Hunted

[Constructelf]

IC: TakatarTakatar continued to follow the signal. He eventually found himself leaving town. "Looks like I'm going to be having myself an adventure," the well mannered professor thought to himself.

[Krayzikk]

IC: FuryFury, while waiting for a response from the Zyglak, shifted her attention back to Levacius, while keeping an 'eye' on the Zyglak to wait for a response.You're getting close. The question is, can you navigate the darkness to come? She said, timing the question with his arrival at the cavern.

[Void Emissary]

IC:Cliff cocked her head to one side like a confused dog, "Um, I don't know about any of those things. I was born a few centuries ago with the Sisters. They wanted to see if I could do that... tele... mind... thingy. But I was really sickly as a kid, and I just... couldn't. So, when I was little, they sent me to live with the men, to train me as a warrior."The Skrall bent over, to pick up the rocks, tossing them around in her palm, "Except, I was still sickly, so after a few more years of failed training, they sent me to the wastelands of Bara Magna, to survive until I was able to beat one of their warriors. It took me a couple of centuries, but I finally managed it, and now..."She motioned to herself, in a Voila! sort of way.-Void

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

OOC: Gonna wait a bit for the Levacius reply. Not like nobody's posting.IC: Halnara / Outpost Central"Well, you sure showed them, huh!" she replied.-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - In some deep, dank, and probably dark tunnel -I treaded the long miserable tunnel, with only an Iron Wolf for company. Her name was Fate, and she was pretty much my only friend. She was in the lead, sniffing with her nose for any signs of danger. She was the most reliable companion I knew. It wasn't like I wanted anyone else anyway, I was perfectly happy to be hunting down thugs with just my killer Iron Wolf. I'd been hearing some kind of strange call...echoing across the darkness and into my mind, I felt like I was getting closer to it, but how close I could not tell.

Edited October 2, 2012 by Overlord Snelly

[Constructelf]

IC: TakatarTakatar continued to walk. He had no idea where he was going or even what he was doing. "This is so illogical," he thought. Finally, he sat down on a rock. He then had the sudden idea to try to contact the psychic sender. "I'm not sure if I could do that though," he thought. "I don't have a suletu or anything." Then he remembered something about telepathy: when someone contacts someone else, a link is made, and if the receiver can focus their thoughts well enough, the can send thoughts back to the sender. Using this knowledge as his guide, with much mental exertion he managed to come up with "WHO ARE YOU?"

Edited October 2, 2012 by Constructman

[Krayzikk]

IC: FuryIf Fury had eyes to roll, she would have. She sent one more message to both Levacius and Kual-Khuan, saying that she would return in a moment, she had something to deal with.That done, she could focus on the call, and the new being. You dare ask who I am? Without any precursor to your query? How insolent.

[Wyrd Bid Ful Araed]

IC: That could be awkward, Kual'Kahoun pondered as he trailed through the dark caverns. His eyes could pierce the darkest depths of the ocean, hese caverns were a mere trifle, If thousands of years is a blink of the eye to your perception of time then this conversation must be passing at superspeeds to you.

[Constructelf]

IC: Takatar"Hey, it works," he thought. "Sorry for my lack of manners, but telepathy isn't one of my more learned areas," he thought. To Fury, it would have sounded like a well mannered professor with the MU equivalent of a British accent. "May I ask if you are indeed the sword Fury that the legends speak of?"

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - In some deep, dank, and probably dark tunnel -I'll admit, I had no idea why I was trying find this 'voice' that was lost somewhere in the darkness, if not for Fate, who could see much better in the dark than me, I would've been quite lost already. Fate at least seemed to known where she was going, so I stayed right behind her, one of my jade colored katana's draw...just in case.

Edited October 2, 2012 by Overlord Snelly

[Krayzikk]

IC: FuryNo, you may not. Came the reply, in a 'voice' as old time itself. In an instant, Takatar grasped just what he had stepped into, what kind of a force he was dealing with. A being completely alien, and infinitely older and more powerful than himself.With no more effort than it would take the foolish professor to turn a page, she broke through any shoddy defense he may have built, and took an unobstructed look at his memories. She looked through the years of his life like Takatar might look at a book, and examined their every detail. A moment after it began, she withdrew.A professor. Insolent, presumptuous, and you aren't even of use to me.Her 'voice' took on a dangerous edge. You want knowledge, don't you?"

