Fantasy A Nation In Havoc (2.0)

[TheCountryWarrior]

Armandio followed behind the Huntress, glancing around in search of danger. "What is it with this place and Fox's? Must be a theme." In the process of glancing around he noticed that for the most part things had calmed down. Occasional boulders fell from the sky and death and destruction was laid out all around them, but at least the Goblins seemed to have moved on from rampant slaughtering of random people. He continued to follow The Huntress, not really having anything else to do right now.

MagicPenguin Duke of Doge The_Omega_Effect

 

[The_Omega_Effect]

Although he had the brute force to pretty much kill the entire wave at the improvised tournament or even escape the city, he did not want the girl to die. He fought his urge to go back into the stadium to join the fight again and then followed Raimi to the inn she was talking about. With all these goblins and orcs, he doubted that any building, let alone a tavern, a public place, would be a safe place to stay at all. Overall, staying in Dalania seemed to be suicide at that point at Kruziik pretty much had taken over it. But he understood that they had to find the princess as without her, the entire nation would be at the mercy of Kruziik as there would not be any leader the rebels and other nations could rally behind. Decius then ran ahead to catch up with Armandio and Raimi. He was not aware that for some reason, all the blood that was on his axe before was gone, without him having to wipe it off.

TheCountryWarrior MagicPenguin

 

[augmentedspartan]

"I'll take that second option." As much as Ambrose would have liked to ask for other more rewarding things, he wasn't too keen on relying on the harbringer psychopath for favors, but he could at least get out of here and plan his options, he might actually have to leave the city depending on how much damage occurred. Looking around, he noticed the area somewhat less chaotic, which probably meant the carnage had spread towards the street, not the place he wanted to be caught walking around. "Do your magic bullshit and transport me in front of my house. I don't want to walk back after the stunt you just pulled."

TheCountryWarrior

 

[Randomfella]

"Please..." The princesses' single word of reply echoed slightly in Jenny's head. From the way the girl was walking, and the amount going on, the halfling had almost forgotten who she was talking to, and what they had just experienced. "Come on then, I know a shortcut." The halfling responded urgently, trying to keep her tone calm, loading a couple of bolts beneath her wrists in preparation with her spare hand. Ironically, the open streets, what would before be known as the safest route of travel, now ran with blood, the halfling only wished that was a figurative statement. Now the alleyways, normally the local of thieves and muggers hiding from sight gave some separation between them and the gaze of Kruzik, and his foul minions, as well as some protection from the pyroclastic fall which was soon to follow the eruption. Time was not on their side, as more cloaked figures surfaced on the horizon, their walk soon turning into a sprint.



"RUN!" Jenny screamed up at the young woman, tugging briskly on her garb as she began to run toward a nearby alley, the delicate fabric slightly tearing audibly from the sudden movement. Nia wasted no time in following the strange halfling, whose small legs hurried her as long as quickly as they could. "I hope you know how to use that." Jenny spoke up, her words barely escaping due to her heavy breathing, not even turning around to look up at her highness. Nia blinked as she glanced down to the blade in her hand, "I have no idea." She admitted to her would-be savior. As she did so, the two of them passed into the dark, damp alley, sounds of screams echoed through it from the streets.

It wasn't long before the alleyway became even darker however, as the shadows of a group of goblin assailants following their trail developed, sprinting in a blood-lusted craze toward them. "Here!" Jen spoke up as they came to an intersection, reaching up to pull Nia by the arm into a hard right. Jenny's eyes perked up as she noticed two more assailants at the other end of the alley, whom soon turned to notice them. Flicking her wrists up once more, the halfling readied her loaded crossbows, planting a clean shot into the both of them, enough to stop them from advancing at least. For a short moment, Jen believed them safe to continue on, allowing the weapons to hang on their mechanism. That was until a doorway into the alley suddenly opened, another goblin revealing himself with a wide smirk, his blade lunging downward toward them, held in a reverse grip. "Shi-!" Jenny began to call out, unprepared, time almost slowing to a stop as the realisation of her mortality came over her.

