Trial by Fire - IC Thread

[Psychie]

Spider rubs at her eyes, feeling the effects of the stress, lack of good sleep, and Essence usage. "Yeah, lets see what kind of sleeping arrangements we can find here. I could use some shut eye."

 

[jaydude]

Kuaidao nodded at Spider. "Kal Bax did mention that there were bedrooms upstairs. You want to go and have a look around?"

 

[Sherwood]

With a bit of hunting around, you are able to find several well furnished bedrooms upstairs on the second level of the manse, enough for everyone to get their own rooms if you want.

Several hours later, everyone is feeling well rested and have recovered your spent Essence, and are now ready to move onto the next step of your plans.

Just to confirm, we have Bard and Spider going out to meet V'neef Mahina, and Kuaidao and Maja going to find Rhrabwar. Is this still the plan?

 

[jaydude]

"Well, let's go find Rhabwar." Kuaidao said to Maja once he'd put on Dauntless and attached the Guardian Host to his belt, giving each of his shoulders a good flex.

"See you all back here soon. And good luck." he said to Bard, Spider and Melinda.

Assuming that no-one here had anything they wished to talk to him about, he'd set off to where they'd met Rhabwar, with the expectation that Maja would follow him.

 

[Sherwood]

Kuaidao and Maja

Heading out of the doors, you are once more hit by the bitter cold and harsh winds. You are both glad to have your heavy furs to help keep you warm. Moving out, you duck your heads a bit in a futile attempt to keep out of the wind. Very unpleasant, but you are Exalted, and something as simple as this will not deter you.

How are the two of you traveling? Is it going to be by foot, or do you have some Charms or spells to speed you along?

 

[Psychie]

Spider gives the two a friendly wave goodbye before turning to Bard. Giving him a elbow poke, she says, "So loverboy, you ready to lay on the charm on this V'neef Mahina? I can get us out in her general area quickly enough; the rest will be up to you."

D. Rex

 

[D. Rex]

Spider gives the two a friendly wave goodbye before turning to Bard. Giving him a elbow poke, she says, "So loverboy, you ready to lay on the charm on this V'neef Mahina? I can get us out in her general area quickly enough; the rest will be up to you."

D. Rex

Bard licked his palms and ran his hands through his hair, then licked his fingers and smoothed his mustache and beard. Making sure not a strand was out of place. "Well how do I look? To die for?" He smirked.

"Let us go. Be sure to stay nearby. If things don't go as I hope... I may need you to pull me out of the fire. Again."

Psychie

 

[Psychie]

Bard licked his palms and ran his hands through his hair, then licked his fingers and smoothed his mustache and beard. Making sure not a strand was out of place. "Well how do I look? To die for?" He smirked.

"Let us go. Be sure to stay nearby. If things don't go as I hope... I may need you to pull me out of the fire. Again."

Psychie

Spider shakes her head in amusement. "Yes, you just look divine. I can barely keep my hands off of you, wanting to throw you down and ravage your body right here on the table." She rolls her eyes and lets out a laugh. "Ok, lets get a move on. I'll fly us closer to where we can find V'need Mahina, and if things go bad, we'll either fight our way out, or we just bolt."

Heading out into the open, she transforms herself into a snowy owl, and uses another Charm to increase its size to Legendary proportions, big enough for Bard to get on her back and ride. Hunching down, she lets her Solar get on and settle himself up at her neck.

 

[D. Rex]

Spider shakes her head in amusement. "Yes, you just look divine. I can barely keep my hands off of you, wanting to throw you down and ravage your body right here on the table." She rolls her eyes and lets out a laugh. "Ok, lets get a move on. I'll fly us closer to where we can find V'need Mahina, and if things go bad, we'll either fight our way out, or we just bolt."

Heading out into the open, she transforms herself into a snowy owl, and uses another Charm to increase its size to Legendary proportions, big enough for Bard to get on her back and ride. Hunching down, she lets her Solar get on and settle himself up at her neck.

With a mighty grin, he hopped atop the back of the giant owl, and dug in his heels(holding on tight as he had a feeling she'd try to buck him off for doing that) "Hi ho, Spider! Away!"

