Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

Yes

13 (46.4%)

No

15 (53.6%)

Total Members Voted: 21

[blueturtle1134]

To everyone:
"Listen: David was, at the docks, possessed by a Cisharni, specifically the one known as the Secondborn. They're a powerful - god-like - entity, from a completely separate reality, and one extremely skilled in psionics. I would tell you more if I could, but I'm straining what I'm allowed to say about the subject as-is. I think you'd need Erin if you wanted more information. Regardless, they are exceedingly dangerous, far more than anything else we may be up against.
Now, Fansworth. Part of the reason that the Secondborn was able to invade David's mind is because he - David - was already psychic. Not nearly to the degree of... that, but enough to have limited precognition. I can brief you more on the subject later, but for now, we have some big problems that need to be taken care of."

Angela and Carlos look shocked. “Then he knows about the Protinam,” says Carlos. “We have to get there before he does.”

“Go as quickly as possible,” Celling agrees.

Fansworth rubs his temples. “Allowed to say? Who’s disallowing you?” he asks. “Is this another one of Erin Quill’s stupid experiments like the Cherubs and dogs and everything?”

Response?

[Doubloon-Seven]

"Fansworth, you're a foreign emissary. There is a security limit as to what I'm supposed to say."

[Glass]

"This is far more than anything Erin has worked on. This is not some sort of state secret, some sensitive decision someone made.
Have you noticed, Fansworth, that nearly every time we've tried to fight the rebels, they've escaped? And how, even when we have managed to make gains against them, we've had disproportionate losses of our own men? This has not been a coincidence. There are forces in play here far larger than any man-made organization, no matter how large and influential.
...heh... they say that God doesn't play dice with the universe. They're lying."
Celling sounds tired.

[blueturtle1134]

"Fansworth, you're a foreign emissary. There is a security limit as to what I'm supposed to say."

Fansworth shoots a glance at the friend of Celling’s that just piped up with this. “Excuse me, sir. Last time I checked South America was a province of the People’s Republic of Antarctica, and we served under the same banner. Why are there things you must keep from me?”

"This is far more than anything Erin has worked on. This is not some sort of state secret, some sensitive decision someone made.
Have you noticed, Fansworth, that nearly every time we've tried to fight the rebels, they've escaped? And how, even when we have managed to make gains against them, we've had disproportionate losses of our own men? This has not been a coincidence. There are forces in play here far larger than any man-made organization, no matter how large and influential.
...heh... they say that God doesn't play dice with the universe. They're lying."
Celling sounds tired.

“I have noticed, Celling,” says Fansworth. “I think it says a lot about the competence, or lack thereof, of the Argentinian security forces that you have not managed to capture even a small band of domestic terrorists without devastating losses. And, to be frank, about your loyalty. I don't know what you're saying about forces and god playing dice with the universe, Celling. Can you elaborate on that?”

Want to respond to that?

[Glass]

"No. I can't.
No matter how much I want to.

...try to get out of here before you end up like me, Fansworth. This is no place for good men."

[blueturtle1134]

"No. I can't.
No matter how much I want to.

...try to get out of here before you end up like me, Fansworth. This is no place for good men."

“No, indeed it is not, Celling,” Fansworth replies, a somewhat puzzled look on his face. “That’s why we’re going to catch those rebels and make it safe.”


Later, in the base

Celling listened on the radio to the team sent to the Protinam Citadel. It’s clear that things haven’t gone well.

“They… they’re all gone…” sobs Angela. “The Citadel… burnt to the ground… bodies everywhere…”

The other Protinam, Carlos, takes the radio. “Whoever did this took the Pillar,” he says, his voice hard. “That means he can scan the future from everywhere. He’s going to need a lot more power, since this is a pretty optimal location, but based on what you’ve told us he has that.”

An aide runs in. “Captain Celling?” she says. “The teams sent to search the Andes are back.”

No suspicious activity in the Andes Mountains
Suspicious activity detected near the Andes Mountains

Celling sighs and turns back to the Protinam. “Do you have any way of tracking him?”

“We should be able to intercept the carrier wave once he lights it,” says Angela. “Find out where he is. If he uses it. We're going to track him down and-”

“That won’t be necessary,” says a voice from behind Celling.