While the young heir was certainly a bit out of it, considering recent events, what occurred next took that to a whole new level. As soon as the alley door opened, Nia's left hand went straight to the handle of her blade, drawing it forth from it's scabbard in one swift motion. If one looked carefully, they would notice that Nia's bright green eyes were now slightly glowing- an effect from her blades enchantment, which simply gives the wielder skill, by "helping" him/her in combat. She brought her blade. Her left foot slid forward as her weapon moved out with it, her wrist rotating as she stabbed forward. Going through the goblin's chest as the goblin's eyes went wide. Nia brought her feet back together and pushed the limp goblin off of her blade, then, with a flourish- she flicked the blood off the blade before sheathing it. She blinked. "I... didn't know I could do that..." she said as she offered Jenny her hand, before pulling the halfling to her feet. "Jeez" Jenny could only mutter in response, glancing at the corpse for a short moment. If she was a betting girl, she would have put coin against the princess being able to do much of anything, thankfully it seemed she would have lost that wager. Looking behind them, the group of goblins were still hot on their trail, forcing the two to continue toward their escape.

"This left, *pant*, should get us there." Jenny stated in exhaustion as she and the princess approached a T in the alleyway, her arm weakly pointing toward her intended destination. *THOOOMP* A loud sound could be heard from the area, causing her arm to drop, a strong heated wind blowing throughout the alley from the resulting shock-wave. Nevertheless, they ran through, turning the corner to find the exit blocked by a large molten rock, surrounded by the rubble of nearby buildings. For a few seconds the halfling stopped in her tracks, face the picture of defeat, her ears perking up at the sound of the screeching goblins behind them. "I'm not about to give up to this filth." Jenny thought to herself, before kneeling down with a spark rock, lighting the rope of one of the large metal balls. "Let's go!" She spoke up again, running toward the heated rock, noticing an opening at what used to be a door to the nearby building. "and whatever you do, don't look back!" The halfling announced. A sizzling could be heard from the lighted fuse as she dropped the ball to the ground, the sound of their assailants quickly growing louder. The closer the two came, the more the heat of the boulder tried to push them back, the side of the building ahead slowly catching alight, but they had no choice, finally reaching the gap in the woodwork.

An explosion could be heard behind them, if only for a short moment, their ears soon ringing, the force of the blast pushing them off of their feet. Jen slowly pushed herself up, grabbing the princess in an attempt to put her back into focus, her mouth moving yet Nia could not hear a word of it. Around them small bits of debris were falling from the ceiling and walls, as if the entire building was soon to collapse. Rushing over to another side of the large room, the halfling began attempting to lift a sturdy wooden hatch, the rubble atop it holding it down, sweat dripping from ever pore of her body, her face scrunching in a mix of pain and desperation. Nia looked around with worry written all over her expression. Making the split second decision to help Jenny open the hatch. As the two of them managed to pry it open, they wasted no time getting into the shelter, the hatch slamming shut as it fell behind them.

Panting profusely, the halfling began to secure the several locks that would hold it down, the sound of scraping metal soon being drowned out by the noise of clawing, foot pattering, and falling debris from above. As Jenny secured the last bolt on the door, she fell to her backside, wiping soot, blood, and sweat from her brow. "Well... *cough* That was fun..." The halfling sarcastically gave a slight chuckle. The cellar itself was dark, the sound of moving gears and blowing steam audible even over the noise above, yet strangely, a small light shone from the corner of the room. Just past the light sat a man, sitting with his knees tucked against his chest, arms held over his head as he rocked in all kinds of directions, it seemed the keeper of the inn was not a fan of the chaos. Nia looked at the man "I know that feel."

Duke of Doge

 

[MagicPenguin]

As they ran down the street, Rae heard Armandio question the fox theme to all the inn names in the city. She remembered that George told her most Dalania locals would know the story behind the fox inns. Armandio, like Raimi herself, must originally be from out of town. The man kind of reminded her of one of her brothers, though that was due less to any physical resemblance or similarity in personality than to the fact that Raimi had been trying constantly not to think about her family or the farm since that eruption in the south started.

“There's a big, long story behind that. George the Innkeeper can tell you all about it if we manage to reach him without getting smooshed like bugs.” she shouted behind her.

