Topic: Our Salvation: It Is Written (Read 249702 times)

penguinofhonor · « **Reply #1035 on:** April 25, 2016, 03:34:58 pm »

I look around for one of the locals and ask them where the masons tend to hang out.

Toaster · « **Reply #1036 on:** April 25, 2016, 05:10:19 pm »

Thomas shook his head. "Ah, er, no, that wasn't what I had in mind. I was thinking less permanent position and more... contract work, I suppose. One-off tasks. Something like that. I have a job, you see. Also, no, I've never fought in my life. Or guarded anything."

Not what I meant.

AoshimaMichio · « **Reply #1037 on:** April 25, 2016, 11:41:56 pm »

"Don't run with a spear in hand! You might trip on it and impale yourself!"

It's INEVITABLE isn't it? A bit on the unlikely side, but not impossible.
And just for fun induce inebriation into their veins directly.

TopHat · « **Reply #1038 on:** April 26, 2016, 01:33:51 pm »

"A couple. But what do you want to talk about first? Cambridge, armour - although I confess that I am by no means an authority on the subject - or my own field of expertise?"

Discuss whatever he requests - Cambridge university and my time there, insights as to the future regarding armour and the new materials it uses, or the massive importance of Chemistry and an introduction to its main concepts.

AoshimaMichio · « **Reply #1039 on:** April 26, 2016, 01:43:23 pm »

((Action edited.))

Harry Baldman · « **Reply #1040 on:** April 27, 2016, 01:29:46 pm »

Quote from: Xantalos on April 25, 2016, 01:44:21 pm

Hmm. Normally I'd consider this a bad idea, but my strength is unlimited as far as I know and my durability seems to be tied to my confidence in my own integrity. So this is clearly going to work.

Use my strength to form hand and footholds in the stone that I can hold onto as I go downward onto the ceiling of the cavern. Even if I can't hold onto the ceiling with my murder-thought, I'm more than strong enough to hold myself up by only one hand and two feet. Take a look about, see what's in this place.

In case my wording is unclear: climb down onto the ceiling of the cavern and hold on by using my unnatural strength to make handholds/simply grip the stone hard enough to support my weight.

[Metamorphic Grip: 6]

You dig your hand into the ceiling, pushing your fingers into the stone. It heats as it yields under your grip, eventually forming a handhold perfectly adapted for your own single available hand. That being done, you swing down, suspending yourself above the chamber beneath.

Of course, the view from this position still shows you just about jack shit, as the chamber is nearly pitch black, only a little light reaching the place from above. You think the floor's not too far down, at least right beneath the shaft it isn't. Looking down from where you are you think odds are about 50/50 that beneath you lies an endless abyss of death. And you don't foresee it'll be terribly easy climbing along a ceiling with only one hand available, as you're not sure if you can do the same handhold trick with your toes, or if you even have the necessary joint flexibility to pull off the simian acrobatics required to even halfway safely navigate a horizontal surface from below.

Quote from: penguinofhonor on April 25, 2016, 03:34:58 pm

I look around for one of the locals and ask them where the masons tend to hang out.

You spot a girl likely in her mid-teens hanging out in front of a wooden house. She seems vaguely concerned and disappointed, and also like she's not doing anything particularly important. You walk up to her confidently. Ho there, miss! Where might one find the masons?

[See You On The Flip Side: 4]

Over there, she says, pointing at a rather small nearby workshop with its back resting against the wall. It seems to be mostly hidden from sight in the corner by the place she's standing in front of, and seems to lack any sort of windows as well. A bit of a ramshackle look, you'd say. Not really the sort of location you would place a respected trio of craftsmen in.

Quote from: Toaster on April 25, 2016, 05:10:19 pm

Thomas shook his head. "Ah, er, no, that wasn't what I had in mind. I was thinking less permanent position and more... contract work, I suppose. One-off tasks. Something like that. I have a job, you see. Also, no, I've never fought in my life. Or guarded anything."

Not what I meant.

