Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 26/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 7 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

"Of course! I was just going to heal him when you surprised us," Sister Annabeth said as Naltaibur approached the injured man and started healing him. A few cantrips later and his throat only had minor bruising, which would clear up naturally over the next few days, and he nodded his thanks to Naltaibur. Annabeth, in the meantime, had healed the other wounded man, and then turned towards Naltaibur to answer her questions.

"We were sent out from Fort Dragonsbane in the wharf, and if you mean Fort Avenshire where the alien... Thing crashed, we don't have the manpower available to secure it yet, at least not according to their superiors," the priestess said, looking somewhat contemptuous at the orders from the soldiers, "We haven't been in that area. As far as I know, no one was sent there, not even to investigate the crash. Technically we're supposed to escort you lot to safety, but you're free to do as you like. These guys have their orders, but you might be able to convince them otherwise."

Naltaibur's companions, meanwhile, had settled in among the soldiers. Gloria and Margaret seemed relieved at the added manpower, while the three mercenaries stood somewhat aloof. Despite their own distrust of the demoness, they were also shielding Mavra bodily from the Therion guardsmen, and the demoness was speaking aloud with Father Eldric, who had parted from Naltaibur's side while she dealt with the wounded man. Her controlled hunter was sitting in an alley waiting for her orders, and hadn't yet started trying to jump its chains too hard.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

The doctor gave the wounded man a pat on the shoulder, before turning to the other man - only to see that the priestess had already taken care of him. That told Naltaibur that, at the very least, this Annabeth knew her way around undoing a wound - a very useful skill, in this situation.

On the other hand, though... that they did have a base of operations was a disappointing revelation. They would not only be violating orders to go with her - they would be giving up an presumably guaranteed safe place to do so, to march to a wholly different fort, nearest what was likely to be the most dangerous part of the city right now.

Their tiny group was unlikely to be able to do much - this group would certainly require more people than they had right now. But... if these soldiers held an intact fort, the... Avenshire fort, she'd said - that place might hold some surviving guardsmen bunkered down in it, too, right? She could ask these men to return to their station with a message - perhaps give them her notes on Subject Gemini, so one of their commanders or mages or someone could look them over, perhaps make something of her findings?

Bah... before she started plotting her machinations, she should at the very least gauge these men's attitudes, and see how receptive they would be towards one plan or another.

She considered speaking with the man she'd healed... but chances were, even if he did think better of his healer, he would favor shying away from more combat, wounded as he had been. Speaking to their leader would likely have a better likelihood of gaining their aid, so she sought him out from the rest of the group.

"I hear you lot are working from Dragonsreach? Is it safe there? ...Tell me, what do you think about going to secure the area around Fort Avenshire? It would be dangerous - but that's where the monsters are likeliest the thickest - allowing them to rampage freely would only allow them to disperse, and do even more damage to our beloved city - not to mention allowing them to hide and flee, and become even harder to exterminate."

"That, and... well, I have reason to believe the Therionians taken from us in those monsters attacks would have been in that giant creature. Any survivor we can rescue from there is another citizen who can help us rebuild... no?"

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 26/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 7 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

The leader of the group, a man to whom Naltaibur hadn't spoken as yet and wore a captain's insignia, turned toward Naltaibur when she approached him and frowned slightly at her. "Yes, Fort Dragonsbane is secure. It was built to withstand dragon attacks, and has over three thousand men and women inside to guard it in addition to the two thousand or so that are out on patrol, like us. We've got orders to stay away from Avenshire and to take any citizens we find back to Fort Dragonsbane immediately, but... We aren't going to force you to go anywhere. You're right that it's dangerous, and I have to recommend that you come with us for your own safety.

"While I might agree with you in principle, I cannot disobey my orders in this. You and yours are free to go wherever you wish, but we cannot deviate from our patrol route unless we see a group of survivors endangered."

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

"Well... what can you tell me about the Avenshire fortress and it's men, then? How many guards would have been in it at the time of the attack? Do you think there are any still in it, holding out, like Dragonsbane? Any reason in particular besides it's proximity to the crash that we should know to stay away from Avenshire?"

While she spoke with their captain, she sent a thought over to the rest of the group. [Everything alright over there?] She waited until she had a response before continuing. [...I'm not sure I can convince these soldiers to join us... do any of you have suggestions? Father Uldric?] She thought she might use his name - while not an important clergyman like an archbishop or someone, he WAS a priest of the god that had slain the giant monster and saved them all. Doraleous' manifestation to save them would no doubt still be fresh in their minds... if she told them he spoke to her, that he had given her a mission... well, no doubt, she would just be looked at like a madwoman. But Father Uldric... that would certainly be more palatable, no? The Star God's acolyte, though... she wasn't sure how willing she would be to work with them then. She seemed nice enough, but... Naltaibur had heard some fairly nasty things about that particular sect...

Doraleous hadn't said that they must make their base of operations in Avenshire, either... it was perfectly possible for them to barricade some suitable place further away from the crash site. It wouldn't be optimal in the least, but if they had to, they could...

Spoiler

Wait to see what the rest of the party says before trying to be convincey!

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 26/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 7 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

The patrol's leader was quick to respond, "It had a standing garrison of two hundred men, with room enough for five hundred more without crowding, or putting anyone in the catacombs or supply storage rooms. I was stationed there, but I was off duty when the attack happened. I can't answer any of your other questions, as I honestly don't know." With that, Naltaibur turned her attention to her companions, all of whom responded that they were comfortable with varying degrees of genuinity. Father Uldric was talking Annabeth, Margarette and Gloria were speaking to some of the soldiers, but Aluwin and his men were standing in a half circle around Mavra, facing outward almost as if they were protecting her.

['You'd have better luck convincing them to send an army to help us, methinks. That wasn't serious in case you couldn't tell. I don't know what you want us to say....'] Aluwin said frankly over the mental link. In response, Mavra added; ['I'm afraid that I wouldn't be of any more help than Aluwin and his men in convincing these soldiers to aid us, not unless you want me to mind control their commander. I can do so if you like, you only have to ask...']

Father Uldric turned towards Naltaibur as she spoke his name over their mental com link, ['I pray that such will not be needed Mavra, and would prefer to part ways with them rather than force them to endanger themselves against their orders. I believe that I might be of some use, as the Thunderlord's orders will sound more genuine coming from me, but I believe that much of this will depend upon you Naltaibur.']

['Maybe we could try telling them that the Thunderlord appeared to Naltaibur personally and gave her this mission? It's the truth...'] Gloria suddenly added, though she looked somewhat muted. The captain of the patrol, who had just then been speaking to one of his other men, turned back to Naltaibur and said; "We're ready to go here, so you'll have to tell us what you're doing. Are you coming with us, or going to Avenshire?"

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Two hundred men, with room for five hundred more? That sounded much smaller than their other stronghold... but, that was good for Naltaibur. Even if the place was built far smaller than their Dragonsreach keep was, her group currently numbered no more than ten - they would probably struggle to keep even Avenshire safe, to say nothing of a fortress that could house some five thousand.