When they finally reached The Lazy Fox, Raimi was enormously relieved to see it was still standing. Mostly, anyway. One side of the building had partially collapsed due to the impact of a gigantic, molten hot boulder that landed in the alleyway beside it. The roof seemed to be struggling under the weight of rocks and debris, but the place hadn't completely collapsed yet even though it seemed unstable. On the side of the inn opposite the collapsed wall and obstructed alley stood the stables where Raimi had left her horse and cart. To her relief, it was mostly unscathed except for a single, large hole in the roof of the stable where a smaller rock found its way in.

The rocks were falling much less frequently now; with any luck, they would cease completely within the hour. It was still risky to stand outside or in a ground level building as long as they were coming down. Even a small rock hitting someone unprotected in the noggin with enough force would be enough to do fatal, or near fatal, damage. If a large enough boulder fell, not even a man in full armor, like Decius, would survive if he were unlucky enough to be standing in the wrong spot at the wrong time. Until the rocks stopped completely, the safest place to be was underground, which made the inn's cellar the perfect location to lay low.

She guided her new companions inside at a brisk pace. The common room was a complete mess. The wall where the boulder had fallen was all but gone and the roof in that area had totally come down. Raimi didn't think the boulder alone was responsible for all of that destruction; the wall seemed to have sustained far more damage than the rock alone could have dealt and the debris from the fallen wall was faintly charred on the side that would have been facing outwardly. It was as if there had been a fire of some sort in the alley that contributed to its collapse. In the dust littering the floor, Rae could make out faint boot-prints and the area behind the bar had been ransacked. Goblins must have come through looking for victims. Finding none, they probably just took anything valuable that wasn't nailed to the floor and moved on.

Raimi walked up to the hatch in the floor that she remembered George gesturing toward that morning. It was surrounded by rocks and pieces of the roof from above, but the top of the hatch itself was conspicuously clear of rubble. She knelt down and grabbed the clasp to try and pull it open, but found it was locked. She started banging on it with her fist.

“George! It's Raimi! From this morning, remember? We need a place to hide until the rocks stop falling! Please! If you're down there, open up!”

No answer. The hatch had to have been locked from inside. Someone was down there, she was sure of it. She banged harder.

"C'mon, George! You can't leave us to die out here!" she said with exasperation.

She stood up and looked toward Decius and Armandio. "I know he's down there. If he doesn't open it soon, we might have to force it open somehow or else we might end up like that wall over there," she said, gesturing to the side of the building crushed beneath the hot boulder.

The_Omega_Effect TheCountryWarrior Randomfella Duke of Doge

 

[TheCountryWarrior]

Armandio spoke up from his post at the side of the inn doorway. He was on watch. For Goblins sure but he knew crises brought out the worst in people. He was just glad that it sometimes brought out the best. "Is it a normal lock, one accessible from both directions? I'd be able to pick that with my amazing skills. If it's not, we'll we're screwed."

Kruziik chuckled. Ambrose was one of the few people who could talk to him like that, mostly because it's so damn funny. "That makes sense. Should you ever need anything, find a Goblin. They'll be instructed to help you. Hasta la vista!" In a flash Ambrose was just outside his house.

augmentedspartan
MagicPenguin Duke of Doge
The_Omega_Effect Randomfella

 

[The_Omega_Effect]

Decius decided to move away from the door so as to give him space to try picking the lock, and gave him the benefit of the doubt. But he had a feeling that his attempt would fail to open the hatch. The people locking themselves in the city being ravaged did not make sense for him either as they would be killed either by the minions when trying to escape, or by hunger from locking themselves in for too long. "We should try relocate the princess and save her. I am sure that she is alive. If the mage wanted her dead he would have simply struck her down himself or made one of his soldiers strike her down. And he did have many opportunities to do so."

