Rifts Adventure IC

[Rykon]

Zephiron nods to Terra ready to move out. "Might as well get ready to move. I don't have anything better to do."

 

[Silanon]

Sherwood

"Wouldn't be a bother, would it? Never hurts to be careful... even more careful, that is. Doubt it's needed, but maybe that's the plan. They wouldn't expect your sisters, just you... it'd be good, just in case. But the sword should like Atlanteans. They think alike, Atlanteans and knights, and thus the sword. They hate demons..." His free hand reaches for his hair in a sudden moment of self-consciousness, adjusting what can't be adjusted in time. Wild hair, reminiscent of a partially plucked bird, the studs in-between the real eye-catcher. "Looking good, looking good. Your hair, I mean. Mine's grown a bit, lately, but it can't be helped, can it? Hair always grows, until it doesn't..." A sudden turn on the spot. "Can you help against demons? Vampires? Both? If the distraction won't be needed right away, could it be used later, perhaps? They're clever, of course, but if you can distract a dragon and an Atlantean, then maybe them, too? Not him, of course, that'd be too much to ask. Forget it, forget it, it'd be too much risk. He's in there. Just see if your sisters could help now, if it's not a bother. We'll have a dragon, maybe, we'll be fine. As fine as we'll ever be, against him."

 

[Purr]

Back at the village, Snowfall has just returned from his exploration of the pyramid when the one villager also returns with news that the warrior he spoke of earlier will meet with you, and gives general directions on where to find him. It will not take you long to get there. Do all four of you go to see this fellow, or do some of you stay at the village?

Sherwood Snowfall's actions at going or staying are completely dependent on my previous post. What was the result?

Using his Chi Mastery, Snowfall then calmed his mind, placing his fears aside.

Spoiler: Chi Mastery

One of the abilities all Chi-learned characters receive. Chi Relaxation - Character can instantly calm their mind. Can relax in the face of danger, resist insanity, drug addiction, etc. Can go to sleep instantly.

Snowfall realized he had an opportunity here. He made certain he had a good recording of these chambers. This was the sort of knowledge that Sun Tzu was talking about when he wrote about knowing your enemy. The first strategy Snowfall thought of was burning the ropes or taking the time to loosen the ropes in all the right spots so yanking would do nothing but waste time, but this was all theory and he took no action except to observe.

If it were feasible and if he detected no immediate danger, Snowfall very carefully examined the chambers, mapping them as he could and taking note of anything that appeared out of the ordinary (symbols, writings, mechanical workings, doorways, stairs, and the like). At the first sign of possible discovery, Snowfall fled through a wall and vacated the premises. But until that happened, Snowfall spied and learned what he could.

 

[Sherwood]

Snowfall's exploration of the pyramid is successful in that you have mapped out a full dozen chambers inside on different levels. Somewhat surprisingly, there is a chamber in the very center of the pyramid that has only a pair of pinhole accesses from the outside. In there is a single coffin, obviously placed inside the room before the chamber was sealed up. It does not take a leap of genius to realize that this is a vampire of some significant status, possibly the master vampire.

In the other chambers there are other sleeping vampires and probably few dozen low level monsters that serve the vampires, along with a room that has been filled with chests and crates, all of them filled with gold, silver and gems. A true fortune for those interested in material goods.

 

[Purr]

Snowfall returned excitedly to Miss Terra's team and Jorge's Tribe (while also thinking both groups really needed some kind name. Even something like "Terra's Terminators" was better than no name at all). Once he was back in friendly territory, he transformed into his newest of forms and bounded along like a ball on a playground. He spotted Zephiron in all of his youthful majestic glory and in a moment of spontaneous impulsivity, the Kitsune zoomed up Zephiron's tail, along his body, and finally up to the very tip top of the dragon's head near one of his ears.

"Oooh, have I got news for all of you! I just mapped out the pyramid! But first," he aimed a paw down toward the new fellow, "who is that guy? He doesn't look like he's from around any more than..." then Snowfall spotted the studs protruding from the human's head, "...we do. Zephiron, that's a Crazy! They take serious technology to create even here in the West. What's your impression of him?"