 

[Random Word]

Maja's mood picks up immediately once they're outside. The soft crunch of her snowshoes, the bracing chill of the air, wilderness as far as the eye can see - this is what home feels like. She takes a deep breath, savouring the burn of the cold air. She looks up in awe as Spider transforms into a massive owl and takes off, then looks sheepishly at Kuaidao, "Ummm, Sorry, I don't think I can do that."

Equally captivating is the fortress itself. She pauses to toss a snowball at the wall just to prove to herself again that it's real. "An invisible fortress! I never would have found anything like this in a million years," she shakes her head in wondrous disbelief as the snowball strikes and vanishes shortly after impact. She pokes the wall experimentally and is briefly disappointed her hand doesn't become invisible.

Her heart jumps as she realizes Kuiadao has already set out and she immediately settles into the easy loping stride of someone who has been running in snowshoes since they could walk. As she blows passed him she grins, "Race you to the treeline!" She pushes herself to run even faster, pushing off with enough force to carry her sailing over the snow with each bounding step, exulting in the feeling of the cold wind through her hair.

 

[jaydude]

She looks up in awe as Spider transforms into a massive owl and takes off, then looks sheepishly at Kuaidao, "Ummm, Sorry, I don't think I can do that."

"Don't worry, I'm used to long marches. And I've no doubt you'll be able to do that soon." Kuaidao assured her.

Her heart jumps as she realizes Kuiadao has already set out and she immediately settles into the easy loping stride of someone who has been running in snowshoes since they could walk. As she blows passed him she grins, "Race you to the treeline!" She pushes herself to run even faster, pushing off with enough force to carry her sailing over the snow with each bounding step, exulting in the feeling of the cold wind through her hair.

As she ran past, the infectious glee displayed to him by Maja made Kuaidao feel like he was ten years old again; a carefree kid, ignorant of how harsh the world and those around it could be. Grinning with both fondness for Maja and a sudden eagerness to compete with her, he took off after the Lunar at a hard sprint, his Caste Mark shining and a golden aura appearing around his body as he channeled his Essence into his limbs and organs, and then sped up.

[OOC: Rolling Dex + Athletics + 5 Excellency Dice to race Maja. Spending 5m of Peripheral Essence for Excellency, bringing Anima up to Glowing. 11 successes.]

 

[Random Word]

Maja's eyes go wide Kuaidao sprints passed her limned in golden light. Hare and Merlin, he's so fast. She reaches deep into her soul and asks, can we go faster? Her soul answers not in words but in power suffusing every muscle and tendon, eager to be unleashed. Her grin widens and when the tip of her snowshoe brushes the ground beneath her she pushes off with a sudden explosion of snow behind her she hurls herself forward. She cries out in surprise and delight as she is propelled high into the air surrounded by a burning halo of silver flame. Too high, too high, you won't catch him like this. She leans forward until she's almost horizontal before pushing off again. She doesn't so much run as fly, alternating one knee and then the other tucked close to her chest, punctuated by periodic brushes with the ground followed by billowing plumes of snow erupting behind her.

Spoiler: Mechanics

7m Dex + Str Excellency, 3m Graceful Crane Stance to negate whatever the penalty is for running in deep snow. Anima goes to Burning. Need to buy Angry Rhino Charge to race with Strength instead of Dex.
Dex 2 + Athletics 3 + Not Quite All the Lunar Nonsense Maja can Pull, Because War Form Seemed A Bit Excessive 7 + Stunt 2 = 14; 7 successes

 

[Random Word]

Maja discovers to her continual amazement that no matter how fast she goes - and Hare is it fast and Hare is it fun - somehow Kuaidao still pulls ahead. She also discovers that in the hierarchy of difficult things, slightly below winning a foot race with Kuiadao is stopping once you've made the attempt. She sails passed where he waits at the treeline and smashes into a nearby snowbank at full speed, kicking up one final great plume of snow.