MagicPenguin TheCountryWarrior

 

[Duke of Doge]

Nia looked up to the banging on the door. Then after only a brief moment of hesitation, she drew her blade and was ready to strike at any time, then opened the hatch about an inch. "Look guys, I've had a rough day. So can you guys just try to not kill me if I let you in here?"
(Short post, but I'm having an off day)
augmentedspartan
MagicPenguin TheCountryWarrior
The_Omega_Effect Randomfella

 

[The_Omega_Effect]

"Really depends on who you are." Normally, he would have seized the opportunity and pulled the opened hatch door open just as soon as it was unlocked, but the delicate voice of the girl who had opened it discouraged him from doing so. Besides, something about it was familiar. "We are just trying to hide from those guys just like you so we would appreciate it if you shared the shelter."

TheCountryWarrior Duke of Doge MagicPenguin Randomfella

 

[Randomfella]

After sitting still for half a minute, the exhausted halfling walked down the steps, taking a swig of water from the flask below. "Eck." She grunted at the sudden stinging from her overly dehydrated throat being doused. Looking over toward the innkeeper, whom simply stared wordless in response, Jenny could only frown slightly. "Poor guy" She thought to herself, in the back of her mind wishing he had a backbone. Staring toward the other side of the room, she noticed her large crossbow sitting alone. Rushing toward it, she gave the weapon a great hug, she definitely didn't enjoy being without it, out there. Lighting some candles in the room to give more light, the halfling began to think of what she needed to do next. A girl could be heard above, a friend of George's supposedly, but more likely someone who had simply stayed at the inn, Jenny ignored it regardless.

Her mind then drifted to the bleeding on her upper wrists, as well as the significant pain developing on her back. Feeling around behind her, she could detect small bits of metal shrapnel had lodged themselves into her during the blast. Wrapping her wrists up into a cloth, Jen moved over toward the steps in order to find the young girl. "Hey princess could y..." Her words were cut off as she noticed the foolish royal brat messing with the locks, before actually opening the damned thing! In a rush, the halfling clambered up the steps, slamming the hatch back down, applying the strong bolt as she did so. A voice could be heard from above, which sounded like a large man. "Are you trying to get us both killed after all that!?" Jenny questioned in a hushed and agitated tone toward the princess, staring daggers toward her in frustration. "No room left." She responded to the voice above as clear as she could, yet the material between them made it far harder to understand. "I'd try down the road before the building falls on you." The halfling added, looking up toward the hatch entrance, before staring back at the princess. She only hoped the girl was smart enough, or rather lacked the overburdening conscience to help them.

Duke of Doge The_Omega_Effect MagicPenguin TheCountryWarrior

 

[Duke of Doge]

Nia immediately glared at Jenny "NO! I'M TRYING TO SAVE LIVES!" She countered with a raised tone. She pointed up at the hatch "You saw what happened out there! All of that is on me! I can't just stand here and let more of my people die know I could have saved them!" tears rapidly formed in her eyes. "It was- is my duty to protect and serve my people. To help. If I can't do that from the palace I'll do it from here." She was breathing heavily now "You can be heartless all you want. I'm still going to t-t-try and be a- " the weight of her own words seemed to trigger herself to finally realize all that had just happened. "I need to know I can do some good!" She turned and put her hand on strong bolt, looking at Jenny for her response.
Randomfella

 

[Randomfella]

"How about starting with ours then?" Jenny responded, crossing her arms in a *hmph*. Looking toward the young human, it was obvious what she was saying wasn't simply words, the halfling couldn't understand how the princess could blame herself for the actions of a madman. "Yeah, sure, there are enough supplies down here for all of them, and I'm sure they won't just cut us both down and take whatever they want as soon as they get the chance." The halfling replied sarcastically, arms flailing, eyes looking upward in disbelief at the girl's notion. "You want to do some good? How about staying alive so there's someone to claim your silly throne once we figure out a way to deal with this mess." She continued, her voice now lowered, and more serious, staring toward the princess with a finger pointing toward her chest.

Duke of Doge

 

[Duke of Doge]

Nia gave her sword a wiggle, glancing down to it with her eyes. "That's why I have this." she sighed, looking into Jenny's eyes. "Look. I know it's stupid, the way I always want to help people. But I can't help it. It's just who I am okay? I can't just turn my back on those in need!" there was a pause. "Also, we can't get through this with just us two, we need more allies, and you don't get allies by closing doors."
Randomfella

 

[MagicPenguin]

Raimi was quite surprised when the hatch opened and she caught a tiny glimpse of the princess's red hair and heard her frustrated voice. How had she made it so far on her own?

