The Good Daughter (SirOni and Caulder)

[xgkf]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Upon arriving at her destination, Vanilla wasted no time looking around for her customer, having a much more difficult time finding him than she’d expected before she finally did, spotting him seated alone in a corner having a drink and seemingly lost in his thoughts. His mood brightened considerably when he saw the catgirl walking up to him with a smile on her face and a gleeful hello, happily accepting his offer to come sit across from him at his table. “Hm-hm-hm~ Was I ever~!” she began in response to his question regarding her success before reaching into her pack and retrieving not only the big prize of the spider queen’s venom sack, but just a few shy of a dozen of that of the smaller venom glands and setting the jarred specimens on the table before him, leaving the man looking absolutely overjoyed at the sight of them all.

It was then Vanilla’s turn to react as Mr. Alvarien took stock and recounted the price that he had offered to pay her for the venom glands, her eyes widening slightly at the final total of five-hundred and sixty, and then further lighting up like freshly polished coins as the man produced said payment, leaving more than five full bags laid out on the table before her. The young mage had never seen so much money all at once, an amount that the bar itself likely didn’t see exchange hands in a month’s time...and it was all hers. “Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” she exclaimed as she rose from her seat and practically bounced around the table to hug the man, her tail swishing back-and-forth behind her and further accentuating her excitement. “Wonderful doing business with you~!” Vanilla said then after pulling back and moving to collect her payment, taking the coin purses from the table and putting them into her pack.

Just as she was about to thank the man one last time, however, a loud, booming noise sounded from a little ways off, startling the young mage and causing her to jump and look around the inn in confusion. “W-What the heck was that?!” Vanilla exclaimed.

“It sounded like an explosion,” Parvani said simply, causing his master to look up at him in surprise.

“An explosion? But it...it sounded like it came from near my shop!” she added, suddenly filled with worry for both her home and for Lani, whom she realized was likely still waiting there for her to return. It was then that she heard the sounds of yelling and gunfire crackling from outside, much more close by than the explosion had been, causing her to flinch and instinctively drop down to the floor to protect herself “Wha...What’s going on?!” the catgirl stammered, frightened somewhat by the suddenly chaotic atmosphere.

“...The bandits...” the staff said after a moment, earning a quizzical look from Vanilla. “Remember the contract Lani mentioned to deal with the bandit camp nearby? I could be wrong, but it sounds like they struck first.”

Vanilla’s eyes widened slightly at her staff’s words. The notion certainly made sense to the young mage, but there was no comfort in knowing that Chander could be under attack by a group of bandits, especially when it sounded like people could already be getting hurt by the horrible men. “We...We have to do something! We should go find Lani and the Sheriff!” she said, scrambling back to her feet before beginning to channel a large amount of energy, materializing it similarly to the way she had in the mine the day before and conjuring forth a powerful Elemental, only this time of one from the earth itself.

RP:

Spoiler

- Casting Call Earth Elemental [Lvl. 5/Summon/Nature](This creature gets the Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed, and Battle Hardened Talents, and the Damage Reduction ½ Special Mutation.)
- Using Empower Spell to treat it as if it were Level 8.
- The Elemental gains additional +4 Body per spell level from Druidic Secrets, as well as +2 Body and +1 AV per spell level from Focus in [Nature].

EP cost is 16 (8+8).

I am not entirely certain on the...logistics concerning an Earth Elemental (particularly when it comes to size), so if it would be too big and lumbering to be summoned inside the inn (meaning it would cause a bunch of damage to stuff or wouldn’t fit through the door) or if it can't actually be summoned inside 'cause no direct contact with the earth, I suppose just have her summon it outside.

Also, if possible fluff-wise, I would like to customize its appearance to be loosely that of Vanilla herself. So basically something like a 6 or 7-foot tall statue-like version of Vanilla. If not, though, no big deal.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Spoiler

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HP = 66, PP = 42, EP = 16/40, Status = Fine, Pregnant (7)

Vanilla: HP = 45, PP = 70, EP = 79/95, Status = Fine

NPC Stats
Vanilla's Elemental: 128 Body, 128/128 HP, 16 AV, DR 1/2, Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed

Hilda: Fine
Vivicka: Fine
Jandri: Fine
Trill: Fine

~~~~Lani~~~~​

Lani's outcry received a loud roaring bark in response, and Fido emerged from the smoke of the back of Vanilla's house like a streak of black lightning. The hellhound seemed unharmed, but Vanilla's shop was in paid shape and rapidly getting worse, and even with the gigantic black dog beside her Lani was still in clear danger. Her order to the beast drew an angry growl and a gnash of his teeth, and it was clear that that would be one order that the hellhound would be stalwartly ignoring until the half-demon was safe. His ultimate loyalty was to Eleanor, after all, and the rancher wouldn't have stood for the great demonic canine leaving Lani while she was in such a dangerous situation.

As she peered out the window with the hellhound still beside her, Lani would see no movement save for people frantically scrambling for cover at first, but then a bolt of lightning would lash down the street, killing four people right before her eyes and then going even further past the narrow view that she had. She could still hear shouts, gunfire, and horses, but they were growing more distant as she turned and began to call to Hell for aid. In short order, Vivicka and Hilda were standing before her again, grinning eagerly and awaiting her command. Two goblins soon followed, and this time she acquired a pair of female goblins holding crossbows made from bone and sinew.

"I knew you'd miss me~" Vivicka cooed softly, but Hilda seemed to notice the danger a bit more readily than her fellow sorceress, and gave a roll of her eyes at her comrade's antics before saying; "You want some help dealing with whoever set the place on fire I take it?" One of the goblins, a smaller and almost mousy one, sheepishly said; "We should get out of here before the house collapses.... Do you know how many we have to fight out there?" The other gobliness, of a more average height for a goblin and with breasts even larger than Lani's, added; "And have yah got any idea what we're in fer?"

~~~~Vanilla~~~~​

"Eheh... Likewise!" Vanilla's wealthy patron replied into her hug, one arm hesitating a moment, secretly waving off his bodyguards as they moved to separate the half-nymph from their master. The interruption created by the sudden explosion occurred just when the man was about to say more, and he suddenly paled and glanced nervously out the window while the men who served him. As Vanilla took up Parvanni and dashed off to find the sheriff, the man was ushered to his feet and pulled towards the center of the bar even as several more men go rushing out the door to help fight off the sudden assault.

Vanilla might not have been the first person outside, but she produced the most dramatic reaction by far as she unleashed her magics, spending a great deal of energy in order to conjure a stone figure from the very earth beneath of the street in the intersection in which the inn stood. A large statue of herself appeared, cracked and shaped from earth but still recognizable. "Vanilla?" a familiar voice called out, and she would find the sheriff rushing towards her with his deputy Travis in tow, both of them sporting rifles in their hands and revolvers at their hips. "Get down!" he said, and then dragged her down behind a barrel of water sitting next to the inn's entrance just before a gunshot sounded and she heard a hiss followed by a loud crash just above the two of them. Wood splinters rained down around them, and sheriff Malcolm raised his head to look her in the eyes from beneath the wide brim of his hat and said; "What in Hell's name are you doing out here? Keep your head down or it'll get blown off!"

More gunfire erupted, the men of Chander firing to defend their homes from the bandits and the bandits firing back in turn as they rode through town, growing ever closer. A brief lull in the firing came suddenly a few seconds later, however, and Vanilla would see the other riders disperse as a single figure on horseback came slowly riding down the street. Or at least, at first it looked as if he were riding a horse. No horse than the half-nymph mage had ever seen before had a spiraling horn that ended in a deadly point, with a mane of vibrant burning fire and tufts of similar stuff just above its hooves, nor a body that was black and shiny as if naturally armored. No horse that she would ever have seen had such intelligent and hate-filled eyes either, the sight of them reminiscent in only the most unpleasant ways of Fido.

On the back of the nightmare was a man with a vest of fine red leather over a simplistic blue shirt that had its sleeves rolled up, a pair of black trousers, and a wide-brimmed black hat that looked so big that it shouldn't have been able to maintain its shape. The glowing blue eyes of that figure were visible even from where Vanilla hid as well, despite that they were well over a hundred feet apart, and the shimmering field of energy surrounding him and his steed seemed to allow him to proceed on his leisurely pace without incident, bullets fired at him simply rebounding around him like so many angry hornets around a rhino. This was a figure that Vanilla recognized even before she recognized his almost legendary pair of pistols, a Badarian styled silver revolver with an elongated barrel and a bulky black wargun with eleven chambers instead of the usual three.

"Malcolm.... Ooooh Malcolm! I'm lookin fer you, Walker!" Balthazar called, the leader of the bandits calling out the sheriff who even then knelt protectively beside Vanilla. The sheriff's face tightened, and he called back; "What do you want, Balthazar! Only place I was hoping to see your ugly mug today was on the wanted posters!" The nightmare rider chuckled loudly enough to be overheard, and then called back; "That mighta been the case if I hadn't a' heard about the bounty you put on my head! Now why'd you have to go and do a stupid thing like that, Walker? I thought we had an understanding here! I raid whatever caravans come through town after giving you the courtesy of taxing them for safe passage, and you keep your place knowing that there ain't a damn thing that you can do to stop me!"