Snowfall gazed at the Crazy with his Magic Helmet along with his own senses. His memories of Crazies in his past were more than a few and none of them boring. But before he let his mind drift off to relive his past, he wanted Zephiron's take on things.

 

[Psychie]

Before closing into conversation range, Terra will cast her See Aura spell on this fellow, hoping to get a good read on him.

Over the years, Terra has also run into her own fair share of Crazies to recognize the metal plugs coming out of his skull. Well, that explains some of why the villagers call him a bit odd, and it certainly adds to the chance that he's going to be a help in the fight! Keeping her hands free of weapons (no sense in posing a threat to this guy; after all they were hoping to recruit him, not start a fight!) she offers up a smile and friendly wave. "Greetings. I am Terra Alvana, of the Atlantian Draco Amicus Clan. The villagers have said that you are no friend to the monsters in the pyramid, and you could quite possibly be a good ally in our efforts to wipe them out."

 

[Sherwood]

Spoiler: See Aura spell

All things, organic and inorganic, have an aura. The aura has many features and distinctions, and can be used to see or sense things invisible to the eye. Seeing an aura will indicate the following:
• Estimate the general level of experience. Low (I -3), medium (4-7), high (8th and up).
• The presence of magic (no indication of what, or power level).
• The presence of psychic abilities. Low (Minor) or high (Major or Master).
• High or low base P.P.E.
• The presence of a possessing entity (does not indicate Psychic Possession or mind control).
• Health : Sick, injured or completely well .
• The presence of an unusual human aberration which indicates a serious illness or that the character is not human and may be a mutant, D-Bee, or demon, but does not reveal which.

With Terra's spell and Snowfall's Chi sense, you can get the following information:
He is in the upper range of the medium level of experience,
He possesses no magical ability,
He has some psychic powers, and would qualify as Major level,
Low base PPE,
No possessing entities,
Very healthy,
and he has no unusual aberrations about him.

 

[Purr]

Snowfall relayed to Terra what he learned via whispering through the Communications Crystal. He continued to watch. Besides, he wanted to know what the others were to make of the newcomer.

 

[D. Rex]

"Momma's boys." Daisy said wryly as if thinking back to easier days, then nodded. "He'll fight well enough. Have seen them cause mercenaries plenty of trouble before." She commented.

An audible sniff could be heard from the voice box of her glitterboy. Just getting a good whiff of his psychic scent. "I'll trust he's a good killer if he's made it this far in vampire territory. "

 

[Silanon]

An odd bunch, those assembled in front of him - Eron pauses for a moment, between the trees, grabbing the pouch dangling from a cord around his neck. For just a moment, all movement seems to leave his body, before it returns with even more urgency. The scents, the eye-sight, even the smell - it's all just that little bit better than before that sometimes makes the difference between survival and death. He makes a point of scanning the trees around for potential observers, then closes half of the distance between him and the others with a few quick steps, and a grin on his lips. His mantle's little more than an assemblement of holes, at this point, and former battles have left their marks on the light armor below as well. The brown hair around the silver studs is in a rather poor state, sign of too many days on the road in a row. It does not seem to bother him all that much. In fact, his whole appearance, despite its shabbiness, oozes confidence. There's no cats in sight, for starters; no knight either, but he's got that partially covered, right? In fact, the blade in his hand, forged to be both an excellent weapon and be recognized for that at first glance, is the only piece of equipment seemingly untouched by the recent troubles. He sheaths it as soon as the coast seems clear and Terra addresses him directly.