Her question was answered when she heard another frustrated voice pop up behind the princess. Soon after, the hatch slammed shut again and Raimi could make out the two muffled voices arguing below, though about what, she could not hear.

Another rock fell through the ceiling about two feet from Raimi's head.

I've had enough of this nonsense, Raimi thought, her exasperation and fear from earlier quickly giving over to anger. She and the others had survived too long already to let the princess and her friend shut them out now.

She casually walked over to the bar area the goblins had ransacked and started poking through it. Most of the bottles were fallen over and broken into a million pieces, but Rae was sure if she looked long enough she would find...

Aha! She found, buried toward the back of the shelf, a single undisturbed bottle of whisky. She walked back over to the hatch with bottle in hand.

"Anyone care for a drink?" She said to Armandio and Decius in a conspiratorial whisper.

Then, louder, she started speaking to the muffled voices in the cellar so they could hear her.

"We mean you no harm, but I can understand if ya don't believe us. I've had a really long day, though, and I dont feel like waitin' around for you two chattering magpies to finish your argument, so here's the deal. I have some alcohol here and I have some flint in my pocket. Alcohol, if you didn't know, is flammable. Your choice is simple. Open the hatch and we can all stay nice and safe down there together, or we'll burn this place to the ground right over top of you and move on for clearer pastures. You might be safe from goblins and rocks down there, but how will you fare against smoke inhalation in that tiny, cramped space? If that don't get ya, well, you can bet you won't be able to open that hatch with the charred ruins of the inn on top of it. You'll likely starve down there 'fore long."

"So what's it gonna be, folks? Open the hatch nice and slow like or die forgotten in a pesky house fire? Choose fast, 'cause I'm outta patience and I don't feel like waiting around too long."

Rae uncorked the whisky and took out her flint.

The_Omega_Effect TheCountryWarrior Randomfella Duke of Doge

 

[The_Omega_Effect]

"Your people? Your duty?" Decius had a clue as to who it might be. As he thought about it, he became more and more convinced. He was surprised how Raimi or Armandio did not recognise her voice. "Princess Nia?" he said under his breath. He then watched as Raimi blackmailed them with their life. If the girl inside was who he thought it was, then he could not stand by and let her die. Decius was not the best talker, but he had to try his best to convince those in the bunker to join them before they had to resort to force. "You will die whether we burn this place or not. Think about it. Once everything is done, this place will be occupied by savages, goblins, orcs and other dangerous people. Do you really think you have a better chance of escaping then? You will be forced to stay inside this bunker until you starve to death." He then walked closer to the hatch, trying to talk to the other woman who seemed to be in control of the bunker. "I do think that we have a decent shot at escaping the city right this instant. And that might be our only way out as staying in here will only garner more and more attention. Think about it. Once the obvious places have been looted, they will try harder and look in the less obvious places to find valuables. If one of them walks by a tavern, a place that is amongst the first places some of these people look, and they happened to see this hatch, we...you would be killed as more and more of them would be waiting for you up here."

The_Omega_Effect TheCountryWarrior Randomfella Duke of Doge MagicPenguin

 

[TheCountryWarrior]

Armandio, smile plastered on his face at the mention of alcohol, had halfway reached for the bottle of whiskey, the drink of forgetfulness, the aggravater and pacifier of tavern brawlers, the vice of the downtrodden, when she offered to burn the place down with it. His gaze grew angry, with a solid mix of terror. "What the hell! That's the Princess in there! You can't kill her, that's entirely counterproductive to my job. I was a guard in the royal palace, thus it would be my royal duty to inform you that action against the last Davion is punishable by death. Of you anyway. I can't kill the big guy."

MagicPenguin Duke of Doge The_Omega_Effect Randomfella

 

[Randomfella]

Jenny's ears perked up at the sound of the voice above, it seemed almost familiar... Ah, it was the girl at the inn from earlier, the halfling was happy to note she had basic understanding of flammability. Jen would have assumed it all gone, considering the mass looting occurring, and to be honest she could use some of the inn's cheap crap right now for her wounds, best to save her supply for the night. Perhaps it was true that they needed allies, but the halfling was convinced she could think of a better way, create... Something that would put an end to all this... She just had no idea what.