Beside her, the sheriff bristled at the implied accusation even though it turned a couple of heads their way, and he quickly called back; "You and I both know that's a load of shit Balthazar! On both counts!" Another chuckle, and the bandit leader drew ever closer as he casually called back; "Cute~ Why don't you step out into the open, eh Walker? Why don't we settle this right now, just you and me? If I'mma kill someone, I'd rather look 'em in the eyes when I do it!" Bristling again, Vanilla felt the sheriff tense beside her, as if he were preparing to do just that. Her elemental still waited in the crossroads, waiting for her orders, but it was far away from the bandit and impossible to disguise. She could always use it for a distraction and start slinging her spells, however, as the street around the bandit leader and his demonic mount were entirely clear for the moment, and with careful placement she could avoid hitting any buildings and doing any more damage to the town.

 

[SirOni]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Lani glanced at the demonic hound for a moment as he refused to leave her side as the chaos around them grew, slightly annoyed that he was risking his life to keep her safe but at the same time relieved that Fido had decided to stay, she didn't know if she could do this herself and the two of them protecting each other would give them both a better chance of surviving this. The young demoness didn't have time to reflect on her and Fido's fate as a flash of lightning put an end to a few fleeing citizens and caused her to yelp out in surprise, though it also conjured up some memories of her and Eleanor's nights spent together, of her mother pushing Lani's body to its limits with her electrifying touch. "No, it's nothing like that now," Lani thought to herself, pushing those memories to the back of her mind right now. That lightning was nothing like Eleanor's, Lani knew, while her mother's was used on her strictly for amplifying the pleasure she felt that lightning was set on destruction.

Determined to at least try and put a stop to the invaders Lani quickly called out, and was surprised though happy when Vivicka and Hilda appeared, and joining the two women were two gobliness' she had never seen before. "Yeah, kinda. But replace this place with the entire town," Lani started, a hint of shakiness in her voice as she tried to remain calm and authoritative. In truth Lani was scared, terrified even. This was the first time Lani had ever found herself in a situation like this, even the occasional raid on Eleanor's farm amounted to little more than an opportunistic bandit or three thinking a farm run by women in the middle of nowhere would be easy pickings and Eleanor the rest of girls dealt with those fools before Lani could even gear up.

"I don't, but I guess there's going to be quite a lot of people," The young girl turned to the shorter of the two goblin women, who seemed to be as unsure of all this as she was, before turning to the taller and bustier gobliness. "Gun wielders and mages, at least. But there's probably going to be some people using swords and stuff like that. This is probably the bandit group the sheriff wanted taken out, if I knew they were this bad I would've gone after them first." A hint of guilt could be heard in Lani's voice as she explained her regret, though as she continued it was replaced with a fierce determination to take these invaders out, a trait passed down to her from Eleanor. "But that doesn't matter now, what matters is these bandits being stopped from hurting the people of Chander anymore than they've done already. I'm sorry to have brought you all into this mess but I cannot do this on my own. We need to wipe these bandits out, and I need to get to Vanilla. I don't know where exactly she has gone, but she went to meet up with a man to deliver some items to, but hopefully Fido can pick up her scent and lead us to wherever she is. Can you do that for me, boy?" Lani turned to Fido, hoping he'd give her good news.

"Hilda, Vivicka," Lani turned to the two sorceress' once she had finished with Fido. "I don't have any potions like what Vanilla gave you two yesterday, and I don't know too much about battle tactics, but I want you two to try and focus on any of the non-mages, if that sounds like a good idea. We'll deal with the bandit mages and any others that get too close to us, okay?" Lani gestured to herself and the gobliness'. "And hopefully some of the bandit mages will be carrying some of those potions. Anyway, that should be it for now, it's time to get moving. I'm Lani by the way, you two are..?" Lani turned to the goblin women once more before the group set off. Making sure the coast was relatively clear Lani would allow Fido to set them off while she unholstered her revolvers ready to react at a moments notice and followed behind the great hellhound, the shorter gobliness following behind her with Vivicka and Hilda between the two goblin women, the bustier one taking up the rear.

Spoiler

Formation;
Big-Tits Goblin -> Vivicka&Hilda -> Short Goblin -> Lani -> Fido
Lani's readying rend + rapid shot

 

[xgkf]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Once her Elemental had finished taking shape, Vanilla’s mind immediately shifted towards locating the sheriff and figuring out what they should do to fend off this attack and protect the townspeople. To her surprise, her search turned out to be a short one as she heard a voice call out to her, causing her to turn her head to see both sheriff Malcolm and his deputy, Travis, hurriedly making their way towards her with rifles in hand. She didn’t have time to do much more than wave in acknowledgment before he grabbed her dragged her down behind a water barrel sitting near the inn’s entrance, apparently just in time to avoid a gunshot that immediately after crashed into the wall above them, causing bits of wood splinters to fall down around them.

“Kyah~!” she’d cried out at the sudden flurry of chaos before hearing Malcolm’s scolding, but protective words. “S-Sorry! I heard an explosion and gunfire, so I was about to come looking for you,” she explained, huddling against him slightly as more gunfire sounded, the men of Chander having begun defending themselves and their homes from the invading bandits.

There was a lull in the gunfire then as another figure made his own entrance into the town, a frightening and commanding presence if there ever was one, causing Vanilla’s face to pale and her ears to droop as she peeked out from behind their cover and saw him approach. He was instantly recognizable is the man that she had seen on the wanted posters, and no doubt whom Lani had accepted the contract on. With his legendary pistols, the man himself was intimidating enough just looking at him, made even more-so by his glowing blue eyes and the protective field of energy that shimmered around him. His mount inspired a whole other level of fear within the catgirl as saw it from the distance, however – a Nightmare. It had a single spiraling horn protruding from its head which ended in a deadly point. Its coat was pitch black and shimmered under the sunlight as if it was some natural demonic armor, and its mane looked like a brilliantly burning fire. Everything about it seemed to radiate hatred and destruction, an embodiment of everything that Vanilla always known and feared about demons.

The young mage was snapped back out of her momentary trance when the bandit leader made his call for the sheriff to show himself, however, hiding back behind their impromptu cover and listening as the two began to exchange words. A surprised look formed on Vanilla’s features at this Balthazar’s implication of there being some sort of deal between him and Malcolm, and she turned her head to look at him as she noticed his reaction and gave his denial, unsure what to think for a moment. Was he telling the truth? And if so, what could that mean? She shook her head clear of those thoughts a moment later, though. It didn’t matter right now, not when the blatant evil-doer was attacking them here and now.

Concern rose up within her then as the bandit issued his challenge to the sheriff, especially as she felt him tense up beside her as if he was about to accept it. He wouldn’t stand a chance against this Balthazar alone, not with all of the magical protection that the bandit leader seemed to be shielded in. “Wait, you won’t stand a chance like this,” Vanilla whispered to the sheriff, lightly holding onto his arm to prevent him from stepping out. Following her words, the young mage closed her eyes and began focusing her magics once again, letting them flow through her and into and around the sheriff in an effort to even the odds.

Once done, the catgirl would release Malcolm’s arm and exhale before taking another breath, winded slightly from the expenditure of energy but nothing she couldn’t handle just yet. She would then look back into the sheriff’s eyes with a look of support and determination in her eyes before giving him a brief nod, assuring him that he had her support. She then let a part of her mind drift to that of her summoned Elemental and began moving it off down one of the side streets for the time being, observing through its ‘eyes’ and watching out for any of the bandits, ready to move and strike down any of the thugs that she sees.

RP:

Spoiler

- Cast Play Possum [Lvl 5/Light/Utility](The character places a buff on themselves or another character which costs 1 EP per round to maintain. The next time an attack would hit someone with this spell active on them, the buffed character makes a resistance check against the attacker and on a success they negate the damage that would be dealt. In addition, this spawns an illusion of the buffed character being slain/knocked unconscious and grants the character an invisibility buff for one round. On a failure the character takes damage as normal and does not gain invisibility or the illusion. Regardless of success or failure, the buff is consumed after the first attack targeted at the character.).
- Cast Oakenform [Lvl 4/Nature/Utility](The character gains Damage Reduction 3/4, a +Mind/5 bonus to AV, and cannot be sneak attacked, Stunned, or Paralyzed. The character takes a -5 penalty to casting while this spell is active. Costs 2 EP per round upkeep.).
- Use Quicken Spell to cast both at once.

Each spell gets a +10 Casting bonus and +1 bonuses to stat increases per spell level due to respective Focus in [Element] Talents, and Play Possum gets +10 to Resistance checks to recognizing its effect as an illusion from Mana Sculpter.

EP cost is 18 (8+6+4); Upkeep cost is 3 EP per turn.