Celling reacts instantly. In one fluid motion, he draws his pistol and fires several shots at the Secondborn.

Nothing happens. The bullets sail through David Eborrenial’s glowing, Cisharni-possessed form and crack into the wall behind him.

The Secondborn laughs. “Don’t be foolish, little mortal. I’m not actually here. This is just an astral projection created to communicate with you.”

“Then start,” growls Celling. “What do you have to say?”

“I come from a place far from here. A place of riches and magic, and of immortal gods,” the Secondborn begins.

“I think I may have an inkling of where you’re from already!” says Celling. “What the hell do you want?”

“An alliance,” the Secondborn says simply. “Yours is an interesting nation, Celling. Your weapons are alien to me and in many ways more powerful than any I know of. You strike at your enemies from miles away using flying pillars of flame. Your command over the natural sciences and the methods of engineering is impressive, even to me. I am intrigued by your use of bottled lightning and alchemical potions. And then there are the more esoteric sciences. The power to invert gravity, the creation of a spatial gateway, surpasses anything even the Cisharni know of. With the right help, your civilization could become a mighty bastion of humanity. Your people would make a fine addition to the Atlantean Empire. With your armaments our legions would be unstoppable, and with your armor and navigational systems Atlantean warships would rule the seas. Wormhole science would transform the empire. Andantesite would allow us to use the skies and earth themselves against our opponents.”

“This all sounds very good,” says Celling, “But what's in it for us?”

The Secondborn gestures vaguely. “Us. You would be under the protection of the Atlantean Empire. We would support you against your enemies and help you keep the peace. I could teach you the mysteries of arcane magic to amplify your attacks. Teleporters could make your wrath strike far and fast. We Cisharni never die, Celling, and hold the strength of gods. Those pesky internal problems - the Goonswarm, the rebels - would be nothing. Each of us could take on a thousand men. And win. With ease. I could take on a million.”

“And what guarantee do I have that you will uphold your end of the bargain?” Celling asks. “Do you speak for your Empire?”

“The others will be brought around to my point of view in time. Based on an observation of your stars I have been moved to the opposite side of the Earth from Atlantis. I request your help in returning.”

What do you say?

[Rockeater]

The important question, is the secondborn an actual bad guy?

[Glass]

Yes, the Secondborn is an actual bad guy.

Now, Blue. We didn't say to check the Andes, we said to finely search Montevideo.

EDIT: Furthermore, regarding the Secondborn's offer: hahahahano. Given what we already know about interacting realities, even if he can cast magic himself, he won't be able to teach us magic, or anything of that sort. If he manages to get back to the S:I-verse, it's exceedingly improbable that continued communications will be possible.

Additionally, based on the stars, the Secondborn shouldn't be able to understand jack; the Cisharni have never been to the Southern Hemisphere. Even if he did know about the Southern Hemisphere's stars, he still wouldn't be able to tell, because the night sky shifts over time. He'd need to be able to figure out that he's not only in a completely different place, but also a completely different period of time, by several centuries.

[FallacyofUrist]

Aren't we the bad guys, though?

[Rockeater]

Aren't we the bad guys, though?

We are bad only because the plot says so

[Glass]

Aren't we the bad guys, though?

GODDAMNIT NO.
If we stop even trying to be good, the closest thing this setting has to actual good guys will disappear.
We are the people that are in the way of deluded and misled rebels wiping out almost all life in the Southern Hemisphere and of a corrupt, arrogant, and truly evil usurping dictator.