...Five thousand? Now that she thought about it, that seemed like a tremendous number of soldiers who had managed to gather into one place... had they really had that many soldiers in Therion, that that many would have survived the attack? If that was true, then it was good news - surely, that many soldiers would mean at least somewhere in the city was guaranteed to be safe, right?

At any rate, if Avenshire had had a garrison of two hundred... she wasn't entirely sure how they would respond to the sudden attack on Therion, but Naltaibur expected at least half that to have gone out to help the rest of the city - and perhaps not returned. She couldn't be sure if the rest would have survived the rest of the incursion... had the enemy bothered to assault a fortified position? In the brief instant of exposure to their attack - the devastating, initial wave - it had been impressed upon her that they were there to steal away their women. There likely weren't any in the fortress... they might have smashed into it if they thought it a threat, and they might have attacked it to turn the soldiers into foot soldiers like the man that had attacked Gloria, but she couldn't say with any certainty if they would or would not have... hopefully, there would still be some survivors there, and hopefully, they would take them in and aid them in their mission. They probably would have wounded - she could undoubtedly offer her services in exchange for shelter, at the very least.


['Uhh... no, I don't think that's a good idea, Mavra'] Naltaibur responded to her sweetheart's suggestion. ['They seemed really worried about mind control when I made first contact, so that would probably backfire on us eventually... and, though I'd like to be honest and tell them outright Doraleous came to me, they would probably just think I'd gone mad from the horrors of the attack, or something. I think it best we tell them of - ahem - Uldric's mission. They apparently have some five thousand men at their fortress - we may not be able to convince them to abandon their duties and join us, but if they can get word back to Dragonsreach, perhaps they can send more substantial aid?'] It was certainly a gamble - that they weren't annihilated on the way back wasn't entirely certain, and whether or not they could manage to convince their superiors to send them help was even less so.


"...Alright." Naltaibur waved Uldric over before continuing. "We need to make it to Avenshire, but please - hear me out, first. You saw the figure of the Thunder God, Doraleous last night, yes? The glowing figure, that struck down the giant invader in the sky? Father Uldric, over there, is one of his priests - he ministers to the cathedral that's been under renovation for awhile - not very far from here. I took shelter there last night."

"Now - before dusk last night, Father Uldric revealed to us that the Thunder God had spoken to him - he would kill the invader's overlord, and those it had taken from us would spill from it's corpse. In exchange, we were to go there, and do what we could to build a haven for them, so they might recover from their ordeal, and not simply succumb to the cold, or starvation, or the predations of whatever invaders still roamed the city."

"I know it sounds... implausible, at best, but his appearance to slay the monstrosity last night tops that many times over, does it not? I'm a capable healer, but I can't possibly tend to so many - our warriors are skilled, but not nearly numerous enough to safeguard all that will come to us for protection, let alone feed them, clothe them, and get them out of the icy wind. We need help. If you will not help us yourselves, then please - convince your commanders to send others who will! Surely, Therion's fate depends on how many souls we can rescue from their clutches! And, well... after Doraleous stepped into mortal affairs to kill the beast, I somehow doubt he will look favorably upon us if we squander the opportunity gifted to us... please!"

Naltaibur relayed the story to the rest of the group as she told it, so they would be on the same page. Hopefully Uldric could help convince them to send them aid, but either way, she needed to get to Avenshire... she could certainly do her part tending to those survivors at Dragonsreach, but apparently the commanders there were too afraid of the beast's to send anyone to Avenshire or even to check the gargantuan corpse. The monsters would wreak havoc, and many lives that could have been elsewise saved would be lost. She could detour to perhaps convince them they must address the crash site, but that would take precious time away from working at it herself... the situation would no doubt only get more dire while she put her untried hand into the realm of politics and diplomacy to convince others that things needed to be done.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 26/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 7 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

"We did," the patrol leader responded at the mention of Doraleous appearance, -speaking in the tone of a man that knew that he wasn't going to like what he was about to hear. His frown did indeed deepen at Naltaibur's words regarding the church and the priest that she had found there, glancing at Uldric who was smiling benignly. His look became utterly incredulous when she said that the Thunderlord had appeared before Uldric personally, and Annabeth, who was listening in, frowned darkly as well. Even so, they allowed her to continue, and at the end of her tale Father Uldric gave a nod and added; "What Naltaibur says is true. We will press on to Fort Avenshire as my lord Doraleous has commanded, with or without your help." He smiled pleasantly and chuckled, "Of course, WITH you would certainly be preferable, but if you could tell your superiors what we're doing, they might be convinced to send aid anyway. We seek to ease the plight of Therion, and our task is great! As Naltaibur says, we are skilled, but cannot hope to aid so many all on our own."

The soldier stood there tensely for a moment, his brow furrowed and his lips pursed. "If what you say is true - and I'm not saying that it is! If what you say is true.... Then we would probably be of more use to you by getting back to Fort Dragonsbane and mustering a full scale relief force for you. I know that's probably not what you want to hear; facing these monsters with anything less than an army at our backs isn't exactly appealing to us either.... But if we deviate from our orders, we might end up being hanged for it when all this is over. A lot of men deserted already, and we were instructed to bring them back for court-marshals if they did. Like I said, we won't force you to come with us, but I'm afraid that..."

He stopped speaking as Annabeth came up to them, her face a dark frown still. Even so, what she said caused Father Uldric to smile brightly, "I know that it's against your orders, but as I am not part of the army and instead volunteered to help, I believe that I will go with them. I must go where I can do the most good, and right now it seems like Fort Avenshire is that place." The commander scowled, but didn't seem about to argue with the woman, so instead he turned towards Naltaibur and sighed, "Look, I'll send two of my men with you, to help you look after you, and then I'll head back to report on what you're doing. Hopefully we can get you some more help, but I'm not promising anything, alright?"

Father Uldric nodded, and if Naltaibur did to he would turn and call out; "Jenkins! Kormac! Front and center!" Two soldiers, one a pale blond man that was short and thin and the other a big bear of a man with a thick, dark beard stepped forward and snapped to attention. "YES SIR!" they both said, and then commander eyed them for a moment before saying; "You'll be going with this lot to Fort Avenshire while we return to Dragonsbane to report. Keep 'em safe, and remember that you're not under any of their command. Keep a cool head, and come back in one piece. Understood?" Both soldiers promptly nodded, "Yes sir!" The captain grunted and scrunched his nose, "Alright, at ease then. Say you're goodbyes while I finish up here."

After the two men had moved away, Annabeth going with them, the captain turned back to Naltaibur and Father Uldric and said; "We don't know much about what's going on in that area, but I can tell you that a bunch of mages were sent in that area with heavy guard this morning. We don't know what happened to them since, or at least I don't, but they were supposed to investigate the crash site. A bunch of mercenaries, elves, went in that direction this morning too, against orders, as did a bunch of Badarian knights, of all the things to find in Therion... Anyway, be careful out there, I'm trusting you with two of my men!"