Also, assume control of ye Elemental and go bandit-hunting.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Spoiler

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HP = 66, PP = 42, EP = 16/40, Status = Fine, Pregnant (7)

Vanilla: HP = 45, PP = 70, EP = 61/95, Status = Fine, Play Possum and Oakenform on Malcolm, Upkeep = 3

NPC Stats
Vanilla's Elemental: 128 Body, 128/128 HP, 16 AV, DR 1/2, Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed

Hilda: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Vivicka: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Jandri: Fine
Trill: Fine
Fido: Fine, Dark Armor X = 6, spent 6 EP

Rolls

Spoiler

Vanilla casts her two spells.
Casting: Success. Malcolm is well defended! Hopefully that will help. Hopefully. :3

Hilda and Vivicka give themselves buffs while Lani talks and while they go outside.

~~~~Lani~~~~​

"Ehhh.... Whatever you say," Vivicka remarked at Lani's plan, not seeming to care particularly much, while Hilda simply nodded. Both women quickly began casting minor spells on themselves, forming layered defenses against would-be attackers. "I'm... Trill," the thinner goblin girl replied when prompted to introduce herself. "An' I'm Jandri!" the bustier goblin said in a cocky tone, removing a hand from her crossbow in order to briefly fondle Lani's backside as she added; "An' when I'm done with yeh, you'll never wanna summon anyone else~"

Their order quickly established, Fido led the way out, sheathing himself in shadow armor on the way out while hanging low to the ground in an almost feline manner. His clawed feet fell in utter silence as the other demons lined up according to Lani's orders and they proceeded quickly out of Vanilla's collapsing home, its structure increasingly compromised by the fire that was threatening to destroy it completely. With Lani close behind the hellhound, the beast turned its head down the street one way, and then the other, and then back before glancing back at Lani. It gave a low woof and glanced to their left, its ears perking and its tail swishing, and because she had known the hellhound for so long she knew that he was signalling that that was where Vanilla was. A building off to their right had two men with rifles crouched outside of it, however, in deep cover that would make them hard to shoot, particularly since they were something like a hundred feet away and no good cover between Vanilla's house was available between their current position and the two men besides the porch on which they stood. She could see, some four hundred feet down the street in the direction that Fido had indicated Vanilla was, a lone figure walking towards what looked like a humanoid statue that hadn't been there when they'd walked into town, with a horse that had flames around its hooves and mane that Lani would instinctively recognize as a nightmare, a horse straight from Hell itself.

It would take a while to reach what was happening on the left, but Lani would have time to position her summons according to her wishes, and she could see a number of closer figures with guns in that direction who were turned to watch the dark garbed figure. To their right, the building that the two men, who wore hats and masked, were guarding was seemingly a bank and could have a number of bandits inside. The closer group was the one to the right, but whether or not she wanted to take the detour was up to her.

Spoiler

You really shouldn't try to prepare complex actions in combat like that. Rapid Shot is a variable skill that can have multiple targets and you don't know how many enemies there will be, where they are in relation to Lani's group, or what weapons they might have. In this instance I was sorely tempted to have Lani and co walk out into a place where they could have snuck around and set up an ambush against multiple opponents only for Lani to spoil it by emptying her guns on some schmuck, allowing the mage that she ignored because she couldn't have told them apart from anyone else to one shot or somehow cripple the entire group on the same round. You don't want to leave decision making powers regarding what your character does in my hands, because having choices thrown back on me makes me think I'm wasting my time setting up interesting scenarios, and if I'm making all of the choices for a player I'm going to get creative in punishing them. This isn't really meant to sound as dire as I realize it does, as I'm not even annoyed particularly by yon prepped rapid shot with rend bit, but I feel like I've warned you about this before and figured that a reminder probably wouldn't hurt as we go into a potentially dangerous combat.

~~~~Vanilla~~~~​

Malcolm looked about ready to jump out and accept the bandit's challenges, his taunting having clearly angered the sheriff greatly, but when Vanilla stopped him he didn't pull away even though he turned a flat look upon the young mage. He accepted the twin magical boons without complaint, and though his expression thinned he offered her a nod before he straightened and stepped out of cover to face Balthazar, leaving Travis still looking terrified as he moved up next to Vanilla.

"You talk too much Balthazar!" Malcolm shouted as he walked into the center of the street at a steady, calm pace. The sheriff stopped when he was about in line with the bandit leader and turned to face him squarely, and then calmly holstered his rifle onto his back. "Well, you know me Malcolm. I always did like the sound o' my own voice! It's just that... I'm so much smarter than all the dumb shits like you and your pansy deputy over there, it gets to be a habit to talk to yerself!" The bandit retorted with a low chortle, and then holstered his two handguns while the sheriff glared at him, the two men entering into a brief staredown.

"Yeah, still big talk coming from an impure little punk!" Walker shot back, remarking on the rumors of Balthazar's demonic heritage, as those who weren't purely Su-Ku-Ta were often derided in public. Vanilla, who bore no real resemblance to the faerie portion of her heritage, had found it incredibly easy to conceal that half of her and appear as a sorceress trained as such as a slave who had been emancipated, one of the only ways that a Su-Ku-Ta woman could acquire such skills as her own and be treated as if they were gained legitimately. The remark drew a scowl bordering on rage from the bandit, who simply began to tense in readiness to reach for his guns. Malcolm did the same, and for the next few moments the two men would simply stare at each other while the fighting around them ground to a standstill.

That lull allowed Vanilla to get her summoned elemental moving, and as it lumbered ponderously down a side street she could see through its perceptions as clearly as if they were her own. The bandits who had been waiting on the side street pulled back at the earthen behemoth's advance rather than stand and face it, but it was so tall that it could move quite quickly despite its bulk. It could turn the corner to find three of the masked men waiting and about a dozen or so horses, likely the ones that many of the bandits had come to Chander on. They raised their guns against the stone elemental, but didn't fire yet, waiting to see what the gigantic thing would do before they attempted to provoke it. The golem that looked like her wasn't quite within striking distance just yet, but it could easily charge into range with the gunmen, or rush past them to try and scatter the already disgruntled horses that they were set to guard.

Spoiler

I dislike inserting stuff like what I just did without player permission, so lemme know if the bits I assumed out of Vanilla's history in Chander aren't alright with you so we can work it out. I basically went by the simplest explanation available in lore that isn't up for public reading yet, so if it differs from what you want we can figure it out.

 

[SirOni]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Lani nodded to the pair of goblin women as they introduced themselves, though she chose to not react to the grope from Jandri and replied simply, "Let's get out of this alive first before we plan anything else, 'kay?" The young demoness tried to sound authoritative, though the adrenaline that had rushed through her body when the invasion on Chander first started had begun to ebb away, leaving a feeling of dread as Lani threw herself into uncharted waters.

Stepping out of the burning building worry flooded into Lani as she noticed a lack of people, both the civilians of Chander and the invaders, crowding the street. Panic set in as the young demoness wondered, could this have been her fault? It was true that she had taken a contract to deal with the bandit group plaguing the roads of Chander along with the contract to deal with the spiders in the mine, and that she chose to deal with the latter first. Could that decision have lead to this? If she had gone for the bandits first they most likely would not have had time to organise their attack or would've been too occupied, and so the town may not have been attacked. And on top of that all the women she and Vanilla had rescued from the spider queen were now in peril once again. The whole situation was almost too overwhelming for the young girl, this was turning out to be nothing like the stories her mother had told her back home. When Lani had first left home she had hoped to experience wild adventures, whirlwind romances, and generally have fun while she set about finding a way to revive her 'father' But this... Lani realised she had romanticised Eleanor's journey of vengeance. And now all she wanted to do was break down and cry, wishing she was back at home in the warmth of her bed where she was safe. But no, it was far too late for that, and all Lani could do now was fight back the dark thoughts and push on, hoping to stop the bandits before they run Chander into the ground.

Realising she had been shaking slightly Lani breathed deeply and steeled herself before she turned to watch Fido as he set about sniffing out Vanilla's scent. Which, to the young demoness' delight, he found quickly enough leading down a path branching off to the left of the street. Though her elation was short lived as Lani saw a fiery horse rode by a lone figure, the beast she recognised from tales and rumours told to her as a monstrous demon known as a nightmare. From what she had been told Lani couldn't help but wonder how ruthlessly cruel a person had to be to be able to ally themselves with a nightmare. And what was worse was that the two was heading in the direction that Vanilla was in.

Though Lani had her own troubles to worry about first, in the form of two bandits standing guard by a building to the right. With no cover to hide them Lani and her group would most likely be spotted before sneaking past, and no doubt the bandits would be able to alert any of their nearby allies, perhaps even some hiding in the building they were guarding, causing even more problems for the group of demons. No, they'd have to be dealt with, but how to do it? She could always pepper them with bullets, hoping that their cover didn't stand up well to continued fire, though with their superior guns the bandits would be at an advantage even if their cover fell. Or she could always have Vivicka and Hilda use their spells to kill the bandits. From what she remembered from the mines Lani guessed the two sorceress' magic would be more than enough to deal with a couple of bandits, though what concerned the half demon more was the bandits cries of pain acting as a signal for other nearby bandits. And then there's always the two goblin women. Their crossbows would mostly be silent so they could be used to get the jump on the bandit guards. But much like herself they would have to get closer to the two bandits to have a better chance at hitting them, risking exposure and being attacked with superior weaponry. Lani wished she had her mother's gift for this kind of thing, but, she had an idea at least of how to handle this.

"Vivicka, Hilda, can you two try and get rid of those two using your magic? Silently, if possible. Trill, Jandri, can you two try and get as close to those bandits as you can while Vivicka and Hilda use their magic, and fire at them if they aren't killed from the spells?" Lani ordered the four demons, a slight quiver in her voice. She wasn't sure if this would work as well as she wanted it to, but Lani knew she had to try something.