[omada]

In the middle of the time we ended turning the good-bad fight to order-chaos law-free adventuring spirit axis  in which the invisible public generally don't weigh to support the same side


I don't know if he won't be able to teach magic, the rules for magic seems different in this world, but we know that he isn't truly immortal

If he goes back to the S:I universe, he might lose communications with us and we will have how to destroy or to render useless the portal until we manage to study it enough to use in our favor somewhere else

if he opens the portal to OUR world and bring others

the sindari will start to get access to our world too

and if any sindari get access to the 4th wall, we can communicate with them, or just wait when one of them shows up

the question is, is Second born breaking the 4th wall and knowing that we are calculating the probabilities of betraying him? if he can, that's a problem, if don't he won't manage to safely check ceilings mind unscathed... will be a god powerfull enough to survive this? hehehe

damn, we can even ask the order of the stick tips on killing evil gods that are threatening a lawful empire, they have easy access to meta-stuff and a bunch of 4th wall breaking stuff


in the worst of cases, we are the lawful guys under the ruler of stupid/evil rulers from the very begging, we will just change leaders and then tilt a bit to the chaos order in case he start to usurp too much from us

I say that we accept, but give a warning, "this world run on rules that are bigger than both of us and we know how to play by the rules, don't try to betray nor exploit us or our people, or your arrogance over mortal creatures shall be your demise, keep it fair and we will rule and bring prosperity to a thousand worlds and races"

[Glass]

in the worst of cases, we are the lawful guys under the ruler of stupid/evil rulers from the very begging, we will just change leaders and then tilt a bit to the chaos order in case he start to usurp too much from us

Just addressing this part for now: we're Lawful Neutral leaning Good (I think), the rebels are Chaotic Good leaning Chaotic (though unknowingly pursuing a Chaotic Evil goal), and Padel is Lawful Evil leaning Evil.

Now, the rest of it: I'm pretty sure that allying with the Secondborn would end poorly for us. I doubt it'll be possible to trick him, Blue has said that he'll just be getting more powerful as he adapts to the laws of this reality (in which case it'll be harder to get rid of him later), and if he gets weaker as reality catches up to his bullshittery, then he'll be much less able to help us than we currently think he might. For that matter, he's also big on manipulation. Furthermore, he will not take kindly to being told not to be so arrogant, and if he gets the ability to conquer other worlds, he'll be doing it for Atlantis, not for us; besides, he'd probably make Antarctica a vassal of Atlantis rather than actually give us any power.

The Secondborn clearly has not broken the Fourth Wall, and does not know of it; he thinks he can get to Atlantis by going to the place it physically would be in. He doesn't actually realize that he's in a different universe.

If he opens a portal, it's going to be a temporary one; there's no way that C2 will open up another reality for everyone to fuck about in, especially not one with relatively advanced technology.

[blueturtle1134]

Yes, the Secondborn is an actual bad guy.

He's prejudiced because he's fighting the Secondborn in another game. I'll note that the Secondborn is actually one of the more pacifist Cisharni... although that really says things about how NON-pacifist the others are. He's also very arrogant.

Now, Blue. We didn't say to check the Andes, we said to finely search Montevideo.

Your vote on Andes was locked in when I posted another question.

EDIT: Furthermore, regarding the Secondborn's offer: hahahahano. Given what we already know about interacting realities, even if he can cast magic himself, he won't be able to teach us magic, or anything of that sort. If he manages to get back to the S:I-verse, it's exceedingly improbable that continued communications will be possible.

Yeah, he doesn't know everything. You may wish to tell him.

Additionally, based on the stars, the Secondborn shouldn't be able to understand jack; the Cisharni have never been to the Southern Hemisphere. Even if he did know about the Southern Hemisphere's stars, he still wouldn't be able to tell, because the night sky shifts over time. He'd need to be able to figure out that he's not only in a completely different place, but also a completely different period of time, by several centuries.

The Cisharni have been to the equator; they've seen the southern celestial hemisphere. All they need to do is recognize that stars that were waaaaay to the south in Atlantis are now slightly to the north, and they'll realize we're far to the south.

The Secondborn clearly has not broken the Fourth Wall, and does not know of it; he thinks he can get to Atlantis by going to the place it physically would be in. He doesn't actually realize that he's in a different universe.

Fourth-wall breaking Secondborn would be terrifying. You may also wish to correct him on being in the same universe.

If he opens a portal, it's going to be a temporary one; there's no way that C2 will open up another reality for everyone to fuck about in, especially not one with relatively advanced technology.

...please chubby2man please please...

[Glass]

"We do not accept your conditions. I have no reason to think you would stick to them, anyway."

Anyway, since Blue is a stubborn ass: why yes, we really do want to thoroughly search Montevideo.