[Constructelf]

IC: Takatar"You could say that," Takatar said in response, completely undaunted. "Though if you are who you imply to be, then you have no use for any of us mortals, do you? You are a case completely defying the psychology textbooks, that is, unless you are simply using us as pawns in your little game of chess. So I ask you, what do you want?"

Edited October 2, 2012 by Constructman

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - In some deep, dank, and probably dark tunnel -Fate suddenly stopped in her tracks, and started to sniff the ground intently, her muzzle almost touching the ground. I sighed as I waited for her to finish, either she was picking up where ever this 'voice' was, or she had found something that smelled good, couldn't really say. Why am I even out here? I thought to myself, wondering if this was all just a waste of time.

[Krayzikk]

IC: FuryMe? I want you to shut up. Here's your knowledge. Choke on it.Before he could try to pull away, she latched onto his mind. He didn't have to to speak, to beg, before she began. She started to pump his mind full of knowledge, the knowledge of a being who had seen civilizations rise and fall. He was exposed to the inner workings of her mind, workings that operated on levels his mind could not even begin to fathom, that made him try to pull away, to pull free. Steadily, bit by bit, she poured knowledge that mortals such as he were never meant to have, the knowledge of millennia past, into his mind.One tenth of what she forced him to bear had driven greater men than Takatar to insanity.

Edited October 2, 2012 by Krayzikk Champion of RPGs

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - In some deep, dank, and probably dark tunnel -Fate suddenly started moving down the tunnel again, taking many twists and turns, I was barely keeping up. "You better be able to find the way back girl..." I commented to Fate, though I trusted my Iron Wolf more than anyone. I knew she had to be going the right way, cause the voice that was calling Skyra to come was getting stronger and stronger. Where are you? I thought 'loudly' in my head, I figured that if this voice could send me messages, maybe I could send one back.

Edited October 2, 2012 by Overlord Snelly

[Constructelf]

IC: TakatarThe toa of gravity clutched his head as he struggled to fathom one tenth of what the being was sending him. He kneeled onto the ground, screaming in pain. Then suddenly, he stopped. It was as if some sort of strange force had taken hold of him. Acting with a will not his own, he compulsively reached fro a notebook and a pencil and started scribbling all over it. Toa an outsider, this would have been the ravings of a madman, but it was actually his compulsive recording of the sword's messages. Lore more complex than that of the Great Beings, mysteries deeper than that of the Ul'Kar, millennia of ancient history unknown to even the most knowledgeable of scholars, this he compulsively scribbled into his notebook. As his body continued to write, his mind struggled to break free from this trance, to regain control, all the while still shrieking in pain. This had happened to him before, when he was put under great mental stress. But at this level, he was unsure if he would ever break free...

[Krayzikk]

IC: FuryEvery mortal being has a limit. A point where they can take no more, a point where their mind can no longer handle the stress. A point where their mind breaks.It didn't take long to find Takatar's. He frantically scribbled, not realizing that as he tried to keep up with the input he was receiving, all that ended up on the page was meaningless scribble, fragments of fragments of a piece of information. Fury kept pouring in information, and it accumulated in his mind, taking up space. Pieces of it, the pieces few mortals can withstand learning let alone understand, took their toll on his sanity.If this kept up any longer, he would be driven mad, and that was if he survived the rush of sensory input.

[Constructelf]

IC: TakatarMore knowledge was rushing in, and he couldn't keep up. He ended up scribbling all over the notebook, as he was running out of paper. Finally, exerting one last mental push, he regained control of his body. Realizing that the torture required two active minds, he reached into his cloak, and pull out a sleeping pill. Downing it with a mouthful of whiskey, he hit himself on the head with a textbook just to make sure. He dropped to the ground unconsciousOOC: Those items were part of his survival kit.