 

[xgkf]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Vanilla listened with somewhat divided attention as the back-and-forth continued briefly between the sheriff and the bandit leader, focusing mostly on her control of her elemental as it moved down the road. Malcolm’s remark about Balthazar being ‘impure’ caught the catgirl’s ear for a moment, hinting at some form of demonic blood within the bandit leader – something which didn’t really surprise the half-nymph seeing as he could command a Nightmare, but as things around them fell into more of a lull Vanilla returned most of her focus to controlling her elemental. A few bandits who had been waiting along the side street pulled back at the sight of the earthen summon advancing rather than face it, that intimidation factor something that the young mage hoped she would be able to make use of in the coming confrontations with the invading bandits.

After a few moments, the elemental would turn the corner reveal a trio of the masked men standing guard near about a dozen horses – mounts that many of the town’s attackers had likely ridden in on. Vanilla saw the three men raise their guns against the elemental through its senses, but not firing just yet, seemingly not wanting to provoke the massive living statue if they could avoid it. Perhaps unlike them, however, the catgirl knew that her summon was within range to close the distance and strike at the three bandits thanks to how fast the elemental could move, and she intended to take full advantage of that speed to quickly and fiercely answer the attack they had made on her home.

RP:

Spoiler

Have ye Elemental close the distance to the three bandits and punch one of them very hard; either the one that looks the most like he might be in charge of their little trio, or (if no noticeable difference) whichever one has the most dangerous looking gun, or (if no noticeable difference) whichever one is standing the most in the middle of the three of them.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Spoiler

You must be registered to see the links

HP = 66, PP = 42, EP = 16/40, Status = Fine, Pregnant (7)

Vanilla: HP = 45, PP = 70, EP = 58/95, Status = Fine, Play Possum and Oakenform on Malcolm, Upkeep = 3

NPC Stats
Vanilla's Elemental: 128 Body, 116/128 HP, 16 AV, DR 1/2, Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed

Hilda: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Vivicka: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Jandri: Fine
Trill: Fine
Fido: Fine, Dark Armor X = 6, spent 6 EP

Malcolm: Oakenform and Play Possum from Vanilla, taken 22 damage
Balthazar: Psychic Shield X = 8, spent 13 EP

Mook Bandit 1: Fleeing
Mook Bandit 2: Dead
Moon Bandit 3: Fleeing

Bank Robber Guard 1: Dead
Bank Robber Guard 2: Dead

Rolls

Spoiler

Vanilla's golem walks up with intent to splat a guy. That guy gets sudden shot on ye golem.
Stealth: Fails.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 1 + 2 + 1 + 6 + 9 + 8 - 4 = 23, 23/2 = 12 damage.

Elemental swats.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: Its base damage kills him.

The other two guys fire at it.
Attacks: Both miss.

They then run away in opposite directions.

Vivicka and Hilda are not good at stealth. Jandri and Hilda got this though. They try to sneak up.
Stealth: They had a slight advantage, 22 vs 17 for mods, but rolled a 1 and a 2 vs rolls of a 20 and a 14. So, I guess they just shoot dudes.
Attacks: Both hit.
Damage: 5 + 7 + 2 + 9 + 8 + 10 = 41 damage. The two dudes go down anyway.

Malcolm uses Defensive Stance and 20 defensive fighting. Balthazar uses Called Shot on both guns.
Attack (Balthazar) : Both hit.
Damage (revolver) : 4 + 5 + 12 = 21, 21 * 2 = 42, 42 - 24 = 18, 18 * 3/4 = 14 damage.
Damage (wargun) : 1 + 2 + 4 + 8 = 15, 15 * 2 = 30, 30 - 20 = 10, 10 * 3/4 = 8 damage.
Total of 22 damage.

~~~~Lani~~~~​

Vivicka and Hilda looked uncertainly at one another, and the latter would glance back at Lani and say; "We... Aren't really that good at quiet. We could blow 'em away, but it'd be pretty obvious if we did it." Jandri, snorting derisively, would reply; "Durned sorcerer's can't do a thing right! We'll handle it, we don't need ter get close ter deal with those two! C'mon Trill! You brace up on that barrel, I've got this one!"

The thinner goblin would nod, and quickly move to get behind a nearby box for some cover. Unfortunately, one of the boards of Vanilla's porch was weak, and when the goblin stepped on it she fell through it with a crack and ended up going face first into a mud puddle with a great deal of noise. "Yah daft git!" Jandri blurted aloud angrily, but all the noise had alerted the two guards, and Fido gave a menacing snarl and started toward them. "Shit! We still got this!" the busty goblin announced, and quickly lifted her crossbow and fired. The first man took a bolt to the throat before he could raise an alarm, but the closer man shouted a warning just before Trill, from her prone position, maneuvered her weapon up and shot him through the eye.

"Well... That's that, what now?" Jandri said with a frown, while Trill scrambled to her feet and looked ashamed.

~~~~Vanilla~~~~​

The man before Vanilla's golem kept holding his rifle up and up as the giant statue of the catgirl advanced on him, and just before it raised a fist he opened fire. The bullet glanced off of the summoned elemental's head, and the man met a quick and bloody end as Vanilla's golem smashed him into the dirt with one blow. The other two men fired, but their shots only scraped harmlessly against the creature, and they quickly turned and ran while the horses pulled at their reins nervously.

Where the mage's actual body was, in the meantime, the standoff continued for another few moments, both men staring daggers at one another. Suddenly, however, Balthazar lifted both guns and fired before Malcolm could get his fully free of its holster. Both went off, one after another, and the rounds slammed into the sheriff's head one after another, knocking off his hat and stumbling him... But to the surprise of both gunmen, not killing him. "The fuck?" the bandit leader exclaimed, while Malcolm rubbed his bruised forehead in amazement. "Huh... Guess I owe you one Vanilla," the sheriff muttered under his breath, but then pulled his gun proper. The mage had a moment in which she might act further, Travis standing next to her looking quite confused and still frightened, but if she wished she could leave Balthazar to the sheriff and continue doing nothing more than guiding her elemental.

 

[SirOni]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Lani flinched as Trill's foot broke through one of the wooden boards of the porch and brought the gobliness to the ground and into a filthy puddle. With all the noise the young demoness was certain their cover had been blown, and sure enough as she peered over to the two guardsmen they had turned to face the commotion, spotting the small group of demons. Though fortunately Jandri and Trill dealt with the two men, though not quick enough to stop the second bandit to call out an alert.

"We... we need to get into cover and get ready for a fight," Lani started, her eyes narrowing as she scanned the area for a quick place for them to duck into or behind. If anyone heard that man's call they'll be on us soon, probably. And we can't caught outside like this or we'll be easy targets."

Spoiler

Look for a suitable place for them to hide/use as cover, and get behind it if there's such a place available.

 

[xgkf]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

With the first of the three bandits well and truly crushed before the might of her earthen Elemental, Vanilla issued a mental command to her summon for it to follow and finish off the remaining two before returning her focus to where she sat hidden. Just then, the sound of gunfire – one shot followed immediately by another – caused the young mage’s body to jump with a start at the close proximity, knowing immediately that it was from the confrontation between sheriff Malcolm and the bandit leader. With an instinctual flash of worry, her mental focus immediately went to the spells she had cast on town sheriff, and she was relieved to feel them both in effect.

The evident surprise in Balthazar’s voice accompanying his exclamation further confirmed the sheriff’s relative well-being in Vanilla’s mind, but it also made it clear that he was still perfectly fine as well, reminding the catgirl of the strong protective aura that she had seen and sense around the bandit leader upon his arrival. It was something that she knew would have to be dealt with if they were going to have any chance at fighting him, and quickly – her own protections that she had placed around Malcolm were meaningless if they couldn’t hurt Balthazar in turn, after all. She just hoped her idea would work.

“Travis... I have plan,” Vanilla whispered to the nearby deputy, trying to remain hidden with him behind their cover. “I’m going to try to do something about that barrier the bandit leader has around him. Cover me for a few seconds...” the mage finished before beginning to focus her energies again, relying on Travis for the time being for protection against any potential threats.

RP:

Spoiler

Let ye Elemental do as it pleases with the remaining two bandits (will still have Vanilla check in on it next turn, just not control if not necessary).

- Maintain upkeep on existing spells.
- Cast Radiance [Lvl 2/Light/Buff] (Can increase Perception, Resistance, or Mind.).
- Use to buff Vanilla’s Resistance by 22 (60/6=10*2=20+2).

EP cost this round is 5 (2 + 3 upkeep).

 

[Tassadar]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Spoiler

You must be registered to see the links

HP = 66, PP = 42, EP = 16/40, Status = Fine, Pregnant (7)

Vanilla: HP = 45, PP = 70, EP = 53/95, Status = Fine, Play Possum and Oakenform on Malcolm, +22 Resistance (Radiance) on self, Upkeep = 3

NPC Stats
Vanilla's Elemental: 128 Body, 116/128 HP, 16 AV, DR 1/2, Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed

Hilda: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Vivicka: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Jandri: Fine
Trill: Fine
Fido: Fine, Dark Armor X = 6, spent 10 EP

Malcolm: Oakenform (DR 3/4 and +12 AV) and Play Possum from Vanilla, taken 22 damage
Balthazar: Psychic Shield X = 8, spent 18 EP, taken 26 damage

Mook Bandit 1: Fleeing
Mook Bandit 2: Dead
Moon Bandit 3: Fleeing

Bank Robber Guard 1: Dead
Bank Robber Guard 2: Dead

Rolls

Spoiler

Vanilla's elemental chases down another dude and splatterkills him.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: Not even gonna bother.