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Okay so the timeskip is evidently much further along than I imagined, so Imma just cram in a color for Naltaibur right here. >.>

"A relief force? On the contrary, sir - if you really can convince your superiors to send us one of those, it would certainly be much more likely to stand up to whatever dangers were to come our way. The thirteen of you would do much to bolster our little group - but even then, on a mission of this magnitude, it might not be enough." Twelve more soldiers would have certainly been welcome, but as it stood, it wasn't all that many if they were going to be dealing with survivors in the hundreds...

...Which, come to think of it, they probably were. She hadn't really stopped to think about the scale of her endeavor... but, she was going to be tending to the more or less entirety of those captured by the invaders, save the unfortunates who had died when it hit the earth, and those been recaptured in the span of time between the crash and their arrival, no? So... she wasn't entirely sure how many that was, but hundreds was almost a given - and a thousand, if not thousands, were all too likely as well, no?

Naltaibur felt a bit of relief when Annabelle decided to come with them - they would of course need all the healers they could get to tend to the flock. Though she was glad to gain two fighters from the Captain's squad as well, she felt a bit of worry nip at the back of her mind, as well - would whatever draconian authority take the Captain's order to send two of his men as disregarding orders? Perhaps undermine the effort to send them aid, perhaps seeing it as a poor judgement call - sending two soldiers off to a dangerous area, with a group claiming to have spoken to a god? Nevertheless - with just Aluwin and his men, the Father, Mavra and the two ladies, she couldn't turn them down - especially considering the task ahead of them. "Thank you, Captain. Glad to have you three with us," the doctor said, extending her hand in greeting to each of the three in turn.

Naltaibur's elven ears perked up as the Captain told them of some others who had dispatched to the crash site, as well. A party of mages and their guards, some mercenaries, and some Badarians - Knights, no less, in Therion? Naltaibur was almost sure they could get them to use Avenshire as a base of operations for... whatever it was they had gone their to do. While they might not avail themselves to help with tending to the survivors, they would certainly help them defend the fortress from enemies, would they not? Having a safe place to rest themselves would undoubtedly be something they would have an interest in keeping. "Is that so? Interesting... hopefully we can convince them to join us at Avenshire, if we manage to find them."

"Thank you - for aiding our cause, and trusting us with your men. Good luck and be careful to you, as well - with the numbers of survivors I imagine we'll be tending, I have a feeling Dragonsbane's support will be vital to our success." Naltaibur responded to his farewell, bowing her head.

The thought occurred to Naltaibur suddenly that, with the addition of these new three to their little group, she should probably add them to their group's little telepathic network. She knew she was straining herself already... and she almost called out to ask if she could swap one of the soldiers assigned to their group, but then changed her mind. A link with their little group would be beneficial, as well - she could keep in touch, see how the effort to bring them aid went. Provided their soldier kept himself alive, anyway. ...Or was among the two assigned to them. Was he? She hadn't really gotten a good luck when she'd made contact...

At either rate, once they had finished up and went off, she took a moment to mentally speak with the rest of the group - telling them that she would link their new three allies' minds into their mental communication, and ask them to remember that they had told them Uldric was given their mission, not her - and then turned to Annabelle, Kormac and Jenkins. She told them what she intended to do, and then linked their minds to their's - citing that the silent communication was a great aid in keeping unnoticed by the attackers - not to mention in keeping track of where they were if they got separated. She then asked them to march with their main group - the more eyes and ears to watch out for those lizards, the better - citing that they, in actuality, had a scout further up ahead, and that splitting was dangerous, if they questioned the request.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 23/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 10 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

"We both come out of this alive and sane, and then you can thank me ma'am. For now, good luck and stay safe. There's no telling what's out there waiting for you." With that, the captain bowed his head in turn and then called for his men to organize, and then their two groups parted ways, the man with whom Naltaibur still had a tenuous mental contact still present in the ranks of the other patrol and apparently unaware of her continued contact with his mind.

After that, her comrades accepted Naltaibur's instructions to maintain the ruse that it had been Uldric that had spoken with Doraleous on top of the tower silently, and the two soldiers and Annabeth (it's Annabeth not Annabelle) both blinked in surprise when Naltaibur explained what she intended to do. "Link minds? Isn't that dangerous? The creatures use foul mind control against us, what if one of us comes under attack? Will all of us?" the healer asked with some concern, though Naltaibur knew (or at least assumed) that such was not the case.

After that had been sorted out, their three new people were added to the group's mental link and Naltaibur sent the still dominated hunter ahead of them to scout. The alien was starting to resist her control, but so long as she maintained her concentration buff she would find it easy enough to control. Pressing onwards towards the fort, it wasn't long before Naltaibur's hunter stumbled upon another ambush laid for unwarry passersby, a half dozen of its kin crouched along an intersection, three at each side of the road leading down into the more narrow street that met the main road that they were using to travel towards Fort Avenshire. They could try to get around it or through it at Naltaibur's discretion, but the rest of the group continued on unless she brought them to a halt, as she was the only one able to see through the alien's eyes.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

"I assure you it's fine, Annabeth," the doctor replied to assuage the priestesses' worries. "Your minds are all connected to mine - any mental attack would have to go through me to reach the rest of you, and I have considerable mental defenses erected to protect it at the moment. I could also drop the connection, if it really did come to that."

"Besides, we are only using it to 'speak'. The link is not nearly deep enough for it to bring about mind control, or for it to be used to assault the rest of us - that would require far more energy to channel the thoughts over."

She wasn't entirely sure that was true... she had never really learned much of the psychic powers she possessed, coming into the abilities intuitively once she had mixed her essence with that of the other night elf. The particular worry she had would have had required her to experiment with another psychic, as well - she couldn't do that and keep her secret safe at the same time...

"...Though, if my mind were to be controlled, I imagine they may try to speak through me - perhaps with deceptions." Thinking back to the glimpses into the 'minds' of those who had been turned, and the first Subject Gemini, Naltaibur amended her statement; "Though, perhaps not with the same tone and, well... 'mental voice' as I have right now. I believe it will be easy to tell - but, as I said it would not be likely. My psyche is well-fortified." My body is ready.


[Hold,] Naltaibur sounded as her reptilian servant found it's brethren waiting to ambush them. Dammit - she in no way wanted to risk a fight with these things. How could you defend yourself against an attack you couldn't see coming? Yet, if they left them here, she had little doubt they would but prey on them when they went out to search Therion for supplies, later - probably when they were split up, and hadn't managed to spot them.

[There are six of the invader's lizards up ahead, three on either side of the road,] she told her group. [They're dangerous... but we know where they are, so they'll not get the jump on us. I can't say as much if we leave them be for later.] She transmitted her servant's sight to them.

Naltaibur thought for a moment - though they had a small advantage in numbers, she doubted it would be enough to overcome them - these lizards were dangerous, highly trained as these soldiers undoubtedly were, and she didn't know if they would attack them invisibly or not. Worse, she wasn't sure if they would or could climb the houses and attack them from above, or if they would circle around them and attack from behind...