As the threats continued, a smirk came across Jenny's face, there was no way she could trust them now, their intentions seemingly made clear to the girl. "Ha!" She gave an overemphasised forced laugh in response up at the hatch. "The whole city is going to burn to ashes, and you think I'd go somewhere with no air flow?" The halfling continued to smile, before glancing to the princess with a wink, turning to indicate the various pipes, valves, and vents of the steam system. The man's voice spoke up, surprisingly he seemed more friendly. "No offence, princess." Jenny quietened her voice, turning her head to face the young woman. "But human's words can't be trusted." She noted, before moving back up to the hatch. "It's like your pyromaniac friend said, the hatch will be hidden under rubble." A smile was still plastered on her face, either the halfling knew she could get out of such a mess, or she had gone slightly made from the ongoing chaos, nevertheless, she clearly enjoyed the conversation. Finally she looked toward the princess, Jenny herself had no reason to trust the strangers outside, in fact she had every reason to believe their only intentions were to harm them both, the only one she was about to listen to was the young woman who she knew could hold a great deal of power in the future.

Duke of Doge The_Omega_Effect MagicPenguin TheCountryWarrior

 

[Duke of Doge]

"If you get me killed I'm going to haunt you from the afterlife for all of you remaining days. But right now. I'm on their side." she told Jenny then grabbing the halfling's arm. "Please trust me! I know someone in that group!" she pleaded. "look. You can go sit in the corner with all three of your crossbows where it can be your little safe space. I'm going to open this door, and if you stop me again I'm going to seriously loose my godamn mind okay!?" she spoke with a smile in Jenny's direction.
The_Omega_Effect MagicPenguin TheCountryWarrior Randomfella

 

[The_Omega_Effect]

"Like I said. If the smoke or the orcs don't kill you, the hunger will. Air flow will not feed you, neither will it stop any goblins and orcs who will be bashing away at this trapdoor. They will eventually get in, as smashing things relentlessly seems to be the only thing they can do right." He was running out of patience. He had tried his best to talk to these people without using any violence. If a conclusion of whether they were going to open up or stay closed was not decided upon, Decius might resort to more violent means.


The_Omega_Effect TheCountryWarrior Randomfella Duke of Doge MagicPenguin

 

[MagicPenguin]

Rae started pouring whisky over top of the hatch. Even she didn't know if she was bluffing or not. She supposed they'd all find out in about thirty seconds if the hatch wasn't open yet.

Randomfella TheCountryWarrior The_Omega_Effect Duke of Doge

 

[The_Omega_Effect]

Decius wondered what Raimi wanted to say when she walked up to the hatch. Maybe she knew a way to convince them. She did mention how she knew the owner. Perhaps she could use that to her advantage. But what she actually did surprised him. She started to pour the whisky on to the hatch. Before too much was poured, Decius grabbed the whisky bottle and tilted it upwards while it was still in her hand. And he kept it that way while giving her a somewhat stern look. "Be a little bit more patient please."


The_Omega_Effect TheCountryWarrior Randomfella Duke of Doge MagicPenguin

 

[Randomfella]

Jenny raised an eyebrow to the girl, in her mind she was a fool to trust anyone, even if she believed she had met them before. Regardless, the outsiders couldn't stay up there long, Jenny could already hear the structures starting to fail, as well small bits of ash beginning to drop, along with the foolish girl above pouring something onto the hatch. "Nice to see you're grateful." The halfling sighed sarcastically to the princess, before moving down the steps below. Taking her crossbow, she began to load it, before pointing the tip toward the entrance to the basement. "Hear that?" She simply asked, pointing to the hatch as she referred to the sound of liquid hitting it, which suddenly stopped. "If it's your 'royal decree' then go ahead, but from the sounds of it they aren't too eager to keep you alive." Jenny stated, her facial expression turning more deadpan, looking from the princess toward the entrance that separated them. "People get desperate... Old loyalties become void..." The halfling muttered, now sounding more saddened than her usual upbeat demeanour. In truth, she wasn't interested in the massive amounts of violence, despite how exciting it was. She wanted to believe these outsiders intended to help them, but logically along with the threats it just didn't add up. Regardless, she was ready for whatever foolish decision the princess wanted to make.