She casts a spell to buff her Resistance!
Casting: Success. You mathed it out for me already, sooo.....

Balthazar and Malcolm shoot each other.
Initiative!
Balthazar: 10
Malcolm: 4

Balthazar goes full rapid shot, firing 4 shots from his revolver, emptying it, and 5 from his wargun.
Attacks: All hit.
Damage (Revolver) : 6 + 2 + 12 - 3 - 10 - 12 = 0, 0 * 3/4 = 0 damage.
Damage (Wargun) : 2 + 3 + 2 + 8 - 4 - 10 - 12 = 0, 0 * 3/4 = 0 damage.
Balthazar doesn't do shit.

Malcolm uses Called Shot and full Deadly Aim.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 2 + 6 + 13 + 2 + 10 = 33, 33 * 2 = 66, 66 - 40 = 26 damage.

No real mechanics for Lani.

~~~~Lani~~~~​

"Lets get behind something! I don't want to get shot today!" Vivicka stated after Lani's orders were hesitantly given out. There wasn't much to use as cover nearby, Vanilla's house burning behind them and the rest of the porches along the block were just as open and exposed as Vanilla's. The only nearby option was behind the building on the other side of the street. going down another narrow dirt road where it intersected with the street that Vanilla's house was on. The dirt roads of Chander were not dissimilar to the muddy tracks that made up most of the roads crisscrossing Crolia, where she'd been born and where she'd come from, but the drier earth didn't sink in as much and allowed Lani to walk with less care and more speed.

That was certainly something to be glad of as she and her troops rushed across to cover, Fido leading the way, as just before Hilda, the last in line, got out of line of sight from the bank a trio of people came out of it, two men with dusters and rifles led by a woman with two revolvers on her hips. She spotted the demoness, but rather than draw them and pull off a couple of snap shots at the hustling sorceress she quickly muttered something unintelligible and waved her hand from one side to the other. "Demon's! We have a summoner about, things could get more dangerous than we thought! Lets take the loot and get back to the horses!" the woman called out in a strange accent, and why she was being so loud was made clear when four other people, two men and two women, came forth carrying heavy su-ku-ta handguns and bags no doubt filled with the town bank's coin. They started in the direction opposite where Lani and her group were taking cover, and the two with rifles rushed away and across the street only to turn and take some poor cover behind a post and a water trough while the woman and the people carrying the bags moved past them.

~~~~Vanilla~~~~​

"Uhhh... Yy.. Yeah! Alright! I can... I can do this..." Travis replied, panting and looking obviously afraid as he tightened the hold on his rifle and glanced out. Vanilla's next spell would go off without any issue, enhancing her ability to focus, and Travis would look around. The other bandits were on the opposite side of their cover, thankfully, and were too busy watching the exchange between their leader and the sheriff to bother with the two of them.

"Well, that does change things, doesn't it?" Malcolm remarked aloud, but Balthazar simply grunted and opened up. Both guns exploding with firepower, he released shot after shot at Malcolm, every bullet catching him in the chest and arms, but while the volume of fire drove him back a step he emerged without so much as a drop of blood after the bandit's revolver clicked empty. "How in the hell are you still -" Balathazar began incredulously, only for a single shot from Malcolm to silence him with a grunt of pain. The bullet struck him in the chest, right where his heart would be, but even though the bullet was slowed by the invisible wall of psychic force maintained around him and was caught in the armor he wore beneath his vest, it still sent him reeling backwards and ultimately falling onto his ass.

"That's eleven times you've tried to kill me today Balthazar... And eleven failures. Think you're gonna have any better luck now that you're on your ass and half empty?" Malcolm said tauntingly as he worked the action of his own handgun using his thumb, readying another round. "I think I'm gonna put the next one right between your eyes, see if that magic junk you've got can stop it before it goes through your skull!" he said, and a look of panic came over the bandit as he started scrambling back and to his feet while the sheriff took aim.

Vanilla's elemental, in the meanwhile, mentally reported that it had squashed another man for her as he attempted to flee, the other having run into town and leaving the bandit's horses unguarded. She could urge it follow the man, do something to the horses, go hunting, or simply wait to deal with anyone who tried to escape on the frightened beasts, or whatever else might come to the mage's mind while she prepared to help Malcolm end Balthazar's reign of terror over Chander.

 

[SirOni]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

With the lack of cover in the open street Lani and her gang had to turn to a narrow path leading off the main street, which she was thankful for. For as the last of their group ran down the dirt track the bandits fled the building their comrades had been guarding, and judging by the bags they were carrying they had finished sacking the bank. Poking her head around the corner Lani spotted the woman that appeared to be the leader of this little group, and while the woman wasn't the person who had the bounty put out on her Lani surmised she had to hold a relatively important place in the bandit leader's gang regardless.

"We... we can't let these bandits escape," Lani began, the break in her voice slowly vanishing as the half demoness steeled her nerves. "These bandits, they'll want to make their getaway over anything else, so they shouldn't put up too much of a fight. But be on your guard just in case. We got lucky with the last two, and their weapons look a lot more powerful." Lani paused briefly to watch as four more people rushed out of the bank, her eyes narrowing as she thought about the situation and how to deal with it.

"Hilda, Vivicka, I want you two to focus on the riflemen. Trill, Jandri, you two will help me take out the four people running with the woman, and once the riflemen are dealt with Hilda and Vivicka will support us if we've not taken them out already." Once more the demon girl paused briefly and turned her gaze to the hellhound. "And Fido, take that woman down unharmed. Someone needs to answer this attack, and she seems important enough." Pushing her fears for Vanilla's life to the back of her mind for the moment to focus on the mission at hand Lani allowed herself to recall the training Eleanor had given her, and while this was her first fire fight against actual people Lani thought her plans were good enough. And if they weren't, well, she'd soon see how bad the result would be.

With their orders given Lani gripped her revolvers tightly and, diving out of cover she started across the street to dive behind the nearest porch or other acceptable piece of cover, hoping that Hilda and Vivicka perform well enough to keep herself from being shot at. As she made her way across the street Lani took careful aim and let off a barrage of shots at the fleeing gunmen.

Spoiler

Spirited Warrior; 10EP for 2X to attack rolls for a +20 to attack

Rend & Rapid Shot on all four gunmen with the revolver wielding woman, two shots on each and the last round from each gun on the two that Trill and Jandri aren't targeting.

 

[xgkf]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

With a simple thought following the sensation of feeling her spell’s effects envelope her, Vanilla instructed her Elemental to continue to circle around the outside of town and make it’s way towards the area where the bandits had entered, hoping to flank them. She then peeked out from behind her cover just enough to see what was happening between Malcolm and Balthazar and seeing the bandit leader take a bullet to the chest, causing him to recoil backward and fall despite the magical protection that was imbued upon him. The sheriff seemingly had the advantage now in their confrontation, but Vanilla knew from her own example that magical or spiritual abilities – which she assumed the bandit leader possessed – should not be underestimated, especially if there were more than just defensive powers in the man’s bag of tricks. They had to try to put an end to all this before he had a chance to turn the tables and get anyone – or anyone else – in town hurt.

As such, when the young mage saw Balthazar beginning to struggle to get back to his feet she took it as her opportunity to act, focusing her energies for a moment before rising up from behind the barrel and letting loose a potent burst of arcane magic, aiming to dispel whatever magical barrier the bandit leader possessed and leave him vulnerable.

“Now!” Vanilla would shout then after her spell found it’s mark, ducking back behind her cover with Travis a moment later.

RP:

Spoiler

Have ye Elemental continue around the edge of town so as to make its way around towards the entrance where most of the bandits rode in.

- Maintain upkeep.
- Cast Dispel [Lvl 2/Arcane/Utility] (Removes a random Spell or Effect from the target if the caster wins a Resistance check against the target.) on Balthazar.
- Activate the Heighten Spell Feat, spending 3 EP to increase the Resistance check for this Dispel by an additional +12 (4*3).

EP cost this round = 8 (3 [upkeep] +2 [Dispel] +3 [Heighten Spell]).

 

[Tassadar]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Spoiler

You must be registered to see the links

HP = 66, PP = 42, EP = 6/40, Status = Low on Energy, Pregnant (7) Both guns on 0/5 shots

Vanilla: HP = 45, PP = 70, EP = 45/95, Status = Fine, Play Possum and Oakenform on Malcolm, +22 Resistance (Radiance) on self, Upkeep = 3

NPC Stats
Vanilla's Elemental: 128 Body, 116/128 HP, 16 AV, DR 1/2, Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed

Hilda: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Vivicka: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Jandri: Fine
Trill: Fine
Fido: Fine, Dark Armor X = 6, spent 14 EP

Malcolm: Oakenform (DR 3/4 and +12 AV) and Play Possum from Vanilla, taken 22 damage, repeater at 6/7
Balthazar: Psychic Shield X = 8, spent 28 EP, taken 26 damage, revolver at 0/5 and wargun at 7/13

Mook Bandit 1: Fleeing
Mook Bandit 2: Dead
Moon Bandit 3: Fleeing

Bank Robber Guard 1: Dead
Bank Robber Guard 2: Dead

Rolls

Spoiler

Vanilla's elemental moves around and stuff, I guess.

Lani gives out orders and then rushes out to start shooting.
Attacks: All of the bullets hit a wall of force which they cannot penetrate.