[I... think I have a plan. We'll move back, and I'll cast a few spells on the ground, that will make it explode with a blast of bright light. This should disable them enough for us to put them down, and the light will disable their invisibility.] I hope,, Naltaibur thought to herself. [I'll call to lure them in, and they should rush into the trap - shall we try that?]

If they decided to follow her along this plan, she would ask them to form up around their two women incapable of battle - Aluwin and his men ready with their crossbows, the pair of guards ready to ward them off with their spears. Meanwhile, Naltaibur would begin casting her spell as close to the intersection as was possible without letting the invader's serpents to see it.

Carefully singling out Mavra for a message, the doctor grasped the string tying her mind to her adored red demoness. [Mavra - do you think you can control them, as well? I don't know if this will be enough... I'll um... I'll make sure to fill you back up, afterwards...] It felt a little -dangerous, to 'say' something like that, with so many mental connections waiting for it to leak through - both in that she only wanted Mavra to hear her suggestive little message, yet they were both surrounded by others, and in that Kromgar, Annabeth and Jenkins were both liable to take the revelation poorly.

Once their attack's preparations were complete, Naltaibur drew her falchion, gave the group a mental countdown, and pulled up her mask to expose her mouth, and then cried out -

"No, get up! It's not that far now, just a little further!!"

- Loud enough for those accursed lizards to hear her - though hopefully not loud enough for anything of their friends to - yanked her beaked mask back in place, and hurried to prepare a spell, muttering the words under her breath. The magical energies she'd been expending was certainly draining her reserves - perhaps she should've kept up with those exercises they'd taught her in the Academy to deepen a spellcaster's reservoirs...

Spoiler

Cast ye Flash Mine on the ground in front of me a whole bunch! Hopefully the full ten or something, but perhaps not, if we're interrupted or something.

Then - provided things go as planned - cast Energy Leech on a random lizzad to get back some deliiicious EP.

Mind: 34
Resistance: 38

Level 1 Light spell: {HF} Flash Mine (Ball, Trap) [Creatures hit by this trap must win a Resistance check against the caster or become Blinded.]

Level 3 Arcane Spell: Energy Leach (Bolt) [Deals damage to a targets EP instead of its HP, but also deals damage as a spell one level lower. The caster regains an amount of EP equal to half of the damage dealt by this spell.]

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 47/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 10 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

Rolls

Spoiler

Dat trap planning:
Casting: Success.
Stealth: Success.
You got all ten mines up.

Dat combat:
Perception: Lizards fail.
Attack: Automatic Hit.
Damage: 3 + 1 + 4 = 8 * 2 = 16 damage per mine.
Resistance: They aren’t going to pass ten checks with Naltaibur’s current Resistance.

Attack: Hit.
Damage: 4 + 2 + 6 + 2 = 14 * 2 = 28 damage, Naltaibur regains 24 EP total.

The group came to a halt at Naltaibur’s command, Jenkins and Kormack looking slightly uneasy at the command coming from a voice in their head rather than a voice in their ears, but they still did it. [‘That seems like a good plan,’] Uldric offered, and there was a general murmur of consensus. [‘I can be of assistance in dealing with them once they’ve stepped into the trap, but I’ll have to see them in order to do it. I don’t know if the flashes will disable whatever makes those things invisible,’] Annabeth added, but then Jenkins suddenly asked; [‘How did you find out about the ambush? And where did that image come from?’]

Once that particular landmine had been sidestepped, Naltaibur had some of her own to lay as she singled out Mavra for a more private conversation. [‘I can, though it’ll be slightly different from yours. If I do, don’t worry about having to refill my energy, not yet at least. I’ve got enough to last me a while after last yesterday! Not to say that I wouldn’t mind some private time once we’ve got the opportunity~’] No one seemed to hear their suggestive little exchange, and after that they were ready to begin the ambush they’d set for the lizards.

Through her controlled reptile’s eyes, Naltaibur saw the other six aliens break from cover and begin creeping in their direction following her shout, and after only a short wait the creatures had spotted the falchion-wielding doctor and upped their pace. Naltaibur couldn’t see them herself of course, but she knew they were coming and waited behind her wall of invisible mines while her companions hid behind a crashed wagon only a short ways away.

The ambush really couldn’t have gone too much better than it did. Coming forward in pairs, the first four hunters were flashed fried by the close ranged explosion of the waiting flash mines, the blinding light one of the few magical effects that Naltaibur herself wasn’t immune to just because she’d cast it. When she opened her eyes once again and blinked the spots away, she saw the other two hunters stumbling about, quite visible and obviously blind as they flailed and stumbled about. The three mercenaries casually stood up and put a trio of crossbow bolts into one of them, and Annabeth sent a bolt of magic at the last that caused it to stiffen and then drop, its bones turned to powder within its body. There was just enough life left in it for Naltaibur to carve out a portion of its soul and convert it to energy, almost completely restoring her magical reserves. If she wanted Mavra to control that one as she had the one that had spotted the ambush in the first place, Naltaibur would have to heal the thing, and whether or not she wanted to waste the time and energy on that and thereafter explain why to the rest of her allies was her choice to make.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

[We have a... scout,] Naltaibur replied to Jenkin's query. While not unexpected, the Night Elf still stumbled a little in answering it - she hadn't thought too deeply into how she would answer it, on top of being distracted with planning out how to approach the prospect of combat with those infernal reptilian invaders.


Naltaibur's plan went surprisingly well - four of the invaders cooking in their slimy hides practically instantly. Once she'd managed to regain her vision from the blinding flash of ten of her magical bombs going off at once, she found two more left - though, they were quickly put down by the rest of her group, one falling to a hail of quarrels, while the last was put down by Annabeth and her magic - who, judging from the look of the bolt of magic she'd hurled at it, was also trained in the field of magics pertaining to the flesh and how to manipulate it. Though she couldn't see them disintegrate, Naltaibur noted the telltale jiggling and wobbling that accompanied the spell, and saw a brief hint at what it was doing to it's victim with her magical vision.

[Let's put the thing out of it's misery,] she thought to her comrades. Though a second of these lurking murderers might be useful, it wouldn't be necessary - not to turn this battle that had been easily won with a bit of planning, and not as a scout, for she still retained her own. That, and explaining for what purpose she was healing such a hated creature would put a strain on Annabeth and the pair of soldier's trust of their little group. No... it would serve best to simply finish it off and let it join it's dying comrades, Naltaibur thought. She raised her own crossbow and took careful aim.

Recalling for once that she should probably be taking samples of these creatures to continue her research, Naltaibur checked the bodies of the two lizards not turned to charcoal, figuring those four would have little to offer her. Once she had done that and they were ready to continue, she would send her enraptured lizardman out once more, making sure that the group kept close together for protection.

Spoiler

I actually passed a stealth check? D: What sorcery is this

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 47/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 10 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

Rolls

Spoiler

THE BLACKEST OF SORCERY THAT GRANTS YOU AN ADDITIONAL 4 EXPERIENCE POINTS.

She also gains 2 chameleon skins.