[Krayzikk]

OOC: This post has Grochi-Approval.IC: FuryFury laughed. Takatar was unconscious, but the attack didn't cease. Because the fact was, whether he was conscious or not didn't matter. Stopping her attack by knocking yourself out was like trying to stop a bullet by taking off the bulletproof vest, like trying to stem the flow by blowing out the dam.He had sacrificed his sanity.By knocking himself out, he simply provided her with complete access to every level of his mind, with no resistance. Any defenses he had evaporated when he fell comatose, his futile attempt at resistance evaporating like dust in the wind. Her cackle spread through his mind, causing his face to unconsciously scrunch up in fear.You fool. You just threw open the door, and invited me in for tea. For a professor, you are exceptionally stupid. She reached back in her memory, and selected the most horrific, the most maddening eldritch abominations she had ever encountered. Creatures that defied natural law as he understood it, defied physics, defied the very fabric of the universe, and set them loose in his imagination. Takatar let out a mental scream as monsters that defied every everything he knew about the universe. They ravaged through his mind like an unholy plague, destroying everything they found, destroying his sanity.He snapped.His sanity fled, gone like a cinder in the wind. When he awoke, he would be so crazy Vezon himself would be horrified. The creature and knowledge he'd gained would be of little use when he couldn't figure out who he was, what he was, and kept spewing random bits of information no one could comprehend.Fury laughed once more, and withdrew. She had destroyed his mind, and destroyed his life. He would lose his job, and all societal functionality he had ever possessed. The clever professor, reduced to an insane beggar. All because he was too clever, and decided he was clever enough to handle forces he couldn't understand.He wasn't.

[Constructelf]

IC: TakatarThe toa of gravity awoke a completely new person. Blank eyes stared straight ahead as fury like he had never known ripped through his being. What he was before didn't matter anymore. He was a completely new person now. Silently, he raised his hands. Everything around him either began to float upwards or get crushed by its own weight. Fury thought she had created a beggar. No, she couldn't have been more wrongBy destroying the professor's sanity, she had destroyed his inhibitions as well. What was once a well mannered toa was now an unstoppable monster of gravitational rage.

Edited October 3, 2012 by Constructman

[otter]

IC-Game Master:And just as Fury finished her punishment, her hold was broken, a force much more powerful coming into play, shunting her aside. A breeze, an impossiblity within these tunnels, passed over Takatar, stirring him to wakefulness, leaving him wondering-what is my name? Who am I, and why am I here? In sudden anger, it seemed, he began to destroy the cavern he was within, before his elemental control slackened, stopping, for the moment. He looked about-he was perfectly alone. Where was he, even? This place had no memory for him."All will be answered," he heard, and yet did not hear. "All shall be told in time, Ketru," he heard, the second part of the message. Ketru? It's meaning was clear, it meant son-it was an honorific title. And yet...it was the closest to a name he knew, now. There were fragments of memory, but he couldn't understand them, now without the whole picture."Ignore those," the voice commanded, now stern, and it was simple-Takatar had begun to reach for his pack, and some of the books near. "You will need them no longer. I name you Ketru, now and forevermore. You shall hear me and only me." A second's worth of breath, a glowing object dropping beside Takatar. It was blinding, so much so that he couldn't understand the true nature of it."Take this," the voice said. "Take it, and keep it close. Ketru, as I have named you, you must go forth. Do not let any know you have this, and do not speak with any name but the name of Ketru. Nay, I entreat you to go back to the City of Light, to retrieve a sword, a breastplate of mail, and a small measure of bread, and then you must leave. You must run into these tunnels. And you must not return." This said, the voice drifted away, leaving the Toa of Gravity feeling cold, and small, next to the blinding object beside him.

Edited October 3, 2012 by Kal Grochi

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

IC: Levacius / Fury's Cavern?Levacius entered the cave, responding in his head, "Navigation would be pointless at this, well, point, I believe." he said, holding out his lightstone to inspect the cave. "Eyes, on the other hand, are not."He wondered if anything else was in the cave besides this being, and if anything else would come.-Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Krayzikk]

IC: FuryFury returned her attention to Levacius. Indeed. Eyes are not. You haven't got far to go now.... Maybe a few hundred yards, to the far wall.

[Constructelf]

IC: Takatar"Why?" the newly christened Ketru asked monotonously but he got no answer. Having nothing better to do, he returned to the village.The toa of gravity entered his old home. He marched forward blankly and entered a shop. Having all of his money left in his bag, he didn't really have a standard way to acquire these items. But no matter. Soon, the shopkeeper was nothing more than a puddle on the ground. Having made a successful raid, he exited the shop. A group of cultists accosted him at the front of the door preaching the gospel of Ul'Kar to him. Something in their words sparked a rage in him and in an instant, three of their heads rolled. The fourth slowly backed away, whimpering "What are you?" "Ketru," the toa of gravity answered before proceeding to reduce his gravity and send him floating up into the air. Grimly, he left town and returned to the tunnels, his mind transformed from that of a professor to that of a mindless killing machine.

