- Location
- Pindorama
Source for that?
A Simple Transaction I
- Thread starter Rihaku
- Start date
- Original
LordOfMurder
Bhaal
- Location
- Australia
If theres a more conclusive quote I missed then fair enough but from what I remember his answer to cries of the mystery box being empty was basically "or is it!?".
Zampano
🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈
- Location
- Simping for DSB
Academically, its somewhat interesting that a vote (decision by Hunger) not to pursue the Gisena relationship will depress engagement by the Gisena Gang, resulting in even fewer Gisena votes...
This implies a virtuous cycle that keeps Rihaku-Protagonists trending in a coherent direction, long term, subject to short-term volatility.
This implies a virtuous cycle that keeps Rihaku-Protagonists trending in a coherent direction, long term, subject to short-term volatility.
You might be right, I can't remember exactly what he said so it's hard to search it, it was slightly ambiguous though.
Edit: This is what I was remembering.
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Rihaku
The Internet
Update in ~15, vote update will be separate and later.
While on their way back they were ambushed by a group of Knights, unusually organized and lead by an massive specimen in a tabard of green. Though badly weakened from the prior battle, Hunger and Gisena dispatched them without much fuss, the green knight fleeing as his troops disintegrated around him.
"He fears the Nullity," Hunger observed.
"A wise one," Gisena said, dramatically blowing air off her palm. "Perhaps that's why he's in charge!"
Hunger grunted. It rankled to let an enemy go, but he was in no fit state for pursuit. "He wasn't in charge, not directly. The way they responded to him reminded me of rabble around an agitator."
He was very familiar with that dynamic, having been the agitator more often than not. And the rabble... almost inevitably overrun by the Tyrant's forces after their initial momentum dissolved. The position of resistance leader was a grand and inspiring thing in dreams. Reality was not so kind.
He cleared his throat. "He could be assembling reinforcements. Let's go, quickly."
"It'd be quicker if my noble mount weren't indisposed..." Gisena pouted. "Well, at least I don't have to do this in heels. You'd be shocked at some of the outfits my friends wore to the battlefield!"
While on their way back they were ambushed by a group of Knights, unusually organized and lead by an massive specimen in a tabard of green. Though badly weakened from the prior battle, Hunger and Gisena dispatched them without much fuss, the green knight fleeing as his troops disintegrated around him.
"He fears the Nullity," Hunger observed.
"A wise one," Gisena said, dramatically blowing air off her palm. "Perhaps that's why he's in charge!"
Hunger grunted. It rankled to let an enemy go, but he was in no fit state for pursuit. "He wasn't in charge, not directly. The way they responded to him reminded me of rabble around an agitator."
He was very familiar with that dynamic, having been the agitator more often than not. And the rabble... almost inevitably overrun by the Tyrant's forces after their initial momentum dissolved. The position of resistance leader was a grand and inspiring thing in dreams. Reality was not so kind.
He cleared his throat. "He could be assembling reinforcements. Let's go, quickly."
"It'd be quicker if my noble mount weren't indisposed..." Gisena pouted. "Well, at least I don't have to do this in heels. You'd be shocked at some of the outfits my friends wore to the battlefield!"
LordOfMurder
Bhaal
- Location
- Australia
Oh no I can't tell what won! But nice to see I was at least right about there being immediate reinforcements. Maybe this means Saint won afterall if we dispatched them without issue?
Talace
It must be raining somewhere else!
Aren't the Knights from the Outer Temple? Unless they're cooperating with the Outriders, which would be pretty scary...
Lealope
Not yet invincible
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Oh god. Shit, now that's sad. I'm surprised Hunger is as functional as he is knowing that he ended up getting a whole lot of people killed on his journey. I'm assuming this was earlier on, before he realised how hopeless the fight would be before he got on the level.
LordOfMurder
Bhaal
- Location
- Australia
Hard to say. I think the Knights are at least implied to be subordinate to the inner residents so maybe?
Ah Gisena's banter has soothed my salty heart and I have regained the strength to continue lobbying for her regardless of the votes outcome!
- Location
- Omniverse #1345
@Orm Embar: I just checked and noticed you missed my Cutting Through reaction. A Simple Transaction I Original
Throne and Alter
Rihaku
The Internet
Throne and Alter
While on their way back they were ambushed by a group of Knights, unusually organized and lead by an massive specimen in a tabard of green. Though badly weakened from the prior battle, Hunger and Gisena dispatched them without much fuss, the green knight fleeing as his troops disintegrated around him.