Yon goblins reload their crossbows.

Fido tries to smash through the force wall.
Resistance: Failure. Fido bounces back.

Yon mages cast SPELLS! Hilda tries to dispel the barrier and Vivika just tries to chuck a fireball through it.
Casting: Both succeed.
Resistance (Dispel) : Failure.
Resistance (Fireball) : Failure.

So, that's a whole lot of nothing.

Back over on Vanilla's side, she tries to dispel yon barrier.
Casting: Success.
Resistance: Failure. :<

Malcolm uses Called Shot and Deadly Aim, with 4 rapid shot for a total of 5 attacks.

Travis uses Sudden Shot to protect Vanilla.

Balthazar bravely runs away using Shadowstalker, making Malcolm's shots not happen save for one that doesn't hit.

~~~~Lani~~~~​

The demons would nod except for Fido, who instead gave a canine grunt and started forward immediately. The street that they moved on made a T-intersection with the one on which Vanilla's burning house was, but even though that one was burning the next one was only just starting to catch flames, allowing Lani to take cover there in the form of a barrel that one of the goblins had previously hidden behind while they sniped the guards. The other option was a two-wheeled cart that was really just a platform on wheels leaning on the ground, forming a ramp, but it was farther away both from the bandits and her current position. Running flat out to reach the barrel, Lani peppered bullets at the retreating bandits.

All of her shots were on or at least near the mark, but all of the bullets were caught in mid-air by some mysterious force and left to fall to the ground after hanging where they'd stopped. It wasn't immediately obvious that it was happening until she'd stopped firing as her guns both clicked empty, every shot wasted and the men she'd targeted unharmed. The two goblins quickly reloaded their crossbows and took aim, though upon seeing Lani's shots all miss they held their fire. Fido was bolder than that, however, rushing forward and leaping into the invisible barrier with all his shadow-enhanced might. The hellhound slammed into it and slowed in mid-air, hung suspended for a moment, and then was suddenly launched backwards and made to smash against the ground. The demonic beast roared and scrambled back to its feet, preparing for another go, but as far as Lani could tell he hadn't done much of anything.

"Lets just get that out of the way!" Hilda declared, and then her eyes glowed as she waved a hand, golden sparks shooting out towards the barrier and revealing that it spanned from one side of the street to the other. Her magical sparks tried to burn through that barrier, but it held firmly, and the demonic sorceress scowled darkly while Vivicka began to grin. "Not so hot now, are yah? Lets see if they are after this!" the cocky mage said, and then launched an orb of flame at the ones carrying the loot from the bank. The fireball, however, was no more effective at getting through the force barrier than anything else had been, and when it prematurely exploded Fido had to dodge out of the way to avoid the flames, prompting the hellhound to shoot a glare at the sorceress.

The woman leading the group continued strolling away, seemingly unconcerned, as the two men with the bags of money continued to move ahead of her. She did pause and glance back with a smirk just as she neared the next street that led out of town, however, and raised a hand and middle finger towards Lani. "Good effort, but all the same... Better luck next time!" she declared jovially, and then gestured for her men to follow as she moved out of sight. The two other bandits followed, but the force barrier was still present, and Lani had spent some of her remaining energy to try and make sure that those shots hit, leaving her drained and tired.

The two remaining bandits were still in sight, however, and Lani could try to follow in any number of ways. Going through the barrier would likely be difficult, but was possible. An alley just ahead ran parallel to the street that the bandits had gone down, but she would have to hurry if she wanted to catch them, and it was too narrow to go more than single file. What was more, the rest of her followers were farther from it, meaning that she'd either have to go in alone at first or wait. Going through one of the buildings was also an option, but had many of the same problems plus the lack of any guarantee that it had a back door, even though it would offer more cover if she did get into a gunfight with the bandits on the other side.

~~~~Vanilla~~~~​

Her sudden rise and shout drew Balthazar's attention, and as she unleashed the spell meant to remove his protection he shot a glance between Vanilla and Malcolm while seemingly putting two and two together. Looking back to Vanilla as her spell snapped against his barrier, she found it hardened against her efforts, and though she managed to crack it her minor spell was eventually repulsed, leaving his barrier intact.

Malcolm, in the meantime, strode forward so that Balthazar was in his shadow and his figure was silhouetted by the rising sun, casually pointed his gun down at Balthazar's head, the barrel barely more than a few inches away from the bandit's face, and said; "Looks like this is where we part ways, Balthazar. Save me a good seat in Hell!" Following the sheriff's dramatic declaration, he began to squeeze the trigger as Balthazar looked back at him with a wide grin. "Yup... For now. We'll have to see who saves a seat for who, sheriff!" he quipped quickly, and then just as Malcolm's gun barked he suddenly dissolved into shadow.

Circling once around Malcolm like a black cloth caught in the wind, the shadow sped off in the same general direction that Vanilla's elemental had gone originally even as the behemoth in the catgirl's form turned a corner pursuing the other retreating bandit. The rest of the bandits, seeing their leader retreat, suddenly turned tail and scattered into the town, many heading for the horses that Vanilla's elemental had left unguarded but not freed. The nightmare down the street, bucking and unleashing an entirely un-horse-like hissing roar, turned and sped off in the same direction, its hooves leaving burns in the earthen street before it quickly vanished from sight.

"....Fuck!" Malcolm declared, and then started after Balthazar, though he seemed unsure of what to do given the magical nature of what had just happened.

 

[SirOni]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Lani looked expectantly as she slid behind the barrel for cover, though as the seconds passed her hopefulness turned to exasperation as Lani realised none of her shots hit their mark, and for a moment wondered whether her exhaustion from both the fight and her morning sex with Fido was the cause. Though the young demoness quickly noticed that instead of just missing her targets the bullets hadn't even reached them and now littered the floor not far from where she had fired them. The young demoness wondered what could have caused her shots to stop midair, though a few moments later her question was answered as Fido collided with some invisible barrier and was sent flying backwards into the dirt. The only consolation from the group's failed attack on the bandits was the exact location of the barrier and the distance that it spanned when Hilda's spell failed to break it, Vivicka's spell doing little else as well, save for singeing a few of Fido's hair.

Lani's eyes followed the bandits as they fled the scene, and to rub salt into her wounds the woman had called back and heckled the young girl. The woman's taunt was the last straw, and as she and her men ran the length of the street safely behind their barrier Lani let out a growl of frustration. Lani knew they didn't have much time before they lose group entirely, and with them having stole most if not all of the towns money that was something Lani just couldn't let happen. The young girl quickly scanned the area as she reloaded her revolvers, noting the narrow pathway leading around the barrier and the houses around them. The former, running parallel to the street the bandits took, seemed like a solid option aside from the cramped conditions, though the latter would offer more room for manoeuvring as well as the benefit of decent cover, though there was always the risk of there not actually being a way back out. Truth be told, while those two options should serve her well Lani believed the situation was too dire to risk them, and instead an idea came to the girl.

"Hilda, Vivicka, if either of you have any spells that can stop this fire I want one of you to stay behind and put them out, and then make your way back to us after," Lani said as she stood back up from behind her cover. "If not then, well, let's hope we can get these bandits before the town burns down. And Fido, d'you think you can carry one or both of them?" She nodded to the two sorceress' as she addressed the hellhound. "It'd be good if we could get them as close to the bandits as possible, and if they're riding you we won't have to worry about them falling behind or you all taking your time getting through that path. And Trill, Jandri," She finally turned to the two goblin women. The young demoness flapped her wings briefly, limbering them up. "I want you two to make your way to the bandits through the houses, try to take them out though if you don't have a clear shot at least try to shoot the bags of money. If we can't stop them leaving we can at least stop them from stealing as much of the gold as possible. You know what you have to do, 'kay? Fido, try to keep up with me, and like before, I want that woman alive." Lani's eyes narrowed as she mentioned the woman, and with one final glance at her group of demons the young girl beat her wings, kicking up a small cloud of dust as she rose into the air and charged off down towards the alleyway, rising up towards the rooftops to find a spot to shoot down at the escaping bandits.

Spoiler

Reload both revolvers with standard ammo, 2x movement speed (for a total distance of 36).

 

[xgkf]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Vanilla’s eyes widened in surprise not a moment after having ducked back into cover as she felt the magics of her spell splash all but uselessly against the bandit leader’s protective barrier, her efforts to dispel it repulsed by that very barrier. “No way... It wasn’t strong enough?!” the mage muttered in disbelief as she turned and peaked back out from behind the barrels. She saw a look of realization on the bandit leader’s face for a moment before he and sheriff Malcolm exchanged words once again, but then as quickly as she could blink Balthazar was gone, seemingly vanishing into the very shadows beneath them which then sped off in the direction in which she had seen the group of horses through the eyes of her elemental.

The rest of the bandits – as well as the nightmare – turned and fled soon after having seen their leader retreat, the bulk of which seemingly heading off in that same direction. Acting quickly, Vanilla sent a signal to her earthen golem to tell it to hurry back there as quickly as it could go, hoping to beat the fleeing bandits to them and possibly scare the horses to slow their retreat. Malcolm’s frustrated shout drew the catgirl’s attention back to him a moment later as he started off after Balthazar as well, prompting her to do the same. “C-Come on, Travis!” she said to the deputy as she rose to her feet and followed after the pursuing sheriff, quickly calling upon her magic to send a healing spell out towards him as she did so.