"Fine by me," Aluwin said aloud, allowing Naltaibur to execute the dying hunter while he retrieved the bolts from the other dead one. ['Maybe these things are like those demons... What were they called Mavra? Stalkers? We killed some in Artmirst way back when... You think their skins are worth anything?'] he then communicated across the mental communication. Mavra blanched, but then frowned and responded; ['They might have the same property as the stalkers in their skin. It certainly couldn't hurt to try, and I have no argument against skinning them if we can afford the time.'] Jax and Caden grinned as they headed towards the downed hunter that Naltaibur had just finished off, the three mercenaries drawing knives and collecting the skins of the dead aliens in order to turn them over to Naltaibur. ['You keep 'em doctor, you might be able to learn something from them!']

After that it was off once more, heading towards the fortress, but it wasn't long after that before Naltaibur's controlled scout stumbled across yet more of its foul kindred. Fortunately, this time, it wasn't an ambush. Unfortunately, there was a lot more than six of them.

A dozen of the grey, tentacle-toting things were busy raping as many women under the oversight of a trio of women that seemed to excrete the very same slime from their skin. Though initially they looked human, after a moment's observation Naltaibur realized that their necks were too long and their heads were in the wrong shape, longer than those of any species that Naltaibur had ever seen. The captive women were all squirming weakly, but it seemed like more encouraging than struggling, particularly courtesy of the soft moans that each of them was emitting around the tentacle buried in each of their mouths. Each woman had a tentacle pistoning in and out of each of their holes, and more than half of them were weakly bobbing their heads weakly as if trying to give more pleasure to the monsters raping each of them. They were all covered and dripping a mix of the monster's clear, gooey slime and their thick, white semen, and their bellies were bloated as if they were pregnant. Naltaibur counted four elves and five humans, plus a single orc woman that was moving more vigorously than the others.

The group of aliens stood in front of a large public clinic, a place that would have a number of useful items in it. Unfortunately, there was no way that they were getting in without dealing with the creatures standing out in front of it, and there was no telling what might be inside without sending her hunter into the building.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Naltaibur blinked. Had Aluwin really just asked Mavra that? When she saw her dear demoness pale at the mention, she glared at the mercenaries' leader from behind her mask - more to vent her annoyance than show him she disapproved. Her mask concealed all emotions - the ones she might want to show hidden away just as the ones she didn't.

All the same, though, she accepted the skins once they'd offered them to her - albeit, somewhat apprehensively. It seemed like a good idea when she'd suggested it... but, lugging around the two fresh, dripping hides of these two creatures suddenly seemed less than ideal. Not that she was squeamish about it - her experiments and her work as a healer had made her accustomed to gore long ago - but the added weight would surely be cumbersome, and she wasn't sure if the butchered skins would start to smell, or if the invaders would be able to scent them that way. At any rate, she could surely use them, one way or another, so she found someplace to stow them and hoped they wouldn't be a burden.


When they ran into yet another group of the greys running rampant in her beloved, once-lively Therion, Naltaibur called another stop. She was ready to paint the streets with them as they had with the other invaders... or, at least, she was, until she realized just how many there were. And that they had captives... and that the women all seemed to be enjoying the attentions of their captors. Was this what she would have been reduced to, if she'd not managed to escape from that hulking brute of a giant? It had only been a day, and yet these women all seemed resigned to serving these base creatures already... would they even want to be saved, now? If she tried to save them... would they turn on her? Would they aid these accursed invaders - would she have to strike them down? And if she failed to slay them... was this what was destined for Gloria and Margaret? For Mavra?

The clinic was a concern - the supplies within would be undoubtedly helpful, to be sure - but she doubted they would be gone if they continued to Avenshire and came back with reinforcements from there. She did not know if these monsters would be, though... or the women. And what's more, she couldn't be sure they would not be turned in that time - she had seen the second Subject Gemini almost succeed at turning Gloria into one, after all. It had not been a lengthy process - that... Triumvirate, perhaps?... could surely have them all stripped of their minds and souls before they could come back. Perhaps even melded into more Subject Gemini, as well...

...Though, it was a strange thing. That Triumvirate... the women didn't look quite... right. Their necks were strangely shaped... as were their heads. It wasn't a condition or a racial trait she had ever heard of before, she was fairly sure... if these women were anything like the women that made up the Subject Gemini here, were they also assimilated shells? From some distant, unknown lands, perhaps across the seas, that these monsters had already sacked? Though she knew she should be focused on coming up with a plan to slay them and save the women, but... the doctor couldn't help but be intrigued.

But, back to the business at hand. Though undoubtedly far less dangerous than the lizardmen they had just faced, they had an intense superiority in numbers that Naltaibur had no doubt would ensure their victory if they faced them in a straight fight. She also wasn't sure she could lure them like the lizardmen, who had been waiting for an opportunity...

Nevertheless, Naltaibur didn't want to risk losing these ten women to the invader's forces. She showed her companions the scene from her 'scout's' eyes again - feeling bad, for exposing Gloria to such a sight. She outlined her plan to the group... Naltaibur, Annabeth, and the three mercenaries would have to go quickly around the corner, take careful aim, so as to not hurt the captives, and blast a few of the vile invader spawn to lure them out. They were to focus on the horde - the women and any other creatures would be dealt with by their scout.

They would then dash back behind Naltaibur's line of mines, and wait for the horde - one of Aluwin's men could take her crossbow once they'd retreated back into the safety of the intersection - One of the group waiting behind would hold it for them. If the spawn charging them looked to still be unmanageable as judged by Aluwin, everyone would run as quickly as they could backwards - Naltaibur had a spell that would rip everything around her to shreds... which, unfortunately would include them, if they were too close. Once they were far enough away, she would attempt to cast it... though, it was a very powerful spell, such that there was a chance it would fail, and... well, she was unlikely to fight off the horde herself in that case. Hopefully, it would not come down to that.

She once again began laying spellmines. In case they DID all charge them, she would be able to retreat behind them, and wound a great many, thinning the heard. This time, however, the majority she used were a different variant - one that would injure their spindly little feet, giving them more time to take shots at the pursuant horde - or flee, if need be. She keyed them so that they weren't triggered by her allies, as well. In the meantime, she had her lizard sneak past the horde and get into position - ready to pounce on the Triumvirate, once the majority of the small grey fodder had broken away to attack them.

Spoiler

Lay ye Mines (8 limp, 2 flash, I s'pose), maneuver ye lizardman, and then pop out and shoot at they with Bone Snap, taking the mercs and Annabeth to take shots too. Then fall back behind ye mines. Yon lizardman should stalk yon Trinity until there aren't going to be those little fuckers grapplan and rapan he.

The OH SHIT THE MINES DIDN'T WORK spell would be damaging Regenerative Aura, but I'm hoping I won't have to use that.

Bone Snap, L3 Body - 2d4 + 6 Mind + 2 Focus
Limp Mine, L2 (1+1 for trap) Force, 2d6 + 7 Mind

{F} Limp Mine (Touch, Trap) [Any creature that trips this trap takes a -6 penalty to Speed until the end of the encounter. Up to 20 can be active at any one time.]