This is contract work, she says. You join the guard until this siege business gets sorted out and you get to keep the weapons and armor. Once you've sent the stoats packing you get a generous pension and as much land as you can personally reclaim from stoat occupation. Simple, really. She gives you a smile. And the training is completely free, too. You'll be set for a career as a knight errant for sure if you acquit yourself well, she says in a tone of voice you can't help but feel isn't entirely serious.

Quote from: AoshimaMichio on April 25, 2016, 11:41:56 pm

"Don't run with a spear in hand! You might trip on it and impale yourself!"

It's INEVITABLE isn't it? A bit on the unlikely side, but not impossible.
And just for fun induce inebriation into their veins directly.

Look at those sharp spears held in those stubby little arms. And that unwieldy armor. They don't look very well-trained. Not very well-trained at all. You think it's just a matter of time before someone has an accident, really.

INEVITABLE

[Word: 6]

An infinity of amusing injuries lies before you, so many choices... you think this one will do:

Just as you say this, one of them trips in their rush to get over here. Her grip slightly loosens. Her spear flips and falls, and she fumbles it in her grip, its head pointing straight at her as she falls forward. Driven by her fall, the spear slips just beneath the ribcage, twisting upward, puncturing both lungs and the heart, escaping through the bottom of the throat. A hideous gurgling sound comes out of her mouth as she begins to drown. The other stoatmen stop in their tracks immediately, looking on as their comrade quickly expires from massive blood loss and suffocation.

Holy crap, one of them says, then looks at you. How did you do that? One of the other guards starts to slowly back away. The third glances between her two comrades, unsure which one has the right idea. You offer them all the gift of grapefruit, but this only seems to confuse them more.

Quote from: TopHat on April 26, 2016, 01:33:51 pm

"A couple. But what do you want to talk about first? Cambridge, armour - although I confess that I am by no means an authority on the subject - or my own field of expertise?"

Discuss whatever he requests - Cambridge university and my time there, insights as to the future regarding armour and the new materials it uses, or the massive importance of Chemistry and an introduction to its main concepts.

[Reckless Self-Indulgence: 2]

Start at the beginning, he says! This Cambridge! Tell him all about it!

[Anecdotes From A Different World: 1]

He seems a little disappointed when your stories invariably fail to contain any wizards, and that much of it seems to consist of things he has no knowledge of that only raise further questions when you try to explain them. Sounds bloody well made up, he says, and you must say there is a unique sort of hurtfulness to being utterly dismissed by somebody who seems convinced that you can smith armor out of ideas.

Enough, he says! The very notion of Cambridge has begun to offend him. Move on to chemistry!

Spoiler: Status (click to show/hide)

penguinofhonor · « **Reply #1041 on:** April 27, 2016, 02:52:15 pm »

I thank the girl and head over to knock on the shack's front door.

AoshimaMichio · « **Reply #1042 on:** April 27, 2016, 03:53:20 pm »

Leif takes two steps forward smug half smile on his face, spreading his arms wide, palms up, wiggling his fingers.

"Magic. Wanna hear what happens if you loiter around?"

Manifest ultimate smugness again. Perhaps it leads to same end result as last time. If it doesn't, then additional alcohol is solution.

TopHat · « **Reply #1043 on:** April 27, 2016, 04:00:57 pm »

"Why yes, Chemistry! The central science! The catalyst for the future world! One cannot begin to understand the world without it! What things are made of, why things happen! At the heart of any living thing _{whatever the biologists might say}, and, indeed, everything else! Where to begin?"

Forget Cambridge, it's time to start in earnest, on my favourite subject. This may take a while...

Xantalos · « **Reply #1044 on:** April 27, 2016, 05:28:53 pm »

"Well, that's pointless. Back up I go."

Can I leverage myself back up to the ladder? If so, do so. Hook my feet into the rungs or something to hang on until I can get my hand back on it if I need to.

Toaster · « **Reply #1045 on:** April 27, 2016, 05:42:17 pm »

"Errr... I perhaps wasn't clear. I meant a... non-combat position? I'd be no use in a fight, quite really. Oh my. And I rent a rather pleasant house already."

Try this again.