 

[jaydude]

Though all common sense told him that she'd be able to survive it with no issue, Kuaidao still gave an involuntary wince when Maja smashed into the snowbank a la an enraged and blind hellboar. Trying not to grin too much at her misfortune, he quickly jogged over and offered her a hand up.

"You okay?" he asked.

 

[Psychie]

With a mighty grin, he hopped atop the back of the giant owl, and dug in his heels(holding on tight as he had a feeling she'd try to buck him off for doing that) "Hi ho, Spider! Away!"

Spider briefly toys with the idea of doing a barrel roll just to mess with Bard, but decides against it. For now. Later on might be a different story. In the meantime, she flies high enough to keep from being a target from any slings and arrows that might be flying up in her direction, all the while looking down, hunting for any signs of Mahina's group or worse, the mass of men with Sesus Lahor.

Spoiler

Spending 4m on Sense Sharpening Change to enhance my Perception for the Scene.
The Lunar shifts her body to hone one of her senses. She chooses a single sense, rerolling 1s until they cease to appear on Perception rolls using it and ignoring (Essence) points of penalty from overstimulation or understimulation of that sense, even on non-Perception rolls. She could ignore penalties to vision caused by darkness or blinding light, but not by fog or distance.

Total of 2 successes

 

[Random Word]

Half-buried in a snowbank, Maja contemplates the nature of essence and decides that it's almost, but not quite, entirely unlike being drunk. It's like being drunk if everything about being drunk were better. And Creation is drunk with you, because being drunk around sober people is just awkward, and nothing about this feels awkward. It's the opposite of awkward. It just feels right. Like everything she does is perfect and correct - even crashing headlong into a snowbank at high speed. She rolls over and begins shaking the snow out of her hair, laughing.

She's contemplating the finer points of whether Creation is drunk on her, or she is drunk on Creation, or maybe both, when Kuaidao steps into view, his brilliant gold halo reflecting beautifully off the still settling snow. So that's his soul, huh? So pretty. Fitting. She clasps Kuaidao's outstretched hand, and in that moment experiences the strangest sense of having been here before. Not here here. Well, maybe here here, but that's not what matters. Her hand clasped in his, helping her up after yet another reckless mistake. The feeling is pleasant, comforting, reassuring, but on its heels comes the fierce stabbing pain of an almost indescribable loss trying to cleave her heart in two. The pain brings tears to her eyes and a gasp to her lips, but also a startling moment of clarity: She was happy right now, but she was about to go to war and could lose everything. Did she want to be like Kal Bax, hovering in her dusty office in the tombs beneath the invisible fortress she built regretting missed opportunities thousands of years later? Wait, why wasn't the tomb du- No.

Kuaidao tries to pull her up, but she has a better idea. His only warning is a widening grin and a mischievous glint in tear-filled eyes before she pulls hard to bring him down on top of her, catching him with her other hand on his chest when his face is only a few centimetres away from her own. Her hair is splayed around her in the snow, body wreathed in silver flames, cheeks flushed with cold and exertion, fangs bared in an elated grin, eyes alight with hunger and warm with an affection not entirely her own. "I want to kiss you," she declares fiercely, "Can I kiss you?"

 

[jaydude]

Kuaidao gave a yelp when Maja pulled him down. Out of instinct, he twisted his body so that he only landed half on top of her; even though his attunement to Dauntless made its weight a non-factor, he was still very much aware of how heavy the armor actually was. If she was still uncomfortable, he'd move himself to the side of her, but still stay close.

It was only once he'd gotten over his surprise that he realized how close together the two of them were, and how even more beautiful Maja was at this distance and in this state.

Even if he could have resisted her request, he didn't want to try. Part of him had wanted something this for a while, and the more rational part of him could see no reason to refuse. Maja was willing, endearing, and very much attractive. And even if Kuaidao believed the two of them could survive anything the next several months threw at them, it wouldn't hurt to take an important step in their relationship now.

"This wasn't quite how I imagined us having our first kiss." Kuaidao admitted with a grin. "I'd have taken you out into a town, treated you to tea and other things, and then sat down with you to watch a beautiful sunset beforehand."