"No friend, indeed - the opposite. There's a creature in there, wicked, evil; the darkest darkness, where even vamps look like righteous citizens in comparison." He spits out, then bows - the latter gesture not quite as imposing as it's performed with haste, not dignity. "Eron, from north." For a moment, he seems awfully disappointed that there're no more impressive titles to be added. That can, of course, be changed. "Defender of a city I've never seen. Chosen champion of Sir Duncan Cooley, may his soul rest in peace as his sword fulfills its purpose. Salnesh's misfortune, eventually. Hopefully." He seems less confident, then. "You survived the cats thus far, so that's good. Don't underestimate them, never trust them. Salnesh's even worse, though. Far worse. Better underestimate the cats than him. It'll be a rough fight, us against that horde, and him. The cats might strike, too. They always do. Looked around a bit, little of note." He bobs up and down in place, eyeing the others. "Got a plan?"

Spoiler: Psionics

Let me activate enhanced perception:
Range: Self.
Duration: Five minutes per level of experience. (30min)
I.S.P.: 10
This incredible psionic power augments the psychic's physical senses, enhancing his perception. This enhanced state of awareness sharpens all natural senses by 50%, and further enables the psychic to "filter" all of this extra sensory input in order to concentrate on one or a few specific things. While using this ability, the psychic will notice every detail around him down to the slightest motion, sound, scent, and shadow. He will further be likely to notice changes and inconsistencies that might reveal traps, illusions, feints, or tricks.

ISP: 106/116

Anything of note that I can figure out with that?

 

[Psychie]

Terra nods. "We're still gathering info, but we are getting the start of a plan. There is an underground river that runs under the pyramid that gets us access to the chamber with the Vampire Intelligence. It will require either sealed environmental armor or a Breathe Without Air spell to get through the water, but once we are in, the next big threat are a couple of nasty supernatural monsters called Maggots. There are at least two, and they are very tough and hard to kill, but we'll have to take them out to be able to hit the Vamps."

"Now, we have some advantages on our side. We have the element of surprise on our side, and I have three magical mecha that I'll be bringing along to be able to hit the critters in there. If we hit the place during the day, they lose the power of the vampires in there, since they will all still be sleeping. Easier for us to finish them off. As for the rest? If you have any suggestions on how to make this happen even easier, I'm all ears."

 

[Silanon]

The man cocks his head, considers the words. Stares at the forest floor for a moment as if envisioning the upcoming dangers, then shakes his head. "Won't do the trick. Sneaking in, I mean. It's him. You try to surprise him, you're in for a bad time. Don't count on the surprise. Never do that. He knows I'm here, he'll be prepared. And if not - we sneak in from below, they fight us there. Even if we succeed, he'll just escape upwards, and it'll be us trying to catch up, fighting against all that's in there."

"You need to understand that. Maybe we can go in and kill that Intelligence thing and those Maggots, no problem. But it'd be pointless. It's like getting rid of a bramble bush, you see? You can cut off the branches every year, and maybe it'll die eventually. If you find all the new shoots. You want to make sure it's gone for good, you have to pull out the roots. He's the roots." He points roughly in the pyramid's direction. "Vampires, demons; the Sir would've killed them, so I'll do that, too, and I would've before I found him as well. But it's not the point, really. How many lights can they blow out, all the way out here? Not many. They have not much purpose. He'll give them purpose. And if he escapes, he'll give something else purpose, and who knows what or where that'll be, then. At the very least, we'll have to cut off his escape route. Maybe a distraction, then sneak in from above and below. Corner him that way. Maybe he'll escape anyway. Maybe killing those things you speak of is as much as we can accomplish. But we need to try better, or we might as well not try at all."

 

[D. Rex]

Daisy laughed, with a grin on her face befitting the one painted on the glitterboys face. "Yes. I like this plan better. No escape. Crush him between us like pistons." The gears in her suit groaned as she made a tight fist for emphasis. "Complete destruction."

"But we do not have to come at him from both sides. No. If we are all that is fighting, splitting ourselves up would make us weaker than we should risk. Instead we can make him come to use. He will escape to us and see us as the easy path. We fight where we determine. But we fight dirtier than any demon can. Ambush. Traps. Other stuff. A place we get to in the cavern. We set up and wait."

