NameIess

Instead of answering her question, Nameless asked one of his own. "Why haven't you made any characters? You're more than experienced enough to." "Well, good luck." Balitan started looking through his notes. The guard snorted. "Technology? Useless stuff."

"Sort of." The monster swung an arm for the travelers, but before it could land Nameless was there. He caught the creatures arm, then flung it back, leaping up and punching the monster with such force that it shattered into a thousand pieces. The travelers returned to life, blinking in shock. "I just wanted to see how much experience you have as a Narrator." "Well, they are animals. Stands to reason that they wouldn't be easy to control." "You think you can help us with the rifts?" The captain's voice held more than a touch of incredulity.

The travelers looked around, confused at their sudden salvation. They didn't seem to notice Tam, or Nameless. "Interesting." Nameless said. "Not bad." The stone wall in front of them trembled, then melded into the shape of one of the monsters. "Although perhaps making indestructible walls out of stone was a poor step. You had no way of knowing they could control that as well though, so I'll give you a pass."

The source of the screaming was a large group of travelers trapped in a narrow valley by two massive stone monsters. As Tam watched, one of the monsters seized a traveler, crushing him like an ant in its massive hands. The other travelers cried out in terror, huddling closer together in the valley as the monsters quickly closed in. Nameless appeared next to Tam. "Oh dear. This is certainly a bad situation. How will you deal with it, I wonder?"

Don't worry, they're different people. "I'm NameIess." The ground shook suddenly, screams cutting off. They started again, but it seemed there was one voice less than before. "That does sound rather serious."

"Oh. Good." Screams echoed from the nearby woods, and Nameless cocked his head. "Wonder what that's about?"

Jacob nodded, swinging his pack of supplies around and pulling out medical supplies. "Alright. I'll get you patched up, then we can-" Ah, there you are. Reality flickered. Jacob, Lane, and all the rest of the hunters stood in a large room lined with pillars. They were surrounded by a ring of armed guards and bound in glowing bonds of pure white light. Before them sat a king on a simple throne carved from wood. He wore dark blue robes and a golden signet ring upon his hand, but what stood out the most was his brilliant crown. Forged from glowing crystal, the crown shone with a blindingly brilliant light. That light faded somewhat as the king stood and spoke in a booming, powerful voice. "Invaders of my realm. I would know your purpose in coming here. What master do you serve? Who is it that besets my city with the forces of the night?" Cricket was enveloped with mist. Moments later he stood in a city square in the midst of a jeering crowd. Before him, Malevolence sat on a throne carved of onyx, a crown of darkness on his head. On the platform in front of him sat a guillotine, with a long line of chained men and women leading away from it. As Cricket watched, two armored men with dark eyes grabbed the man at the front of the line and shoved him forcefully into the guillotine. Rose was transported to the test that Meat had prepared for her. "Oh? You think a protagonist can't use violence to achieve his goals? When no other way will work? Smallminded of you." Nameless shook his head. "It matters not whether everyone in the Thread sees me as an aggressor. A protagonist often must face opposition from every which way. No matter how much I am hated, so long as my goal is just and my means necessary, I can be the protagonist." "I'll remain." Balitan shrugged. "No one else is likely to offer me the resources and research opportunity that you are. I don't have much advice about Malevolence. Access to the rabbits would certainly help with my research, but I'm a researcher, not a hero. I have no idea how to go about it. -- The guard returned, leading a guard with a red mark upon his breastplate. That man spoke sharply. "So you're the stranger eh? A merchant, you claim?" He inspected Rebel critically, a frown flickering across his face. "I don't like the look of you. You look like someone who causes trouble, and our city has enough trouble without more troublemakers like you." He narrowed his eyes. "Well? Wha-" A ripple passed through Rebel. The walls of the guard room seemed to vibrate, a nearby barred window slightly. The guard captain glanced towards the other guard. "Another attack?" The guard shook his head. "There'd be an alarm." The captain scowled. "Go figure out what this is about. I'll deal with this intruder." "That has to do with something I wanted to ask you." Malevolence sifted through the tea basket, taking a few bags out. "I understand you were once bonded to a withergeist. I must admit some curiosity about the process. How did you do it?" -- Nameless blinked. "Sorry, I was just... thinking about the best way to go about this. I should've asked first, are you doing anything important? A quest, I suppose?" @Halcyon The Only @Through The Living Glass

"Any people around?" Jacob stepped up behind Lane, holding a medpack. "Broken ribs?" Balitan shrugged. "It's fine. I got my answer at least. And I assume you still want me as an assistant, so I'll be able to continue my research." "Very well. I believe they are both ready." Omen touched Meat and he vanished into the world of dreams, where he could prepare his trial. Then he turned to face Cricket and Rose. "Are you prepared? Take my hands, and your trial will begin." @TwinStorm@Halcyon The Only

Nameless shrugged. "Depends. Where are we?"