Also I know I was complaining about walltext that one time and I know I also wrote a wall here I didn't mean to sorta aaaa

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 43/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 10 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 71/79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

Rolls

Spoiler

Stealth: ???
Casting: Success.

Attack (Bone Snap) : Hit.
Damage: 3 + 4 + 6 + 2 = 15 * 3 = 45 damage.

Attack (Annabeth) : Hit.
Damage: 4 + 2 + 7 + 2 = 15 * 3 = 45 damage.

Attack (Crossbowmen) : All hit.
Damage: 4 + 4 + 5 + 9 + 8 = 30 damage per hit.

Limp Mine Damage: 6 + 5 + 7 = 18 * 2 = 36 damage.
Flash Mine Damage: 6 + 1 + 4 = 11 * 2 = 22 damage.

Attack (Hunter) : Automatic Hit.
Damage: 3 + 1 + 23 = 27 * 2 = 54 damage.

Perception: Failure.
Attack: Automatic Hit.
Damage: 4 + 5 + 23 = 32 * 2 = 64 - 9 = 55 damage. Kormac is down, Kormac is down!

Attack (Jenkins) : Hit.
Damage: 1 + 6 + 6 + 9 = 22 - 8 = 14 damage.

Mavra attacks using Mind Cutter, X = 8.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 3 + 5 + 1 = 9 * 8 = 72 - 8 = 64 damage.

Casting (Enemy) : Success.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 1 + 2 + 7 + 2 = 12 * 2 = 24 EP damage on ye hunter. Twice. It drops unconscious.

Many of Naltaibur's companions blanched or paled at the sight of the hunter transmitted through their mental link, but they all nodded resolutely when her plan had been explained. Uldric and Mavra pulled the two women who were unable to fight back and away while the two soldiers who had been sent with them kept watch in case anything should try and attack them from behind, Jenkins holding Naltaibur's crossbow, while the more familiar mercenaries stepped up and readied their own ranged weapons and Annabeth came to stand beside her. She laid a series of mines to lure their foes into, arrayed her fellow ranged attackers, and ordered her hunter to move... And then she enacted her plan and spun around the corner with her allies.

The three women turned toward as she popped around the corner, but they couldn't do much of anything before Naltaibur hit one of the tentacle monsters in its center of mass. It had no bones for her to break, but the magic tore apart the creature's organs instead. It flopped to the ground as Annabeth struck another one with a similar spell, causing the same effect, and three more took crossbow bolts before the party spun back around the corner and fell back behind the wall of mines before their foes could offer any reprisal. There were a series of wet, squishing noises, and a moment later the first few monsters were coming for them, practically in a straight line. The first stepped over a limp mine, which suddenly flashed to life and flung upwards, sticking to one of its limbs before exploding. It flopped forward, one of its legs gone, and set off one of the flash mines just as two of those injured by crossbow bolts came around the corner.

All three were quickly fried, and what followed could only be described as lemming behavior as the rest of the monsters blindly followed their fellows to their deaths upon Naltaibur's mines. One took a limp mine only to tumble onto a second, and the next did the same and activated the next flash mine, burning all the rest and allowing them to fall, one by one, to the line of magical explosives summoned to slay them. Not a one of them made it through that alive, but before any of them could celebrate, Naltaibur felt her hunter begin its attack on the strange women. Seeing through its eyes, the night elven doctor watched as it suddenly appeared in their midst and tore the throat from one of the three women, who dropped gurgling to the ground. The other two shivered, but suddenly smiled and pointed their fingers at the dominated reptilian. Then it was the hunter's turn to shiver, as phantom pains were transmitted back to Naltaibur through the link, but they were not physical pains. Chunks of the monsterman's soul were torn from him, and he dropped to the ground in a heap as his vision faded. The last sight that Naltaibur saw through his eyes was that of several more of the tentacled creatures coming out of the building, along with something much larger but of a similar coloring.

Then, suddenly, a cry came from behind them as a Kormac fell to the ground, clutching at his throat as blood poured out of it. A hunter appeared in their midst, its claws dripping with the dying soldier's blood, and Glora and Margaret both screamed in horror and very nearly dashed, their panic evident through the mental link. Mavra reacted immediately, spinning towards the creature and drawing a line across it with one finger. There was a snap, and suddenly the hunter was bisected along that line, its ricktus grin still plastered on its inhuman face. The demon's action came too late to sound the full alert for any nearby aliens, however, and there was a loud cry as something came thundering down the street - from directly behind them. A building practically exploded as the juggernaut smashed through one of its walls, the front collapsing as the tremendous humanoid rebounded off of the wall of the building across from the one that it had destroyed.

The beast roared, its fanged mouth wide and dripping as it spotted them, and there was little doubt that it would soon be charging at them. With the way back forward, and enemies coming from the way forward (and left technically) Naltaibur and her allies were in something of a bind. Uldric had turned towards the coming giant while Mavra knelt beside Kormac, who couldn't be moved before his neck was magically healed, while Gloria and Margaret once more looked ready to turn and run out into the intersection. The four soldiers retained their discipline, but their anxiety bled through the mental link as each of them began calculating the apparently long odds of survival given their situation. Naltaibur could try to get them to retreat into the intersection, and maybe even go straight across of to the right, but that would expose them to whatever was coming from the left hand road in full, a dangerous gamble that would require leaving Kormac to die.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Dammit...! Had Naltaibur miscalculated? She thought that, if her lizard killed one, all three of them would die, as it was with the other Subject Gemini she had encountered. There were three of them, but still... was the body snatching soul they shared simply somehow more resilient, able to withstand the loss of one of their host bodies? Had the lizard simply not mauled them hard enough?

Or... was it that this Triumvirate of invader women simply not a Subject Gemini at all? It would explain the women's strange anatomy... If they were indeed all separate entities, and - as demonstrated by the remaining pair's attack on her 'scout' - spellcasters, Naltaibur might have just sealed her group's fate as just another group of poor souls, lost to these invader scum. The very thought angered Naltaibur - how could she have been so reckless?

But... no, the women had shivered in unison as her would-be-assassin sprung on them. They were one entity, and if that was so, they were surely gravely wounded - the lizards were far from harmless, and one whole vessel for their shared spirit was now missing. Everything was under control. Briefly, she regretted not scouting out the clinic when she had the opportunity, but even as another horde of invaders, concealed and unseen in the unchecked building, Naltaibur continued to think that she could handle this. Everything was under control.

Then, suddenly, a scream from behind her issued, running like a hairline crack through her confidence. Kormac fell, his lifeforce quickly leaving him hand-in-hand with his blood, rushing out of his now-missing throat. Mavra quickly dispatched with the immediate threat, but before she could even bark an order, a terrifying sound shook the ground and her confidence, another giant smashing through a nearby building, cutting off the way back. It snarled, and Naltaibur could only stare back, paralyzed. Fuck! She hadn't planned for this! How had they not noticed it?!

The odds had turned so rapidly against them... dammit! Even if she didn't expect anything to come from behind, she still should have put some of those spellmines at their fallback zone!

If faced with just the horde, or just the behemoth, or just the lurking lizards, she could have easily won with a little preparation. But surrounded, surprised, and unexpected... now, she was unsure. Things weren't in control, and that made her nervous.