RP:

Spoiler

Have ye Elemental head back towards them horses as quickly as it can go. If it gets there with time to spare, have it spook the horses somehow (maybe striking the ground near them or something).

- Maintain upkeep.
- Cast Nature’s Breath [Lvl 1/Nature/Bolt, Heal] on Malcolm.

EP cost this round = 3 (3 [upkeep] +0 [Nature’s Breath]).

 

[Tassadar]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Spoiler

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HP = 3/66, PP = 42, EP = 6/40, Status = Low on Energy, Pregnant (7) Both guns on 5/5 shots, Badly Injured, Prone

Vanilla: HP = 45, PP = 70, EP = 42/95, Status = Fine, Play Possum and Oakenform on Malcolm, +22 Resistance (Radiance) on self, Upkeep = 3

NPC Stats
Vanilla's Elemental: 128 Body, 116/128 HP, 16 AV, DR 1/2, Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed

Hilda: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Vivicka: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Jandri: Fine
Trill: Fine
Fido: Fine, Dark Armor X = 6, spent 18 EP

Malcolm: Oakenform (DR 3/4 and +12 AV) and Play Possum from Vanilla, taken 5 damage, repeater at 6/7
Balthazar: Psychic Shield X = 8, spent 38 EP, taken 26 damage, revolver at 0/5 and wargun at 7/13

Rolls

Spoiler

Vanilla casts a level 1 spell and pays upkeep while moving.
Casting: Success. Big surprise!
Healing: 1 + 4 + 10 + 2 = 17 HP restored.

Lani's group moves around a lot, Lani herself reloads her guns and flies over a building.

Her feet clip the edge, causing her to tumble in mid air. She still gets over it, but takes a -5 penalty to Dodge for the round.

Yon mage, seeing Lani tumbling, takes a turn to turn around and fire a Greater Force Bolt at her.
Casting: Success.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 3 + 4 + 7 + 2 = 16, 16 * 4 = 64, 64 - 5 - 5 = 54 damage.
Resistance: 14 + 29 = 43 vs 46 = 15 + 20 + 8 + 3, enemy wins, Lani is thrown back 10 feet and knocked Prone, forcing her to the ground.

She falls a total of thirty feet, hitting the ground and taking 30/10 = 3, 3 ^ 2 = 9 damage that ignores AV.

~~~~Lani~~~~​

The various demons under her command did as Lani asked, albeit some of them grudgingly. The two goblins both nodded and wordlessly hurried past Lani into the house, moving to try and get a couple of shots on the group as they no doubt sought to flee from Chander. Fido would give a low growl before rushing over to Vivicka and Hilda, both of whom promptly mounted the hellhound rather than bother to answer Lani. As the demonic beast rose again, however, Hilda quickly supplied; "I can put the fire out, but I need to be closer! Drop me off there and take Vivicka around to get a shot off at them before they get away!"

Though hesitant to leave Lani, unless the half-demon had any other orders for them the trio would take off, Fido moving at a run while tendrils rose from his shadow armor to keep the two demon women clinging to his back. They were heading first for Vanilla's burning domicile, one of the largest fires in the place, and after dropping off Hilda to deal with that there were a number of ways that Fido could use to get out to the edge of town where the bandits were. That left Lani alone as she reloaded her revolvers, quickly clicking both freshly reloaded handguns closed and taking to the air.

The barrier blocking her and her allies from taking on the bandits was invisible, leaving her ability to tell where it ended as a guess at best, but as she wasn't trying to fly over the barrier that wasn't a problem. It took a bit of extra work to rise up and over the roof of the house, but as she did so she got the bandit group into view again. The majority of them were packing their horses with their winnings, but the woman who had cast the barrier that had stopped her and the men most directly beside her were lagging behind a bit after dealing with Lani.

One of the men who was about to mount looked up at Lani and shouted a warning, already drawing his rifle, but the woman shouted back; "Let me deal with it!" Again she paused, and turned her smug grin onto the hovering Lani. "You really don't take a hint, do you?" she shouted up jovially, but as Lani made whatever response she liked to that statement she raised a hand toward the flying half-demon. A bolt of force slammed her into her abdomen less than a second later, the power gathered for the incantation spoken so quickly that she'd had no time to change her direction to avoid it whatsoever. The invisible cannonball hurled her backwards, forcing her wings to crumple inwards as the breath was knocked immediately from her body.

Lani plummeted backwards, the bandits leaving her line of vision as blinding pain left her momentarily paralyzed such that she had no control over her descent. The fall to the ground, nearly thirty feet after the blast propelled her slightly upwards due to its angle, ended with a sickening crunch onto the packed dirt path as she landed on her wings. More pain shot through her as the unnatural appendages were forced to bend at angles that they were never meant to, and what little breath she had regained during the few seconds in which she'd been falling was knocked from her again. The combined pain of her various injuries was very nearly enough to cause Lani to black out entirely, and she would know that if she did that all of the demons she had summoned to help fight off the bandits would vanish with her.

~~~~Vanilla~~~~​

Vanilla's elemental, at her mental command, returned towards the horses that were growing increasingly nervous. The ponderous stone creature walked swiftly despite its bulk, its massive size allowing it an impressive stride, allowing it to outpace the men trying to flee to their horses even as the townspeople took up shooting at the bandits from out of their doors and windows again. Only a handful went down, but the panic in the fleeing men was only incensed by the added fire.

The golem might have been able to outpace the men, but the demonic horse that Balthazar had ridden in on was another story. The nightmare burst past Vanilla's golem and shot past the other horses, and through its gaze Vanilla would see the shadows flitting toward it along the ground as it sped off towards the desert, its entire body now brightly aflame. The shadows formed anew onto the demon's back, Balthazar returning to his normal form well out of reach of her elemental or the townspeople firing from their windows, and of Vanilla and Malcolm as well.

The deputy jumped up after Vanilla and the sheriff at her barked command, the spell that she had cast hitting Malcolm in the back and healing the bruising caused by the repeated bullet strikes against his magically protected skin. He didn't even glance back, barely even noticing the lessening of his pain by all appearances, as he sped down the street that the mage's elemental had taken earlier. It would take several moments for them to reach the point at which they could see the bright speck of the fleeing bandit leader, well out of range of any mundane weaponry by that point, and spotted a number of other riders following after him from another part of town.

By that point only a few of the men from their section had been able to join the retreat, however, as Vanilla's earth elemental stood in the path to their horses. One of them managed to sneak around, and a few others had stolen mounts from elsewhere in town rather than face the creature's wrath, but four of them now faced the thing with seemingly useless guns drawn on it, the lot of them only a block away from Vanilla herself as she caught up with Malcolm, who was pointing his pistol at the fleeing figure of Balthazar with a look of controlled fury on his face. Travis, who had kept up with Vanilla rather than pass her as his more athletic figure might have allowed, didn't do much but stand numbly and watch as the bandits fled.

 

[SirOni]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

"Found you!" Lani called out as she reached the peak of the building and the fleeing bandits burst back into view. The young demoness ignored the woman's taunts, she was clearly feeling cocky thanks to the distance between the two and due to the horses they were currently loading their ill-gotten goods onto. Lani knew she had this, and as a wide smile spread across her face Lani rose her guns forward, ready to fire.

Though Lani's elated disposition didn't last long. As the bandit woman raised her hand a somewhat confused expression replaced Lani's smug determination, and then all at once she suddenly realised what was happening. The spell, cast at such a speed that gave the young demoness no time to react, hit Lani full in the stomach, launching the girl back and upwards and knocking the breath out of her lungs. Rasping weakly, Lani looked down at her attacker through watery eyes, and then quite suddenly gravity grabbed hold of the girl once more and sent her small body plummeting to the ground below.

What little air Lani had managed to take in from her free fall left her body once again as she struck the packed dirt road below. White pinpricks of light flooded into Lani's vision as pain coursed through her body, shooting along her back and down her arms and legs. Lani lay there for some time, the wet warmth of tears streaming down her face as she fought to take in deep breaths whilst fighting back the urge to cry out from the pain.

Though eventually her breathing, whilst laboured, came back to the young demoness, who, now having one less thing on her mind, noticed the taste of blood in her mouth. With some effort Lani rolled onto her front, and with a grunt of pain she forced herself up and onto her hands and knees. With the sudden exertion came a bout of coughing, which peppered the road with blood and almost caused the demoness to collapse. Though she managed to remain conscious, and with some effort Lani gradually climbed to her feet albeit sagging under the pain and exhaustion still coursing through her body, and once more began to cough, spraying a fresh splatter of blood into her hand. Lani ignored the blood, simply wiping her mouth on the sleeve of her hoodie as her vision gradually returned to normal.

Somewhat upright and able to see relatively clearly Lani turned to look at her wings, which had taken the brunt of the fall, and gasped. Her wings, which she had thought was one of her cutest attributes, were currently a mangled mess, the joints and bones bent at all sorts of angles. Though despite how bad it seemed Lani thought to test them to see if they were as bad as they looked. Which the young demoness quickly regretted doing as a fresh wave of pain washed over her body, and this time she couldn't stop herself from crying out. The loss of the use of her wings shocked Lani, and their treatment was the first thing she planned on sorting out as soon as this whole horrid mess was dealt with.