"He fears the Nullity," Hunger observed.
"A wise one," Gisena said, dramatically blowing air off her palm. "Perhaps that's why he's in charge!"
Hunger grunted. It rankled to let an enemy go, but he was in no fit state for pursuit. "He wasn't in charge, not directly. The way they responded to him reminded me of rabble around an agitator."
He was very familiar with that dynamic, having been the agitator more often than not. And the rabble... almost inevitably overrun by the Tyrant's forces after their initial momentum dissolved. The position of resistance leader was a grand and inspiring thing in dreams. Reality was not so kind.
He cleared his throat. "He could be assembling reinforcements. Let's go, quickly."
"It'd be quicker if my noble mount weren't indisposed..." Gisena pouted. "Well, at least I don't have to do this in heels. You'd be shocked at some of the outfits my friends wore to the battlefield!"
"Would I now?"
"Well, they had enough findross to make the outfits practical. It was their aesthetic sense that was lacking..." She shook her head sadly, eyes distant.
"Fashion being one's utmost priority on the battlefield."
"Exactly!" Gisena rubbed his semi-corporeal shoulder. "You get it."
They made good time, and arrived at the antechamber without further interception. Strewn around its opening were a series of corpses, adventurer bodies freshly killed not more than a few hours ago.
"There's an effect," Gisena said, reaching out one palm. "A perimeter around the area where the antechamber meets the grass."
He raised his ring and focused on the desire to leave. "And now?"
She nodded. "It's dissipating. I guess the Temple doesn't like it when the unqualified try to use this place. Looks like it would even keep out Temple denizens as well! Such a convenient ring, giving you a free pass."
"Convenient," he repeated, as they walked towards the chamber. "...Wait. I'll give them a proper burial first."
"Alright." She sent a wave of Nullity over the bodies.
"Just in case!"
Even in his diminished condition, he was more than capable of moving those few bodies to an appropriate spot. Away from the entrance, atop a secluded hill ringed with trees, he dug their graves in seconds and used a large rock as headstone. It was almost alienating, this simple reminder of the strength he'd gained. The act of digging a grave was intended to be the somber work of minutes, perhaps hours. And yet his charted trajectory would only carry him further from the human condition. It was a small price to pay, in many ways a trivial one. And yet not one that ought go unremarked-upon.
"Buried by a ghost," Gisena observed, tapping her chin. "How ironic for them."
"And slain by one too, if they fell while fleeing the ghostly knights."
Gisena took his arm. He gave the opening a long look before stepping across the threshold. Of course, it let them through. Casting the dead from his mind, he walked forward.
A murderous perimeter. As if this place weren't suspicious enough. What defensive measures existed hidden around the Temple entrance? If Gisena didn't detect them, he wouldn't know, because the ring served as the pass for all of them. Why would the Temple of a rival ring be so accommodating to his own?
Was that the respect accorded to a worthy opponent, no matter how bitter their feud? Optimistic, but he genuinely felt that might be the answer. He himself would not tolerate the eternal torment of the Imprisoned Ring, be those opposed or not. Perhaps it was the purpose of the Rings to fight, to contest for primacy, and to impede that contest was antithetical to their nature.
They encountered no further oddities on the way back.
Letrizia emerged from Verschlengorge, waving happily as they came into view.
"You're always so badly hurt when you come back," she said, slightly glum.
"We've got to keep you safe from the blue swordsman. It's not like we like you or anything, stupid."
"A-ah! Yeah..."
"I'm kidding. My heedless thirst for more power is the only reason for these injuries. None of the blame is yours, understood?" He gently placed his palm on her head.
"Hey! I'm not a kid, okay? At least s-some of the blame is mine. For bringing the blue swordsman down on us, if nothing else. And I get that there's no point beating myself up over it, because that won't help matters at all. I just wish... there was something I could do."
She looked up at Verschlengorge. "I'm an Armament pilot. We're not used to being helpless."
"Far from it. We'll be relying on you to introduce us to your civilization. I expect the favor to be paid back with interest."
"Of course!" She said determinedly. "I'll make sure you and Miss Gisena get whatever you need!"