"But I assure you that I don't mind this at all." he finished, before leaning down and kissing her.

OOC: Kuaidao's Intimacy towards Maja becomes a Major Tie of Affection.

 

[Random Word]

Maja's soul sings as their lips meet and when they part she's glowing more than she already was.

She laughs, "Instead you brought me to an invisible fortress full of beautiful ancient relics, we ate trail rations at table fit for the Empress - they've never tasted better, we played in the snow, and you showed me something more beautiful than a sunset," she gestures at the golden light radiating off him. "I like this better. This is where I belong, and there's no one I'd rather share it with." She leans up to for another long kiss. When she pulls back she observes with wonder, "You taste like summer, and when I kiss you it's like I can feel the warmth of the sun all over my skin. I love it."

"Okay, every time you beat me at a competition you get to kiss me, and every time I beat you at a competition I get to kiss you," she declares, beaming. This draws her attention back to Kuaidao's efforts to avoid crushing her under the weight of his armour - eventually he'll learn her new body is shockingly durable, but she appreciates the gesture - and she shakes her head incredulously, "How are you so fast in all that armour? In snow!"

"I guess we had better get going - if Spider and Bard get back and we're still here we'll never hear the end of it."

[Maja's tie of Love for Kuaidao goes from minor to Major]

 

[jaydude]

"If that is the case, I say it'll be worth it." replied Kuaidao, having thoroughly enjoyed the kissing as much as she had. Nevertheless he stood up and helped Maja back to her feet, before the two of them set off for where they'd last encountered Rhabwar, he taking her hand as they walked.

"I spent most of my time in the legions serving in the North. It's the main reason I learned Skytongue." he said, in order to try and explain the snow thing. "As for this armor, attuning to clothes made from the magical materials drastically reduces their weight on the wearer. Otherwise this would be too heavy to even walk in, let alone run and fight."

Then his smile became a bit warmer. "I like that agreement of yours. " he continued. "Though I wouldn't mind us also being able to kiss whenever we feel like it." he added.

 

[Random Word]

"Kiss you whenever I feel like it?" she says with mock incredulity as she spins in front of Kuaidao and leans in for another kiss. "I'm not sure I'm ready for that kind of responsibility. When," she kisses him again, "will I ever," she kisses him longer and harder while vocalizing her delight, "get anything," mmmmm, "done?"

Her mock incredulity becomes genuine as she pulls back to look in wonder at Kuaidao from arms length. "Spirits! How do you make this feel so good? I thought you were the chosen of 'being the best soldier'. What does kissing have to do with that? That's it, isn't it? You're the chosen of being amazing at everything. You make my whole body tingle but in a good way, like the gems, but better. I have goosebumps. Okay, I have to stop. This is important. We need allies so we don't all die." She looks into his eyes for several long moments, clearly torn, then gives in, "One more." She leans in for the longest kiss yet, then she twines her fingers again with his and carries on like nothing happened.

 

[D. Rex]

Spider briefly toys with the idea of doing a barrel roll just to mess with Bard, but decides against it. For now. Later on might be a different story. In the meantime, she flies high enough to keep from being a target from any slings and arrows that might be flying up in her direction, all the while looking down, hunting for any signs of Mahina's group or worse, the mass of men with Sesus Lahor.

Spoiler

Spending 4m on Sense Sharpening Change to enhance my Perception for the Scene.
The Lunar shifts her body to hone one of her senses. She chooses a single sense, rerolling 1s until they cease to appear on Perception rolls using it and ignoring (Essence) points of penalty from overstimulation or understimulation of that sense, even on non-Perception rolls. She could ignore penalties to vision caused by darkness or blinding light, but not by fog or distance.

Total of 2 successes

Majestic as always. That was his original thought. Or was she? During the flight, he did wonder. What thoughts were his, and what were those of the past? And if somehow, all his memories flooded back to him right now, who would he be? Yes, a life makes the man... but how different was his past lives to who he was today. How different was Spider in her past lives to who she was today...

If they weren't the same from life to life, was exaltation then just a vessel of memories and power as a means of immortality? If so... then how was this bond he shared to Spider so intrinsically linked to him. Was it just a compulsive connection through ties of essence... or did they really share something that transcended time.