Duke of Doge

 

[TheCountryWarrior]

Armandio threw his hands up with exasperation. "Am I invisible? Are you deaf? Stop it, or I'll have to arrest you and execute you. I'll do it! Trust me I've done much worse, ask the President of Askary!" He shut up immediately. He... had... not meant to mention that. "Forget I said that." He looked to the large warrior man. "Thank you! Sheesh, of all people we're stuck with a goddanm pyromaniac! No burning of the inn!"

MagicPenguin Duke of Doge
The_Omega_Effect Randomfella

 

[MagicPenguin]

Raimi just stared flatly at Decius. "I ran out of patience about ten goblins ago, Bear."

She turned to Armandio. She didnt really care about the askary republic or whatever he was yammering about. She was scared and at the end of her rope. "I heard you just fine, pretty boy. It won't matter if you 'execute' me if they don't let us in. We'll die before too long out here anyway, either by rock to the head or a roving band of orcs and goblins. I'll take my chances that they'll open up if they feel forced. If they don't, we'll be in the same situation we'd be in if we just walked away in defeat anyway. At least this way there's a chance."

She knelt down and picked up a rock she could use to strike her flint against.

"I'm giving you one last chance down there, you two. One good spark is all it'll take for the whiskey to catch. I dont want to do it, believe me, but youre not giving me much of a choice here. It's our lives on the line. I'm counting down from ten and if that hatch isn't open when I reach one, I'm lighting this place up."

"Ten...nine...eight..."

The_Omega_Effect TheCountryWarrior Randomfella Duke of Doge

 

[augmentedspartan]

Ambrose didn't even have time to blink before his surroundings abruptly changed. It took his brain a second to process the sudden change of visuals, and when it did, his stomach disagreed with it and emptied itself.

"Son of a bitch," he managed to blurt out once he had finishing painting the road with gastric acid. Wiping his mouth he looked up to find half of his house missing and replaced with debris and broken rocks. "Son of a bitch!"

His house hadn't been the only victim, and as he looked around, he could see that almost half the buildings had sustained some damage. Some worse than his house even. Passing through was used to be the main door, he entered what used to be the living room. He could forget about his naps now. Going to his study he found that it had been relatively untouched by the falling rocks, except for his bookshelf, which had fallen and made a mess when the wall was knocked down. Ambrosed stared at them angrily, as if expecting them to apologize, before picking them up and piling them on the desk. If he planned on leaving the city, which he might do considering everything was pretty much fucked, he'll have to make sure to take them with him. First, he had to find Jania and talk about having the rest of the team move out with him. Bodies were easy to come by, or to make, but finding trusted employee was rather difficult, and he didn't have time to start from scratch.

Unlike Lewis, whose job required direct interaction with costumers, Jania liked to keep a low profile and preferred to blend in with the non criminal part of the city. This meant that she avoided The Den for the most part, and frequented more mundane establishments. One such place was The Lazy Fox, which she commonly went to because it was the closest one to her home and, in her words, 'couldn't be assed to look for any other place'. Lazy with her free time, but hard working when it came to her job. Ambrose respected that.

Jania hadn't bothered to go to the festival, and since The Lazy Fox was closer than her home, he decided that would be his first stop. They didn't have any rules for when shit hit the fan other than plan things depending the situation. He wouldn't have been so careless with things like that in the past, but old age had started to take its toll on him mentally a while ago. Making his way to the inn, a feat done much easier now that there were no more falling rocks, he noticed it too had taken its fair share of damage. He hoped she hadn't been pinned under the debris, it would make this whole process that much more inconvenient. Entering he, instead, saw a group of people either making a sacrifice to the gods of alcohol, or just being straight up shit-faced themselves.

"The fuck is going on?"

TheCountryWarrior Duke of Doge Randomfella MagicPenguin The_Omega_Effect