Harry Baldman · « **Reply #1046 on:** April 28, 2016, 02:35:29 pm »

Quote from: penguinofhonor on April 27, 2016, 02:52:15 pm

I thank the girl and head over to knock on the shack's front door.

She nods gracefully at you as you leave for the masons' workshop.

You knock on the door, and the door becomes slightly ajar from the impact of your knuckles, only to be kicked back outward by an emaciated, yet nevertheless formidable figure covered in chalky dust. He peers at you with lidded eyes, saying nothing for a few moments before he is pulled out of the way by a slightly healthier-looking individual. You remember this one from the stone circle - dull features, serpentine grin. He seems to remember you as well. Fancy meeting you here, he says as another figure about half his height lurks from behind his back. You feel the small brother's eyes wander over you in a predatory fashion briefly.

Quote from: AoshimaMichio on April 27, 2016, 03:53:20 pm

Leif takes two steps forward smug half smile on his face, spreading his arms wide, palms up, wiggling his fingers.

"Magic. Wanna hear what happens if you loiter around?"

Manifest ultimate smugness again. Perhaps it leads to same end result as last time. If it doesn't, then additional alcohol is solution.

[Affairs of Wizards: 4]

Hey man, she just thought you were a poacher or something. There's no need for, like, drastic measures and shit. It's cool. She's not paid nearly enough to handle this sort of thing.

It's okay, you say with a grin. You get mistaken for poachers all the time. The price one pays for such humble traveling arrangements. You offer a grapefruit of peace. Her comrades continue to retreat carefully, the indecisive stoatwoman having decided to make herself scarce as well.

[The Olive Branch: 2]

Uh, she says as she looks at the grapefruit. You sense her mind recoil slightly from the unknown trick. Can she go, she asks? You promise you, like, won't try to hit her in the back or anything?

Quote from: TopHat on April 27, 2016, 04:00:57 pm

"Why yes, Chemistry! The central science! The catalyst for the future world! One cannot begin to understand the world without it! What things are made of, why things happen! At the heart of any living thing _{whatever the biologists might say}, and, indeed, everything else! Where to begin?"

Forget Cambridge, it's time to start in earnest, on my favourite subject. This may take a while...

[The Central Science: 6+1]

You speak of matter, a near-fractal assemblage of particles into forms increasingly complex and varied. What are we, if not matter animated by energy? You tell of atoms, their nuclei, electrons, elements - the lower boundary of chemistry, the fundamental truths. There are many truths to impart, and the blacksmith's eyes speak to a deep and powerful thirst. He is uneducated. Ignorant. But very moldable. Very eager to learn. Very accepting of the unintuitive. He is the student you never knew you wanted.

There is so much to tell, so very much. Your own enthusiasm takes hold. Solutions. Ions. Acids. Bases. Chelates, even. You nearly get ahead of yourself, then push on regardless. He listens greedily. Very little can hold back a mind that is prepared to learn, and you easily engender in him an earnestness in seeking knowledge. He thought he knew, that you would confirm his opinions - you prove him wrong. His ignorance is no longer beyond his comprehension. You impart with a crushing certainty how little he knew before. He will look back on the boy he was, and find it an innocent time. One of ideas and sorceries and half-assed alchemy, mere quasi-intellectual fumbling around the greater truth. A necessary step, of course, when true knowledge is lacking. At least he fumbles - too many are content to do nothing instead.

You have only begun. Energy. Entropy. Enthalpy. Electron shells and equilibria, the basis of all things which react. The transformations of substance made possible by formation and breakage of bonds, the release and absorption of energy, the collision of molecules. The blacksmith starts to back away. You chase him through the house, shouting to get the words into his head, shape his concept of the world. The truth burns. His curiosity does not allow him to resist.

You sense he takes refuge in the abstract. You pin him against a wall. What is he? He is carbon, hydrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen. He is water, salt, fat, protein, sugar, nitrogen bases. His mind and soul are formed of potassium mingling with sodium, of glutamate crossing narrow gulfs of interstitial fluid, of finding temporary reprieve from entropy. You tell him of the beginning and the end. As you finish your tale and throw him to the ground, he grins at the ceiling, thoughts swirling in his mind. You sense that he now understands.