"Above! We use the war fortress! It must have armament. I say we use them to core into the earth to drive it straight towards us." She said proudly. Though it might also just be her being very eager to use a lot of firepower.

 

[Psychie]

Terra grins. "We might be able to do a 'above and below' attack after all, if we can convince Jorge and his people to go in from the top while we hit the Vampire Intelligence from the river access. I am still very concerned about the fight below ground, though. If we all work together and hit the Maggots as fast and as hard as we can, the Vampire Intelligence is, in my opinion, a less of a threat since it is immobile. Once the Maggots are dealt with, we then put the smack down on it and win this fight."

She pauses, then says, "We have no specific timeline to deal with, so if it is possible to add some more help to our side, I'm all for it. We just need to find some able bodied recruits."

 

[Sherwood]

Eron does know of a fairly good sized town not too far from here, housing several thousand people in it. The problem is, the town is under the thumb of the vampires in this region hard core, and the vamps use the people as a food supply, requiring the populace to submit to bi-weekly blood draws to keep the undead population fed. The fiends do have themselves a bunch of bully boys and thugs that keep the townspeople under control during the day, so they will not be willing to jump into a big fight without making sure they were free from retaliation.

The other option would be to travel a bit farther afield you might be able to find some adventurers willing to take up arms against the vampires easier, once you are out of the area controlled by the undead.

 

[Silanon]

"Jorge, Jorge" - he first speaks the name in thought, then repeats it as if it left a foul taste on his tongue - "the cat, right? Better not. Unpredictable, his kin. Unreliable at best. The outcome will be... beyond control. Perhaps as a distraction, away from the pyramid. Then whatever happens, they will at least buy time." And not get in his, or anyone's, way. Mostly his. No need for their claws anywhere near his back. Or theirs. They seem like good people.

"There is another place - vampires must feed, after all. Not too many, but not too few. Under the vamps' control, or so I figured. Never showed myself there, for obvious reasons: Even if one could free the town, he would understand the threat, and flee. One would have to be quick, leave him no time to react. Perhaps just feint the attempt to shake off their clawing grasp, then strike when they send out forces to intervene. If they do, who knows. Hard to deceive a deceiver. Twice as hard with him. Also would mean many deaths. Maybe inevitable, with the vamps in control, but the Sir would disapprove, and so would I. Perhaps one should warn them to be prepared, but not more. That fortress mentioned" - he nods at the legendary suit of armor - "how'd it help? If it is manned, then it's out of reach, or they dealt with it. If it is empty, it's worthless. If it is under their control, then an attack would warn them."

 

[Psychie]

Terra continues to grin. "No, our fortress is not one that the vampires have ever seen before, and the nice thing about it, its mobile. We can load it up and move it out, drawing the attention of everything in the area to try and stop it, while we come in through the basement and kill the Intelligence and the rest of the baddies in there. We can also go try and recruit some more helpers, but I don't expect to have many takers. The vamps and their cronies will have probably chased off or killed anyone with the skills, power or backbone to be able to put up any resistance to them."

 

[Silanon]

"Agreed - will be needed later, too, once we've done our deed and free the town from remainders. So maybe just us, and that fortress." Every few moments, he eyes the horizon, just in case some fortress happens to come by, by chance. No luck thus far. "Or maybe not." He turns on the spot, towards those who have been mostly quiet thus far. "Plans, ideas?" A pause. "Names? Always awkward, not knowing what to engrave on the tombstone."

 

[Psychie]

Terra laughs. "Are you always so positive? As I said, I'm Terra Alvana."

 

[Silanon]

"I know, I know... that's what you said - Atlantean, too, never been there myself... meant the others, though, those following you. You asked them at some point, didn't you? That's what people do, I think..." He did, at least. Not that it kept them alive.