You'll do fine. -- Nameless appeared next to Tam and Bat, whistling a merry tune. @Through The Living Glass @Halcyon The Only

"Of course. How else would I fix things?"

"I've never been a very good teacher. And I might not need a Plotblade. We'll see." Well, the important bit is that she's clearly afraid of Narrators, and given that you exemplify some of the most terrifying aspects of Narrators, I surmised that you would be an excellent choice for her trial-giver.

Nameless remained gone, although a paper did fall slowly to the ground where he had been standing. If Rebus bothered to read it, the paper showed a list of ways Nameless could have vanished without Rebus deactivating the teleportation field. Omen gestured to Rose. "You'll be giving her a trial today. Do you need a description of her character?" "Think it has something to do with those artifacts the boss wants?" Jacob slowly moved along the rooftops, stepping carefully to avoid making any noise. "Headed your way now." Omen nodded, an ominous look in his eyes. "Very well. Whenever the two of you are ready, we can begin." "What, the protagonist shouldn't be the one to save the Thread from itself?" Nameless grinned. "I suppose Antagonist could work, but antagonists have an unfortunate tendency to lose, so... yeah." "Worry not. Meat the Minstrel is a highly qualified trial-giver under select circumstances. His trial run went exceedingly well, and I hear the brave adventurer has recovered exceedingly well from his temporary bout of insanity."

“Yeah.” Jacob whispered, pressing back against the roof. Hidden in the shadows as he was, the guards walked right past him. “This place doesn’t seem very high tech, so I’m guessing magic is responsible for their defenses. You were the one with the sensor tech. Picking up anything? Omen nodded. “Very well. Remember the rules this time. No outside communication. Respect the spirit of the trial.” “Very well.” Omen cleared his throat with a rattling sound. “draB eht nocaB, draB eht nocaB, drab eht nocaB.” @Dragonheir “I will fix this thread, to the best of my abilities. Teach the new generation of Narrators how to use their powers properly, make everything how it should be.” A contemplative expression appeared on Nameless’ face. “It will be a difficult task. Perhaps I will claim Protagonist to help me.” She will not be pleased, to put it mildly.

“Not precisely what I meant. But true all the same.” A Narrationblade formed in Nameless’ hand, then vanished. “Anyways, I must be going. I have plans to work on and people to deal with. You have my gratitude Rebus. You were a far more useful tool than I ever imagined.” He vanished into smoke. “Hm. That will make your trial far more difficult.” The corpse looked concerned. “Perhaps… would you be offended if an employee of mine held your trial? Very competent, I assure you. My hiring standards are top-notch.” Nameless shrugged. “Not much. Just my glorious return to the flesh.”

Nameless shook Rebus's hand. "I very much doubt anyone knows what they're in for." A few minutes later, the guard returned with a stiff-looking man in a shining breastplate. "You're the stranger?" He asked sharply. "What's your business here?" "Hobbies? Science, technology, reading." Malevolence said. "I'm not a mind reader to know why Unintelligible thinks I'm so dangerous exactly, but perhaps it has to do with the rabbits I've recently met." He took another sip of tea. "The tea is excellent, by the way."

"That depends on you." the corpse's eyes seemed to burn. "Your people fear Narrators. Do you still share that fear?" As soon as NameIess' core came into contact with Atreides', there was a flash of light. A moment later, Nameless stood before Rebus, fully corporeal. He was a tall man with brown hair and blue eyes. He took a deep breath. "At last." A grin spread across his face. "I'm back."

Jacob heaved himself back onto the roof with a grunt of effort. "Lane, Barik, Organ. you alive? Report in" His voice crackled through their earpieces, staticky but understandable. He switched over to the main channel. "Simon, be on the lookout. I got knocked from the sky shortly after passing the city walls." He cursed softly as a squad of guards hurried through the street below in a search pattern. They were scanning the rooftops as they went, and several carried bows. "I've got company. Over and out." Omen waited in the form of a withered corpse with red glowing eyes. "Cricket. Are you prepared to face my trial once again?" He looked at Rose. "I see you come in different company this time. Is Rose prepared to face my trial?" Very good. The fuzzy form of Nameless evaported into mist, leaving only the floating core. Put me into contact with his core. The guard walked to a doorway and paused, turning to look at Rebel over his shoulder. "Wait here. I'll be back with the captain in a moment." Regulus gulped. Then he took a large bite of his soup, hoping it wouldn't be too angry. It looked likely to kill him even without being angry.