REVELATION

The room seems brighter now, as if electrically lit. Oddly, you don't see any apparent source for this, the windows still being boarded up as before. The place looks filthy. And the blacksmith is still naked. You kindly instruct him to get himself in order, and he complies immediately, locating his apron and a set of vaguely clothes-like rags.

Standing up before you, he seems to think. Dark is not what is needed. Instead, energy. Light. Power. Energy is at the core of transformation. Observation is at the core of learning. Light assists with both. So assist him with light. Powerful light. Blinding light. The light of annihilation.

Quote from: Xantalos on April 27, 2016, 05:28:53 pm

"Well, that's pointless. Back up I go."

Can I leverage myself back up to the ladder? If so, do so. Hook my feet into the rungs or something to hang on until I can get my hand back on it if I need to.

[Simian Acrobatics: 4]

You swing along the ceiling and manage to catch one of your feet on the ladder, and from this position get your other foot up there as well. This leaves you well-positioned to get your hand out of the handhold you made for it, leaving you hanging upside-down from the hole in the ceiling. You decide not to spend too long like this lest too much blood should rush into your head, and curl up and catch a higher rung with a bit of awkward fumbling. Fortunately you're in pretty decent shape.

Eventually you manage to get yourself back where you started. No tumbling into anonymous darkness like a numpty for you, nosir. You like to give yourself a little more credit than that.

Quote from: Toaster on April 27, 2016, 05:42:17 pm

"Errr... I perhaps wasn't clear. I meant a... non-combat position? I'd be no use in a fight, quite really. Oh my. And I rent a rather pleasant house already."

Try this again.

[A Polite Offer: 5]

Many people insist they're of no use in a fight, the guard says, but in her opinion it's a matter of necessity. Anyone can fight if given adequate provocation. Not well, of course - that's what training is for. Hence the offer - you're going to have to fight at some point, she maintains, so it's only reasonable to teach you how to make the best of whatever meager talent you may possess. Honestly, telling someone you're worthless at fighting is a good way to get killed.

She sighs. Look, she just really needs something to do. She's not even supposed to be on patrol, she's just wandering around because she's so goddamn bored.

Spoiler: Status (click to show/hide)

Xantalos · « **Reply #1047 on:** April 28, 2016, 03:08:24 pm »

"Alright, well that was a waste. I suppose I'll look for her later."

Quote

- The Winding Path of Inspiration: A Master's In Chemistry
- The Winding Path of Inspiration: The Beauty of the Material

"Mayhaps I should go get that sliver of perfection. The priceless thing took me the longest last time, and I've no doubt miss I hide in walls knight will probably happen across me at one point or another. Let's do that."

Go make my way up the ladder and out back into the castle proper. Contemplate - what exactly is a form of perfection that can be shown to someone else to provide inspiration? Aside from crushing one's enemies, seeing them driven before you, and hearing the lamentation of their women, of course.

AoshimaMichio · « **Reply #1048 on:** April 28, 2016, 03:31:54 pm »

"Yes, you can go. I'm a man of my word. Run and don't look back! Have you heard of what happened to the woman who looked back when she was explicitly told not to? Hahaha! Run you little stoat! Run! Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger! Thanks for your wise words, Gandalf."

Let her go with threats of wizardly violence. Where did Lee disappear?

penguinofhonor · « **Reply #1049 on:** April 28, 2016, 06:03:08 pm »

"Hello," I say. I do not step inside. "I was wondering if either of you would be interested in carpentry. The master's apprentice is looking for a replacement, and she said you might be interested. Whoever signs up needs to be comfortable going underground, but it should get you out of the castle."

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Author Topic: Our Salvation: It Is Written (Read 249702 times)

penguinofhonor

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

Toaster

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

AoshimaMichio

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

TopHat

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

AoshimaMichio

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

Harry Baldman

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

penguinofhonor

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

AoshimaMichio

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

TopHat

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

Xantalos

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

Toaster

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

Harry Baldman

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

Xantalos

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

AoshimaMichio

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light

penguinofhonor

Re: Our Salvation: What I Bring Is Light