For maybe there was something to the idea that they were the same person in each life, just going through different scenarios. With the same values and general beliefs being held in each life. It was a much nicer thought, for it meant that their bond was bigger than some arbitrary arcane Compulsion. It meant there really was a reason to it.

But... what was the reason? What exactly was the feeling? As within it carried so much familiarity as if he knew her his entire life, even though he barely knew her at all. What was it that made him KNOW he would give his life for her. What drove that instinct?

She was hot and appealing. He would lying to himself if he said he did not lust. But as much as he would for any pretty girl. Bard could not honestly say it was love, for he barely knew her. Friendship then? Well yes, but again, he could consider the others of his circles just as much friends as she. And even they were but recently met as well. Loyalty? Again, yes and no. He felt loyal to her, but he could not specify a reason why. Just as he felt protective of her and trusted her with his life. Again, with no specific reason he should. He just did.

The bond. It was a conundrum. In what ways did their relationship in past lives manifest? How many ways did they differ? Perhaps in some they were married, perhaps in others they were rivals. As many lives as they must have had, maybe some they didn't find each other or others where they couldn't stand each other but somehow drawn to each other anyway.

So was Bard's thoughts as they flew, until the man broke the silence. "Spider." He asked. "What was it you think that started this bond between us?" He asked. "In the life in which we first met... what do you think happened that was so potent that we were drawn together forever after?"


He of course, would help look as they got closer.

Spotting for the dyansts: 4sux

 

[Sherwood]

Spider and Bard

Soaring through the air, it is a nice sense of freedom compared to the option of slogging through the snow that stretches across the world as far as the eye can see. Watching ahead of you carefully, Bard catches a glimpse of a small plume of smoke from a campfire, probably the campsite of V'neef Mahina. It is still about a mile ahead of you, so it is unlikely that you have been seen. It looks like the smoke is coming up outside the invisible barrier that keeps the demons in, so there is plenty of cover for Spider to advance a little closer before setting down and shifting forms back without being seen doing so.


Kuaidao and Maja

After several kisses in the snowbank, the two Exalts once more set out on their way to find Rhabwar the mountain spirit. The last time you encountered him, he was in the forest outside the demon controlled lands. It takes you several hours of travel time to get out there, all the while you feel like you are being watched. Probably by some of the demons you've already encountered. It is a bit unnerving, but they make no effort to contact you in any way.

Once you are in the forest, you are able to find the spot you last saw the spirit, but he is not there at the moment.

The two of you, please give me either a Perception + Awareness roll to spot traces of his passage, or a Intelligence + Survival roll to try and track him.

 

[jaydude]

"Huh. Where could he be?" asked Kuaidao, when the two of them came to where they'd met Rhabwar last, looking for any signs of the creature.

[Rolling Perception + Awareness. 2 Successes.]

 

[Random Word]

In a quicksilver flash Maja transforms into her spirit form, the arctic fox. She closes her eyes momentarily, bringing back with perfect clarity the memory of Rhabwar's scent and the shape of his tracks in the snow. Holding it in her mind she paces about the forest for a few minutes, notes the direction of the wind, and then having scented her prey she glances at Kuaidao, swishes her big fluffy tail happily, and sets off at an easy loping stride along Rhabwar's trail.

Spoiler: Mechanics

4m Perception Excellency
Perception 5 + Survival 3 + Keen Hearing and Scent 3 + Stunt 2 + Excellency 4 (or Awareness if you prefer - they're the same, but the book mentions Per + Sur for tracking) = 17 dice; 13 hits - I think I found him.

 

[Sherwood]

Kuaidao and Maja

The track is faint, having been days since you last encountered the spirit. But faint does not mean gone, and to the keen nose of the Lunar, it is still detectable. No mere mortal animal could possibly stay on his trail the same way that Maja is now.

Moving through the trees, you come to a concealed cave entrance, and Rhabwar's scent is very strong from inside. This must be his lair. Do you go ahead and enter, or do you do something else?