Forgot Rebel for a second, sorry. Within the castle. The throne room, I believe. And there is no need to be so hasty. Watch and wait. An opportunity will present itself. Jacob flew high over the city wall, blending in with the night sky. He swooped down lower over the city, confident that no sentries would have been able to spot him. His confidence continued right up until an unseen force ripped his cloak away, sending him plummeting into a rooftop some thirty feet below. Easy job eh? He hit with a loud *crack* and skidded down the sloped wooden roof, barely grabbing hold of the edge before he tumbled to the uneven paving stones of the street below. I suppose I always am a bit too hopeful.

"Sounds good to me." Jacob waved to three hunters. "Lane, Barik, Organ. You're with me." He took to the air, cloak fluttering in the wind. "Let's get this over with and prove ourselves loyal." He flew towards the city, followed by the three other hunters. "Great!" Subversion cracked her knuckles, preparing to Narrate. "Are you ready?" Before the young woman replied, she did an incredibly acrobatic flip, landing on one knee in front of another student whom she suddenly realized was much more handsome than she had ever given him credit for. Subversion paused for a moment, waiting to see if her Narration would take hold. Placing me into his corpse will work, if you can convince his Author to leave it with enough residual energy. Authors have been directly involved in the story before (occasionally, in highly limited ways). Fate has been around since before I joined, I think. But I wouldn't say the tier list goes quite in a straight line from character->Narrator->Author. It's more 'normal' character->Narrator/Enuller/bonded withergeist->Higher tier characters like the Witherlord or Plot before he was vanquished->Author And there is a distinction in the power levels between individuals in a certain category, depending on experience and a number of other factors, particularly in the character division. Some characters like Malevolence, for example, have quite a bit more power than that 'tier list' would have you believe. And Plotblades muddle things even more. I suppose you do have the right to make whatever bad decisions you choose.

Nameless transmitted a mental harumph. If you want genuine people, don't go with Rebus. He may be genuine, but he's genuine for manipulative purposes. Ah. You'll need to get me into contact with his core for that to work. The two guards looked at each other. Then the one that had been talking to Rebel nodded and turned towards the castle, waving a hand to Rebel. "Come on. I'd best take you to the captain. He'll know what to do with you." Cursed Treasure pulsed in Rebel's hand suddenly. I sense power. No worries. Jacob, one of the more experienced hunters, snorted. "Always positive, aren't you Simon?" He slapped the older man on the back, then raised his voice for the rest of the group. "Don't worry lads. This is a simple mission. We go in, cause some havoc to get the attention of whoever's in charge, and leave them with the ultimatum. With any luck, they'll do whatever we tell them." He looked at the rifts and shivered. "We'll be out of here well before we have to find out exactly what those things are."

You... care? Why would you care about anyone? Much less someone like Rebus.

Rebus? He's not that competent. You could beat him, if you really put your mind to it.

You'll be fine. Nameless repeated. I mean, it's not like you've got much competition in the Narrator department. Subversion's trapped in with the Enullers, Bacon's author is mostly inactive, and I'm basically powerless. your only real competition is Rebus. How are you planning to kill him? The guard frowned. "An odd story for a stranger." He peered at Rebel, eyes narrowing. "I think you'd best come with me."

A Narrator has died without his power being fragmented and destroyed? Nameless sighed with a half-real sound. Honestly. What was he doing? "You don't..." The guard squinted at him. "This is the kingdom of Marind. If you are a traveler, how did you get past the beasts? Bah. You hardly need experience, what with the low quality of Narrators and the like these days. You'll be just fine. "All right. I'll draw them off. Wait until I've distracted them, then run for it." Palsu picked up the broken spear that the Shade had been using and charged off into the camp silently. Moments later, an alarm went up, shouts and cries echoing through the camp. I'm going to assume that Cricket was a typo, but let me know if I'm wrong. Malevolence pressed a few buttons, transporting the thirteen hunters away. He turned an imperious stare on those who remained. "So. Will you follow me?" The hunters who had been teleported appeared onto a green hill overlooking a large walled city. Surrounding the city were four massive rifts that stretched into the sky, jaggedly curving in a partial dome above the city. The rifts opened into an endless darkness, and shapes moved within them. New cracks spread from one of the rifts as the hunters watched, moving towards the rift on its left. Soon, it seemed, the city would be utterly surrounded by the void. "I am well enough." Malevolence ignored Aelinor as he had Unintelligible, a cup of tea appearing in his hand. "Although I have been better." He gestured to the numerous medical devices attached to him, then took a sip of tea. "I understand you have questions for me?"