Edited October 3, 2012 by Constructman

[otter]

OOC-I'm Gamemaster, I can do it, no whining: Constructman, you seem to have completely missed or ignored my post. You're in a big plot now, now go and read it. This is no suggestion, it is a command. And due to your being in that plot now, that above post needs to be edited....Unless, of course, you want him hunted down and killed. Which, frankly, I don't. Nor do I want to go back and edit my huge, game-important post.

Edited October 3, 2012 by Kal Grochi

[Void Emissary]

IC:Cliff paused a moment, trying to digest what Halnara had just said. She had... said something nice to her. Not condescending, not two-faced, not sarcastic, not self-serving... Just, genuinely nice. So, that was what a compliment sounded like.She sort of liked it."Yeah, I guess I did," Cliff said finally, a small smile creeping onto her face, "So, what about you? What's it like being able to move things with your mind?"-Void

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Nearing Fury's Cavern -"Okay...Fate...stop..." I finally said, my chest heaving from the endless amount of running I'd been doing for the past...well I wasn't really quite sure how long it had been. I slumped down and leaned against the cave wall, catching my breath. Fate came up to me and bumped my shoulder with her nose, I patted her on the head. "You never tire do you girl." I said with a chuckle. My eyes quickly averted toward where we had been previously heading when I noticed a faint far off light, possibly from a lightstone or torch. We weren't alone out here.I stayed quiet, my hand on the hilt of my katana, ready to draw it out in a split second if necessary. OOC: That would be Levacius' lightstone Skyra is seeing, just fyi

[otter]

IC-Game Master:Or so Ketru, as the voice had called him, might have wished. Still, though, had the mysterious power blocked him again-the Cultists merely ran from him in fright, seeing something that he must not have, himself. His money purse was slightly emptier, the items he had been told to obtain having been obtained."I do not wish you to cause unecessary violence," the voice growled. "Take what you have now, and go. Do not relinquish that item you have with you now unto any others-it is of utmost importance." Then, the voice softened slightly."And I implore you...drop this hatred. It benefits none, and harms me, when you attempt to take life."

Edited October 3, 2012 by Kal Grochi

[Voltex]

IC: Vertak, Outpost Central:Vertak leaned against the wall of a building, his hammer in his hand (casually...?) as it always seemed to be these days. He was currently debating with himself mentally over whether he would or would not venture into the tunnels alone... for he didn't really enjoy the idea of never returning, or losing his brain, or whatever happened down there.On the other hand, it wasn't like the Council had done anything that really mattered to him recently - it was this or try and find that group following that blind Toa he'd heard of... something to do with a well. That made you blind.Which was another prospect Vertak wasn't too fond of, although the knowledge bit he did enjoy the sound of.

[Constructelf]

IC: KetruThe toa of gravity returned to the cave with his supplies. "What now, master?" he said in a sarcastic tone, or at least as sarcastic as he could make his emotionless voice sound.

Edited October 3, 2012 by Constructman

[otter]

IC-Game Master:"Come now, child," the voice said. "There is emotion you have, there is no need to hide it. Merely do as I asked of you-you've been entrusted with a great thing, Ketru, and if those Ul'kar you seem to hate, or any others than those I send to you-and you will know those I send to you-get it, then all that that I have worked for will have gone to waste. Ketru, I need this of you: Promise me that you will fulfill this duty with the utmost haste, and that you will never allow any others to learn of this duty I have given you." The voice paused a moment."And please, do not call me master. Find any name with which to call me but that one. Once too was I mortal, like you, but now no longer. And you are the one I have chosen to carry my legacy."

[Voltex]

IC: Vertak, Outpost Central:Screw it, I'm going in. Or out... out I suppose.Vertak clipped his hammer back on and drew his sword and shield as he began to walk towards the outskirts of the outpost, towards the tunnels. A new - and final? - adventure awaited him.

[Constructelf]

IC: KetruKetru didn't reply. Instead, blankly staring ahead, he walked into the shadows...