She felt the tinges of panic run through her mind. Fear and flight surely would not serve them here... as calmly as she could, trying her best not to let her own anxiety through to them, she she tried to calm them all.

["Stay. Calm."]

Then, she tried to take command of the situation, issuing orders as quickly as she could.

['You lot near me, get clear. Mav, you can heal Kormac, yes?'] she asked. If she could, she would request for her to stabilize him - if not, to prepare to cut once more. ['Anna, you can sharpen your senses with magic, yes? Do so and find those lizards. The rest of you, ready yourselves for Anna's sight. Prepare to fall back into a house if this does not work... the giant is mine.']

With the hunter now unconscious, Naltaibur severed her hold on him and viciously reached for the huge monster staring them down's mind. She had to make it hers - their fates depended on it. As she did so, she let Anna's visions flood through to the rest of the group - if she could make out any other lizard's positions, they could defend themselves. If not... they would simply have to flee.

Spoiler

OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD RANDOM NUMBER GODDESS PLEASE BE MERCIFUL

Drop Hunter dominate, Dominate the Giant. Hopefully, Anna is buffing her Perception, and can maybe make perception checks for the rest.

If successful:
If Mav can heal, command her to heal Kormac. If not, prepare to cut some bitches
If she can't, command Anna to heal Kormac - elsewise use one of the better buffs to buff her perception to fuck those lizards over.

Have the mercs and Anna get out of regeneration aura range of me, in prep for eventual horde shenanigans. Move slightly closer to wall, so the Trinity has to turn the corner harder to see me.

If not:
Mentally sound a warning, and - there's probably an open, non-damaged shops around or something nearby, right? If so, have them all run into the nearest of each.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 35/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 10 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating a Juggernaut

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 61/79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine

Rolls

Spoiler

Resistance: Naltaibur wins! Turning them tables eh?

Mavra uses Lay on Hands for X = 10. Kormac is healed for 60 HP.

Annabeth casts Strength, Greater (Buff) [May increase Body, Perception or Speed] a level 4 Body spell.
Casting: Success.
Buff: 8 * 5 = +40 Perception.
She then searches for Hunters!
Perception: Success.

Uldric, seeing a hunter coming, takes a swing and a shield bash!
Attacks: Both hit.
Damage (Hammer) : 1 + 1 + 34 - 8 = 28 damage.
Damage (Shield Bash) : 2 + 5 + 6 + 19 - 8 = 26 damage.
Total of 54 damage, it drops.

The soldiers move and draw weapons.

Naltaibur could feel the fear rising within her comrades even as that same fear stole into her own mind, threatening to drive them all into panic. Only father Uldric seemed completely immune, with no trace of terror evident through the link going to him, and he faced the juggernaut squarely, a warhammer held loosely in one hand, but he stepped aside and nodded at Naltaibur's claim that the giant was hers. Just like that, the fear that had threatened to grip her allies eased away, and the soldiers beside Naltaibur turned and moved to cover Mavra while the demoness knelt over Kormac, forcing his hands aside and pressing her own against the wound at his neck. The man's gurgling became a gasp of air, and he looked up at Mavra in wonder while she turned away to search for other threats, leaving Jenkins to drop Naltaibur's crossbow and help him to his feet. The other men dropped their ranged weapons as well, drawing shields and swords as they waited for other threats.

Naltaibur's stretched out to the roaring behemoth, and though she had to fight down its fury, she managed to take a hold of its simple mind and gain control of it. Though unintelligent, this creature's programming was far more intense than the hunter's meager will, and it would be more difficult to maintain control of it for extended periods, but for the moment, it was hers. Meanwhile, Annabeth cast a spell to grant herself enhanced vision, and the image of the world through the other woman's eyes came up in Naltaibur's increasingly fractured mind. She spotted another of the hunter's immediately as it came creeping up on them from down the street, and her call of "There!" proved unnecessary as Uldric took two strides towards the located creature and slammed it in the belly with his shield.

The monster's camouflage vanished as it reeled from the blow, stumbling a step back and bending forward even as Uldric moved in for the real strike. His hammer came down on the back of the alien's head. The sickening crunch was loud enough to be heard over the dominated juggernaut's awkward lumbering, and the hunter dropped to the ground in a heap. Anna cast her gaze about, but for the moment she saw no more of the reptilian creatures, and the soldiers all formed a line a ways away from Naltaibur, one that Uldric quickly joined as they faced down the juggernaut that Naltaibur had dominated.

Around the corner which Naltaibur was only a few feet away from came a massive creature, easily as large as the beast that Naltaibur now controlled but built along the lines of a dog or a horse rather than a man. It was faceless, but just like its comrade a set of massive jaws suddenly opened on its face, and it screamed more or less right int her ear. A trio of the tentacle spawn came waddling around the corner right after, and the four monsters were all practically on top of Naltaibur even as she turned to face the only direction from which threats could come. Through Anna's eyes, Naltaibur spotted another hunter creeping up along her side as well, but the lot of them were within the radius of the spell that she had planned. Now, she only needed to cast it... And make sure that her allies knew all of the details of what she had planned.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

As soon as she knew her hold on the titan's mind would not slip, Naltaibur sounded over her group's mental link. ["The giant is no longer a threat,"] she thought, even as she wormed her thoughts deeper into it's minimalistic mind. It surely wouldn't look as much; it's frightful appearance was only enhanced by the convulsions that accompanied as forceful a mental takeover as this one, and it was not splayed out on the ground, unmoving, as "no longer a threat" typically meant.

While Uldric slew an encroaching lizardman behind her, Naltaibur turned her attention back to the Triumvirate's approach - but was overtaken by an ungodly loud roar, and found herself staring down another giant! Mere feet from her, she reacted as quickly as she could - even with her Academic training in the art of multi-tasking and split-thought, she still struggled to react to everything in time. She rushed energies to her spellcasting core, while simultaneously giving a mental shout to not shoot at the first giant, and that everyone was to get clear of the doctor NOW and that it was better further than too close. To her newly 'tamed' behemoth, she looked at the strange quadrupedal cousin, and told it to kill it. Naltaibur considered backing up to distance herself from the monster while her own ran up to battle it, but immediately reconsidered - backing up would put her closer to her wards, which she could not risk, and as she glimpsed the silhouette of another lizardman making it's way towards her, she was unsure her behemoth would be able to protect her from that, was well. If she allowed herself to fall, her group would be doomed, and so she could simply not risk it. Hoping to pulse her disintegrative field of magic before her gargantuan pawn could enter it's radius, lest the shock bring it back to it's senses, she chanted the powerful incantation quickly. So long as she annihilated the smaller threats, her beast could interpose itself between the doctor and it's hostile counterpart.

Spoiler

Mind: 34
Resistance: 38

Cast a damaging Regenerative Aura; hope and pray it doesn't rape my team or piss off my juggernaut!
Have yon juggernaut attack, have the other guys stay alert for hunters and/or do other stuff.