"Not always positive, couldn't stand it myself, all the time. But when he's not quite there, but within reach; when there's hope, and fresh air, and promising company after sitting idle for too long. Then sure, I'll look at the bright side of things - I'll see his burning eyes soon enough. Hope you'll never have to understand. Then again, you're going right in, too. Might see his end, without understanding. That'd be best. Maybe not, though. Then that's where the positivity ends. Not yet, not before we even tried. Trying's always good, just sometimes unsuccessful. Tried becoming a knight, once, didn't work. Still helps with slicing up the bad guys. Maggots too, not that I tried those before. Gotta work, it's the best kind of blade." He pets the hilt of his sword affectionately. "So, names, plans, that's where we were, right? Or I was, at least. Sometimes people do think differently. Lucky me, imagine them fighting like us. That'd be scary, fortress and all... "

 

[Psychie]

Terra thinks to herself, This guy really is a loon, but if he can fight half as well as the other Crazies I've fought with, we should be in good shape. "Perhaps it is time to take you to our mobile fortress and let you see what we're talking about. I also feel a bit naked without my Automations nearby. We can go back there, show Eron our ace in the hole, and I can start to move my kids closer to this underwater passage."

 

[Rykon]

Somewhere in the discussion, Zephiron seems to lose sight of up from down. Not able to give Snowfall much more than a confused and awkward shrug. Clearly, in his experience, he wasn't sure what to think yet. His head cranes down tilted in confusion, "So in simple terms... what am I doing... again? I don't have any personal use for those chrome turtle weapons, so I'm ready to lay down the law when you all are."

 

[Purr]

"Yep!" Snowfall whispered into Zeph's ear as he returned the shrug. "That fellow with the M.O.M. implants is definitely Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!"

Snowfall walked along Zephiron's shoulder and waved to get everyone's attention, especially Miss Terra's. His nine tails wagging, Snowfall paraded his new form while giving voice to his feelings. First, he introduced himself to the Crazy with a friendly wave and a polite Japanese-style bow. "Hello down there! I am Snowfall, messenger and dimensional traveler of Prince Inari of Japan! And Zephy? I just don't know! I'm with you on the shiny turtle weapons. But hey!" He slid down Zephiron's tail and hopped off into a pair of somersaults before landing at Terra's feet. "I'm going to need to recharge my batteries before any kind of big fight. You know why? Because I just spent a lot of juice gathering... this!"

Snowfall displayed his Altantean Crystal Eye and used its projection ability to display his entire tour of the magical pyramid. "If we use the Walking Fortress to attack the pyramid, aren't we doing Jorge's Tribe a disservice? Pyramids are holy ground to his folk and Atlanteans and, unlike the average shrine, temple, or church, you can't just put a magical pyramid back together again and expect it to remain magical." He sneezed and excused himself. "Besides, here we are with just about all of the information I could get and it's a lot! I mean, just look at these rooms, these treasures, the hundreds of vampire corpses strung together by rope (which I'd love to burn or sever!). The evil holed up in there has its act together!"

"Miss Terra, I've learned that just a single one of those hell-born Maggots has a good chance of defeating all three of your boys - and those things travel in packs!"

The spirit-messenger took his time pointing out detail after detail. "And here we have what seems to me to be the master vampire's very own hidden room and suite, accessible only by these teeny holes in the wall!" Snowfall turned to the Crazy fellow.

"Sir? Is this the guy you're after?"

 

[Psychie]

Terra thinks for a moment about what Snowfall has told her about the Maggots, and finally replies. "Well, the worst case scenario is that the Automations are destroyed. Better them than us, after all, they are replaceable. I am thinking, though, that we have a pretty kick-ass group of fighters here, and with us all working on these little bastards together, we should be able to take them down, then turn on the Vampire Intelligence and kill it, too. We will just have to pull out all the stops to make it happen."

 

[Purr]

"Battles are won with diligence, preparation, knowledge, and strategy. I recommend we prepare. See, if the Maggots have a weakness, I don't know what it is. Plus, I think just going in," Snowfall raised his paw to his chin, "how do the Americans say it? 'Guns blazing?' I think we lose a very important element and that is surprise. I think we only get one shot at this and we should make the most of it or we possibly face disaster." Snowfall looked serious.