So with the quick assessment of her body taken care of Lani collected up her guns, which had fortunately fallen beside her as she landed, and contemplated on what to do next. The bandit woman and her entourage had most likely gotten away by now, or at the very least were going to be extremely difficult to chase after now without the use of her wings. Her own group were busy doing their own things by Lani's order, and were unlikely to have noticed what had happened with Lani, though calling them back prematurely from their orders wasn't something Lani wanted to do, they could end up capturing some of the bandits before they make their escape. The only other thing Lani could think to do is simply wait, she was far to beaten, bruised, and exhausted to do much else, her body ached all over and she was sure there must be some internal damage. So, with her mind seemingly made up Lani slumped a shoulder against a nearby wall, and allowed herself to rest for a bit, though keeping an eye out for any bandits trying to sneak through.

 

[xgkf]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

As the young mage finally caught up with Malcolm she felt the brief mental tug from her Elemental as it squared up against the four bandits, standing between them and their horse mounts, and gave it a quick mental command to attack them and prevent their retreat before returning her attention to the sheriff to see him taking aim at Balthazar in the distance. Vanilla quickly looked around then for more of the retreating bandits, seeing some on horseback but still within range following after their leader. The thought to simply let them go briefly flashed through her mind, but all that would mean was that there would be just that many more of the criminals to deal with again later. They couldn’t just let them escape.

“We can track him down later! Focus on the rest for now!” she called out to the sheriff as she began gathering her energy and taking aim at the group of fleeing riders. She then released it, targeting a central point roughly between them all in an effort to catch as many of them in her spell’s effective radius as possible, causing the ground all around that point to shake in an attempt to take them down and prevent their retreat.

RP:

Spoiler

Have ye Elemental attack the bandit closest to it.

- Maintain upkeep.
- Cast Ground Spasm [Lvl 5/Nature/Ball] (Deals damage as a spell one level lower. Creatures affected by this spell must win a Resistance check against the caster or be knocked Prone), aiming to catch as many of the fleeing bandits in its radius as possible.
- Will deal (1d6+1+60/8)*4[Spell Level – 1] +8[Focus] damage to those affected within the 25 foot radius spell effect.

EP cost this round = 11 (3 [upkeep] +8 [Ground Spasm]).

 

[Tassadar]

Re: The Good Daughter (SirOni and xgkf)

Spoiler

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HP = 3/66, PP = 42, EP = 6/40, Status = Low on Energy, Pregnant (7) Both guns on 5/5 shots, Badly Injured

Vanilla: HP = 45, PP = 70, EP = 31/95, Status = Fine, Play Possum and Oakenform on Malcolm, +22 Resistance (Radiance) on self, Upkeep = 3

NPC Stats
Vanilla's Elemental: 128 Body, 116/128 HP, 16 AV, DR 1/2, Hard Hitter, Skill with Unarmed

Hilda: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Vivicka: Fine, +16 AV and +16 Dodge (Force Armor x2) spent 4 EP
Jandri: Fine
Trill: Fine
Fido: Fine, Dark Armor X = 6, spent 18 EP

Malcolm: Oakenform (DR 3/4 and +12 AV) and Play Possum from Vanilla, taken 5 damage, repeater at 6/7
Balthazar: Psychic Shield X = 8, spent 38 EP, taken 26 damage, revolver at 0/5 and wargun at 7/13

Rolls

Spoiler

Vanilla casts Ground Spasm at the group of fleeing bandits.
Casting: Success.
Attacks:
Damage: 2 + 1 + 8 + 2 = 13, 13 * 4 = 52 damage. Horses have 9 natural AV, meaning it only deals 43 damage to them, not killing them. Whether or not it hits the bandits depends on whether or not their mounts fail the checks to be knocked prone.
Resistance (Horses) : All three that she could get in the AoE fail, and are knocked prone, meaning that their riders also take damage.
Resistance (Bandits) : All three fail, and are stuck on the ground for a round after being thrown from their horses. All of them are killed, so they proooobably won't be getting back up.

Malcolm pulls out his rifle, uses Deadly Aim and Called Shot.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 5 + 4 + 1 + 2 + 17 + 10 = 39, 39 * 2 = 78 damage. Ded.

The rest of the bandits ESCAPE.

~~~~Lani~~~~​

Left all on her own with her pain, Lani lacked any ability to see how her summoned creatures were fairing against the sorceress and her bandit allies as she limped over to a building and leaned against it. The windows had been smashed in on her side of the building, glass shards covering the floor on the inside of the building, but her boots thankfully protected her from anything else that might have happened. With nothing else to do while trying to recover from the spell that had knocked the breath from her lungs and broken more than a few of her bones besides keep watch for any bandits who hadn't yet escaped, she was able to look inside of the building, seemingly a grocery. The scraps of fresh vegetables on the floor and depleted racks near to the smashed window suggested that the bandits had quickly raided the place for food, but the aisle she could see from her position allowed Lani to see someone splayed out on their back, a pool of blood soaking into the wood beneath them.

The clothes they wore suggested that it was a woman, though in the dim light it was hard to really tell for sure, and after a few moments Lani would see a tiny, wailing figure rush out from a doorway and hug the fallen figure, crying. "By the void, what happened to you!?" Hilda said suddenly, approaching from the side and looking upon Lani's dirtied, bedraggled look and shattered wings. She hurried her steps and was quickly beside Lani, a dark frown on her face as she gently felt along her ribs, quickly finding the ones that had been broken by the mage's spell.

"You're hurt pretty bad.... Come on, you need to sit down. The fight's over," she continued, and unless Lani resisted she would guide the young demoness over to a nearby bench and force her to sit down. "The bones will have to be reset before they can be mended," the demoness continued calmly, "I can do that, and so could Vivika, but I don't know about Vanilla or any healer from here. Mortals rarely know how to work with biology other than their own."

Fido would return soon enough, followed shortly after by Vivika, and then Jandri and Trill. "They got away, but I managed to split one of the bags open! They ran rather than go back for it, and I saw some of them go down from something on the opposite side of town while they were trying to run away. What now?" the bustier goblin reported grumpily, still holding her crossbow. "There were only a handful that got away.... Should we go after them?" Trill added sheepishly, frowning. "Lani is too badly hurt to go hunting right now," Hilda reported sharply, though at that point Lani could interject her own opinion into the conversation if she so wished. Regardless, it seemed as if the bandits had been driven off, for now.

~~~~Vanilla~~~~​

Swearing under his breath, Malcolm turned his sights from Balthazar to the much closer group while Vanilla simultaneously commanded her elemental and cast her spell. Her magic worked, a subterranean wave of energy shooting forth in a line right for one of the fleeing riders and then suddenly expanding violently right in front of them. The very ground beneath them suddenly rumbled, imperceptible to those standing so far away but causing the galloping horses of three of the men caught in tit to stumble and, one by one, crumble to the ground. They fell onto their sides, neighing in pain as the joints in their legs were sprained or broken by the falls caused by the shaking ground, but far worse were the fates of the men who had fallen beneath them.

One was crushed by his mount, a fountain of blood issuing from his mouth as the lower half of his body was crushed beneath the stolen black charger he had been riding. Another was swallowed up by a crack in the ground after falling from a grey stallion, leaving his legs flailing in the air for a moment before another shift in the shuddering earth caused the hole that had opened to close around him, prompting his limbs to give one last shuddering twitch before going still. The last was, perhaps, the luckiest, as he was simply flung from the back of his horse, a spotted brown and white mare, and landed on his head, his neck breaking. The three horses managed to rise, the mare and the stallion limping in the direction they'd been going originally while the stolen charger started sauntering back, favoring one leg but moving a bit more quickly.

The sheriff, in the meantime, raised the rifle he'd carried on his back to his shoulder and took aim, having slid his revolver back into its holster. Taking a bead on the fleeing rider closest to them after Vanilla's spell, he gave two breaths, sharp inhales followed by slow exhales, as he centered his aim. At the end of the second exhale, Malcolm squeezed the trigger and his gun barked and jumped skyward. A red splash appeared on the rider's back, directly in the center, and he gave a start before tumbling off of his still galloping mount. The sheriff took aim on the last man within their range, the group from the other side of town having already made it over a hill and out of sight, but before he could get his aim centered the man was over the hill and gone, leaving the only bandits still in town as those confronted by Vanilla's elemental.

Things didn't go well for them. The stone creature shrugged off their gun fire as if it were nothing, their bullets bouncing off of it, and advanced. One of them was crushed immediately, but as the others broke and run, two going for the horses and another running down the street, the townspeople and Travis stepped in. The deputy stepped around the corner and smashed one of the fleeing bandits in the face with the butt of his rifle, knocking him over backwards stunned and with a mouth full of blood. Not even missing a beat, he raised his rifle and shot the other man in the side, causing him to stumble long enough for someone else to take a shot that went through his neck, dropping him. The last man, running into town, was left confronted with no less than a dozen armed people who came pouring out of their buildings, and quickly skidded to a halt and looked around for an avenue of escape. Vanilla could only see it through the eyes of her elemental, but it was still at least marginally satisfying to see the man slowly raise his hands in surrender.

"He isn't getting away with this one," Malcolm snarled coldly beside Vanilla, his face contorted into an expression of boiling fury, and he lowered his rifle only to work the bolt on it, ejecting the spent round and replacing it with a new one. The sheriff turned back and started heading into town without another word, leaving Vanilla free to do more or less as she liked, the battle for Chander now ended.