[Toa Levacius Zehvor]

IC: Levacius / Fury's CaveThe Toa of Lightning entered the cave, inspecting the floor. There were a flew splotches of Ul'Kar, but only small ones, and they loomed ominously on the far corners of the room - indeed, he got the feeling that the great terror was attempting to avoid something far worse than itself in at least this case.He looked around. The cave was almost completely smooth and flat, which was quite strange - whatever it was, it wasn't formed of limestone. Another thing that wasn't formed of limestone? The numerous dead bodies that surrounded the sword, now reduced to little more than crumpling skeletons with rotted pieces of skin and tendon still hanging on in desperation to what had once protected them.And, of course, as the illumination bestowed by his lightstone bounced off of the metallic portions of the skeletons and a few pieces of equipment. All seemed to be reaching towards one thing - a stone edge, carved out at the far end, upon which sat a sheathed blade. He could see writing on the stone as he got closer - writing that was very troubling to him. It was a very old language - one predating him, in fact - though not one that he didn't recognize. Reading the words was slightly amusing -but slightly disturbing as well. Then, he frowned. But not because of that."... you know what. I should have expected a sword. It's always a sword. Sometimes armor, or a helmet, or even boots. A few spears, axes, and hammers. But why couldn't you have been a belt? I've never gotten to use a good belt before. Thanks for fitting the stereotype for ancient, imprisoned sentience..."Something was wrong - he could just sense it. A trained warrior always does. Especially when such a trained warrior happens to possess some of the most formidable skills of electricity. Levacius stretched out his mind to feel the electric fields around him - sure enough, he wasn't alone.No, no reason to show his knowledge. Instead, he moved further into the cave. Here, he had the space to move around in case of an attack, and outmaneuver enemies. He also had the chance to dodge assault. Dodging lightning, on the other hand, would be far harder for his enemies; and as they entered the cave, he would have clear line of sight on them and a nice line to shoot down.Not that he really expected trouble, to be honest.IC: Ghaieden / Kra KardaThe Vortixx moved about the Ul'Kar infested city with a bored expression on his face, kicking at rocks and the like occasionally. "Why do I have to deal with this?" he asked to no one in particular. It occurred to him that Ul'Kar could here, but he needed to vent something out.IC: Halnara / Outpost Central"Oh, I dunno. I never really understood it. It just comes naturally, though. I never got to meet the Sisters and find more from them, though. We lived separate in my village. I tried looking for them at one point, but they were all gone - every one of them.""But yeah. Never understood. I guess it feels good. But I don't know what it's like to not have it, so...."She shrugged. "You're pretty cool, though. I could never figure out how to use a weapon or anything. I bet you'd show both of those two up."-Toa Levacius Zehvor

Edited October 3, 2012 by Toa Levacius Zehvor

[Constructelf]

IC: KetruKetru stared into the void. "Say something," he said to the voice.

[otter]

IC-Kar:"Because, Ghaieden," the Ul'kar massed about Ghaieden growled, "I need you to find what knowledge is there, written, and bring it to me. And quickly. As well...In another building, there is something I need. A...stone, I believe you would call it. It is important to me, and soon shall be to you."IC-Game Master:"Need I say anything?" the voice replied. "You are a smart being, though you refuse to ackowledge it. Soon you shall realize I have given you what knowledge you will need to continue your task-now continue. Follow the mists to where they end, and only where they end completely."OOC: And so begins Ketru's travel.

[Constructelf]

IC: KetruAnd thus began Ketru's descent into the mists and into the shadows. He walked and walked on and on and on, asking "Are we there yet," in his mind over 100 times. The mists never seemed to end; in fact, they only got thicker and thicker.

Edited October 3, 2012 by Constructman

[otter]

OOC: ...Dude. It's not going to be anywhere near that fast.

[Constructelf]

OOC: Edited

[Snelly]

IC: Skyra - Fury's Cavern -Fate let out a low growl as she sensed someone waiting for them back toward the light. I put my finger to her snout. "Shh....easy girl, now...stay back here, I don't want you getting hurt." The Iron Wolf hesitated, but that sat down on her rear obediently. Meanwhile I cautiously and quietly approached the source of the light, katana in front of me and ready to strike if necessary. I finally crept up to the entrance of a small cavern...dead bodies were the first thing I noticed, I had yet to see the other Toa who was waiting for my approach, though I would in a moment.