily. Iri. She'd never planned to return there, but the thought to show him her past, to let him into that chapter of her life. It was a good thought. And maybe she could close it afterwards forever.

The leecher bomb will leave me unable to do anything. More than unable. I crossed the border into the unhealthy amount of stormlight a while ago.

Sometime when she'd healed all that poison, when she got them out. She would have to protect the metalmind, probably in aluminum. Still she was uncomfortable with the prospect to completely run out. She trusted Max, but he probably had to act afterwards, wasn't there to make sure she was able to move again. Somehow she'd hoped she could get them home and then collapse in their bed.

Aylitha thought for a bit, contacting her other self. "It shouldn't hinder me too much," she said. "It will temporarily disrupt my ability to create new constructs or directly control them though, and the DA is planning something as well, I'm not sure if it'll interfere with their plans. I'll send a warning though." She tilted her head, thinking. "What kind of radius are we talking about here?"

***

Back at the crater Aylitha looked at Voidus as he walked away. Throwing a quick glance at the Stranger she snapped her fingers, then followed him. The animals and constructs she had sitting on the shore got into motion, moving in front of Voidus, spreading out to intercept any incoming creatures.

At that point her eyes glazed over and she stared into the distance. A second later her eyes refocused, and she moved up to the Stranger, while sending a small bug to Voidus. "The Ghostbloods are planning on dropping a Leecher bomb on the target," she said, the bug echoing her words. "Should they abort or would it be better to wait until after it has landed?"

@Voidus, @Fatebreaker

Edited August 25, 2019 by kenod

[AonEne he/him]

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I'm going to be honest, at this point I would be totally fine with the DA leaders just coming in and killing them in five minutes. It would be an interesting end after everyone else's semiclimactic battles, and fitting for the Alleyverse. Poetic in a way. Plus there's not any other way for this to realistically go SOOOOO

Deteca looked around at the wreckage, wincing, and offered her other hand to Zokora to hopefully pull her up. "Thanks," she said awkwardly, taking a sweater but not putting it on.

[xinoehp512 he/him]

Daa pulled himself free from Neil, floating in the air above him.

"So," he said, "What next?"

@AonEne @Sorana

Edited August 25, 2019 by xinoehp512

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

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Oh, I’m completely fine with them doing that, I’m just pointing out the relative pointlessness of a none-god entity participating in this fight.

 

[AonEne he/him]

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Agreed. He's too OP, bit of a railroad

 

[Rushu42 she/her]

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I'd say the same. The DA can kill the final boss, and the rest of the plot can be cleanup. Of course, my character isn't fighting, so perhaps I'm biased.

 

[AonEne he/him]

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*passes out popcorn*

 

[Rushu42 she/her]

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*Can't eat popcorn because of Orthodontics*

*Accepts some anyway*

 

[+Sorana she/her]

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*grabs some popcorn*

I'd be perfectly fine with the DA ripping him apart.

 

[AonEne he/him]

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My braces stop me from nothing

 

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

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Lita and Laurelai are already primed and ready to watch the DA leaders sling some sweet sweet magical annihilation. 

 

[Voidus]

31 minutes ago, AonEne said:

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My braces stop me from nothing

 

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I'm not sure what it is about this line that I like so much, but I really want to see this in the RP somewhere as like a final line before ending a fight or something

Ajax: You can never stop me and my army! Your braces will never allow it!
Deteca: My braces stop me from nothing *Unleashes giant energy blast or stabs with sword*

 

[+Sorana she/her]

6 hours ago, AonEne said:

Deteca looked around at the wreckage, wincing, and offered her other hand to Zokora to hopefully pull her up. "Thanks," she said awkwardly, taking a sweater but not putting it on.

Zokora took the hand and got to her feet. Her knees felt like jelly, but she still smiled gratefully. Elsecalling two people over that distance, it was something she'd never done before.

"Yes. That was my flat."

She pointed downwards.

"That pile of rubble there was my kitchen."

Turning around she looked out over the city, to where Lord Ajax was. They could see him more clearly now, him and the six standing by his side.

"I don't know what we should do now." Shaking her head she took another sweater, smiled when she that it wasn't damaged, only to turn it around and see a large hole in its back.

"I'm a first oath Radiant. that guy will eat me for dinner."

@AonEne

@xinoehp512

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

8 minutes ago, Voidus said:

Ajax: You can never stop me and my army! Your braces will never allow it!
Deteca: My braces stop me from nothing *Unleashes giant energy blast or stabs with sword*

Quote

 

[Fatebreaker he/him]

The Stranger held Voidus's gaze, feeling the weight of his wrath. Aflood held back by a dam of glass. And the glass was cracking. 

But then there he took a breath, and the avalanche became a glacier. Frozen, motionless, but no ness in magnitude. The Stranger watched Voidus's eyes clear. A small, but crucial victory. But the weariness that had precededthe rage seemed to have grown, a shadow that the sun could not banish.

I heard a saying once." Voidus said softly. "On one of the other worlds. 'Death is lighter than a feather, duty heavier than a mountain.'"

The Stranger looked the the Behemoth, a literal mountain of destruction they had created. The irony was not lost on him.

"What does that say for those of us who can't die? When does that duty let up?"

The Stranger opened his mouth to reply, but for the first time in a long, long time he didn't know what to say. Voidus turned and walked away, and all he could do was look after him.

'When does that duty let up?' Why would it ever let up, when there's always more research? We achieved eternity, so that any idea could be tested, any study undertaken. We've pioneered more Scientific breakthroughs than anyone else in the history of time! Eternity was an achievement, a privilege!

So why did Voidus view it as a curse?

The Stranger pulled a narrow spike in a bloodvial from his coat and looked at it. He vaugely registed Aylitha walking away with Voidus, but he stayed looking at the spike. It was copper, and he hadn't had it in for centuries. It held memories, but they were the memories of someone else. Someone he had been once long ago, someone who had beem limited by the laws of physics and his own mortality. Someone all too familiar with loss. With Sacrifice.

Now is not the time for melancholic nostalgia. I'm going to let off some steam by teaching an upstart the meaning of pain, then maybe I'll indulge in some introspection. But only after a thorough dissection. 

The Stranger was no longer grinning. He put the vial back in his coat and followed Voidus, his steps and heart heavy. He walked slowly eye distant. But then an explosion rocked through the air, undoubtedly Ajax on his infantile rampage. The Stranger stopped, and felt the hint of a smirk take hold. He begam striding forward, and with each step the grin grew. The pavement began to crack beneath his feet, and his Shroud of Souls began to emanate from him, the wails faint, yet decidedly audible. His feet left the pavement, and he was walking through the air, moving faster and faster with no discernible effort. He passed Voidus and without looking spoke to him.

"The final blow is yours."

Then he rose into the sky and spoke in a voice that wove through the air, reaching every corner of the city. It was cold and hungry and ageless.

"Where is this insolent child who would learn the meaning of Fear? Come forth, child of folly, that all may see how paltry a god you are. Come forth and do your utmost to die with your dignity, what little remains. COME."

[AonEne he/him]

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So I wasn’t expecting that joke to happen, nor was I expecting to write a short piece of fanfiction which I then posted on Alleymemes, but guueeess what happeeeened

So yeah, to see Deteca fighting for her life in an orthodontics office, Ajax with a Shardtoothbrush, Conquerer secretaries, and more, head on over to that thread. 

Deteca listened to Zokora, listened to the nightmare-inducing voice that rang out after her, nodded to herself, and said, “Maybe we should just stay up here and let the Dark Alley avenge your house.”