BC 34 VS 40
L5 Regenerative Aura (Emanation, Healing) [None]
Emanation (A wave pulsates out from the caster, affecting all creatures within a 10 foot radius of the caster. A spell of this type can be maintained, effectively casting it again without paying it's EP cost, by paying 1 EP upkeep and making another Casting check.) [Deals 1d8 + Mind/8 damage.]

(10 ft radius; 1d8+10)

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

Spoiler

Naltaibur: HP = 45, PP = 53, EP = 27/49, Status = Fine, Telepathy to 10 different people, +21 Resistance (38) from Arcane Armor, Dominating a Juggernaut, Weakened

NPC Stats
Mavra: HP = 63, PP = 54, EP = 56/79, Status = Fine, Pregnant
Father Uldric: HP = 53, PP = 38, EP = 61, Status = Fine, +40 Body from Annabeth (Level 4 Body spell)

Rolls

Spoiler

Casting (Naltaibur) : Success.
Attack: Hit all.
Damage: 3 + 4 + 2 = 9 * 5 = 45 damage, 37 on the hunter and 33 on the juggernaut.

Mavra cuts a bitch with her mind for 5 EP!
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 8 + 7 + 1 = 16 * 5 = 80 - 8 = 72 damage.

Naltaibur-naught smash!
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 12 + 2 + 37 - 12 = 39 damage, meaning that the juggernaut has taken a total of 72 damage.

Annabeth casts Strength, Greater (Buff) [May increase Body, Perception or Speed] a level 4 Body spell.
Casting: Success.
Buff: 8 * 5 = +40 Body on Uldric.
She then searches for Hunters some more!
Perception: Success.

Uldric, seeing a hunter coming, takes a swing and a shield bash!
He auto kills it, because I am too lazy for numbers.

The soldiers cut some bitches up!
Attacks: Hit even with 10 points of defensive fighting.
Damage: Enough to kill three hunters.

~~~~~~~
Attack (Juggernaut) : Hits Naltaibur's juggernaut.
Damage: 2 + 8 + 37 - 12 = 35 damage.

Casting (???) : Success and Success.
Naltaibur gains the Weakened status.
Attack: Hit.
Damage: 4 + 4 + 7 + 2 = 17 * 2 = 34 EP damage on Naltaibur's juggernaut.

Naltaibur's comrades hesitated, but obeyed her orders, even though Mavra suddenly looked terrified as she gazed over at Naltaibur. Standing alone against a whole field of enemies, Naltaibur desperately unleashed her spell as the juggernaut that she'd controlled came charging down the street past her companions, its footsteps thunderous as a roar of pure rage nearly deafened the doctor. Through all of the confusion going on around her, through the fear and the noise, she somehow found the peace of mind necessary for casting, and a wave of warped magic rushed out from her body and seeped into the bodies of the monsters coming in to assail her.

The three tentacle monsters simply popped, showering the covered doctor in foul smelling grey gore, the quadrupedal juggernaut roared as its body twisted around itself, momentarily staying its jaws, and the hunter suddenly appeared as it let out an agonized hiss. Naltaibur's juggernaut came rushing in to the suddenly much clearer street, roaring loudly as it slammed both fists into the twitching juggernaut that Naltaibur's spell had left normally paralyzed. The blow was enough to knock it from its stupor, and it screamed right back at the dominated creature and bit it, tearing into the grey flesh of its arm with its massive teeth. The hutner recovered from the spell as well, and though she could now see it didn't make its claws any less deadly, but before it could even get within arms reach of Naltaibur, it was cut clean in half along the middle. Mavra's works was vicious but clean, and the hunter was dead before either of its two halves had even hit the ground.

Annabeth casted a spell similar to the one that she had used to enhance her own vision, which she still shared among the group, but this time she used it to enhance the priest as he took up a position in the center of the group. They had retreated to the doorway of a nearby house as the reptilian aliens closed in one all sides, but their line held flawlessly as they struck down four of the creatures, all that Annabeth was able to see out in the street. They were doing exceedingly well under the circumstances, and with only one enemy left to them, Naltaibur was free to rejoin her comrades while the juggernauts sorted each other out.

That is, until the two remaining gemini suddenly came around the corner on the opposite side of the intersection, leaving them plenty of room to keep out of the two flailing juggernaut's reach. One of them pointed at the juggernaut that she had dominated, and it roared in pain as it, much like the hunter from before, had a chunk of its soul ripped away. The other pointed at Naltaibur, and suddenly she felt as if her strength had been leeched away, the magic leaving her weakened but still strong enough to move and fight.

 

[GargantuaBlarg]

Re: Dr. Love, Dr. Death (GargantuaBlarg)

The tentacled alien filth twisted and deformed, and their slimy bodies quickly ruptured under Naltaibur's ministrations, coating her with a layer of viscera. It smelled terrible, but she had dealt with worse - putrescent slabs of meat, left in her laboratory too long before she was able to dispose of them. The lizardman approaching her, for a brief, terrifying moment, managed to shrug off her spell... until, like the first, it fell apart in two pieces, sliced in half by Mavra. ["Thank you,"] she silently thought to the demoness - only then realizing fear in her, as she directed her attention towards their mental link. She could do little about it now... any soothing would have to wait until they were out of danger.

As expected, the remaining two of the Gemini Trio turned the corner shortly, managing to They managed to 'recite' their own spells before she could react, one draining the hulking beast whose body she had hijacked like they had done to her lizardman, while the other targeted her. Naltaibur felt herself buckle as if she were about to faint from exhaustion - her footing felt less sure, and she felt the concentration that focused her magical core start to grow muddled. That was dangerous... if she let them get away with much more of that, she would surely crumble, and they would be at their mercy. Even if Naltaibur could endure another bespoiling by one of those giants... there were still two. Which of her flock would be the other unlucky one? And worse still, what would the Triumvirate do with the rest of them?

She summoned up as much energy as she dared, and weaved it into a litany to unravel the anatomy. Naltaibur hoped that, if she slew a second of the Triumvirate's mortal shells, it would be unable to support it's mind and soul. She was unsure she had the power to end it on her own, but she couldn't divert her giant's attention, lest the beast it was engaged with turn to her instead...

As soon as she unleashed her will on the Triumvirate's mortal form, Naltaibur would command her allies to either strike at it with bolt or spell, if they could and it still stood, or having them dash back into the distressingly tentative safety of the building they'd begun moving into.


The mage, in spite of herself and their dire situation, was still unable to stop her mind from wandering entirely. Did the Triumvirate actually speak some kind of incantation, or write words of power, or weave energy into patterns to enact their will, as she had learned in the Academy? Or, was their methodology for manipulating the forces and energies of the world completely different?

Spoiler

Mind: 34
Resistance: 38 - 10?

Bone Grinder @ the Trinity! Have everyone shoot at them with their various things if they don't die, too, also. Juggernaut fights the other big motherfucker. If I manage to kill it, have them hide!

Bone Grinder (Bolt) [None] (Level 4)
BC 34 (-10) VS 30
2d4 + Mind/6 damage, +2 (focus) *4 I think