"Good. Enough shop talk, let's eat."
Dinner was ration bars and reconstituted soup, surprisingly delicious for so ordinary a meal. Technological advance could result in the most unusual conveniences. Letrizia sighed happily upon digging into her repast, while Hunger ate slowly and steadily. His thoughts wandered, mind unfocused after the wearying events of the day. Could the Ring of Blood be used to improve the taste of food?
It seemed likely. But how to do it? Invigorate the livestock before it was butchered? Or could one augment the taste buds indirectly? That seemed like a task beneath the dignity of the ring, but if it made Letrizia feel better...
Well. Safest to test on his self first. Something to do when he had both idle time and his body of flesh again.
As they finished, he addressed Letrizia again. "So. The Human Sphere."
"Hm? Yeah, what about it?"
"We've been traveling together all this time but haven't heard anything further about it. You mentioned three polities, and that your nation was one of the smaller ones. Is it possible that the blue swordsman's patron is connected to a rival nation?"
"Oh, storytime!" Gisena sat up. "Yes, tell us more! What kind of society will welcome us when we deliver their cute duchess back safe and sound?"
"A-ah! Well, I suppose you deserve to know. Right now the Human Sphere is at peace, but tensions have been growing between all three nations."
She cleared her throat. "Ahem. The Sphere is divided between the Empire (that's my country), the Republic, and the Association. We control about twenty-seven hundred inhabited systems, while the Association controls seven hundred and the Republic holds the remaining eight thousand. However, we hold nearly as many Armaments as the Republic does, while the Association is far behind. There are a whole bunch of geopolitical tensions and complicated issues..."
She sighed. "It's depressing to think about. That's part of why I didn't want to bring it up. Being a pilot, fighting for survival, is so simple. My family - House Artriez - has always held Verschlengorge. Traditionally we've been its pilots as well, but my father had a weak constitution that resisted intervention. Even mages extracted from the Voyaging Realm weren't able to help him. They concluded it was some form of Astral doom and there was a huge power struggle over the Armament. The Emperor wanted to seize the Armament - temporarily - and give it to someone else, while most of the nobility vigorously resisted him, afraid it would set a precedent. So... to cut the knot, I trained to pilot from a young age. There are other pilots my age and younger, but they all started afterwards. It's... not a big deal, but there's always been a distance between us, especially since I've been the most exposed to its Decimation." She shook her head, hair flying wildly about her shoulders.
"Aw," Gisena gave her a hug. "Come here, you. Regardless of all that you turned out to be a wonderful and respectable young woman!"
"Thanks, Miss Gisena." Letrizia returned the hug tightly.
"Anyway, a couple of weeks ago Verschlengorge was attacked by high-level Astral Beasts while undergoing maintenance, including a Sovereign-class, the strongest that can manifest physically. Of course I managed to beat them, but the Sovereign hurled me through a displacement rift before it died. The fact that none of the Armaments stationed in the Voyaging showed up at any point to support me is somewhat suspicious... it's possible the whole thing may have been a Republic plot of sorts. They're always looking to gain any kind of edge on the Empire, and they don't have any scruples about how it's done. After all we'd been through, I didn't think my fellow pilots would have it in them to do something like that... I guess they were just Republic scum after all," she finished, somewhat forlorn.
"Well. Let's reserve judgement until we know more." He laid a hand on her shoulder. "You can rest assured that your new comrades are both more reliable, and far prettier, than any such pilots, especially if they're Republic scum."
Letrizia giggled. "Thanks. I've always wanted to have a supernaturally handsome bodyguard. Now I just need a pony and I'm all set!"
"A duchess of an interstellar Empire can't get a pony?"
"My father said it was frivolous... I agreed."
---
Vote update later tonight.
While on their way back they were ambushed by a group of Knights, unusually organized and lead by an massive specimen in a tabard of green. Though badly weakened from the prior battle, Hunger and Gisena dispatched them without much fuss, the green knight fleeing as his troops disintegrated around him.
"He fears the Nullity," Hunger observed.
"A wise one," Gisena said, dramatically blowing air off her palm. "Perhaps that's why he's in charge!"
Hunger grunted. It rankled to let an enemy go, but he was in no fit state for pursuit. "He wasn't in charge, not directly. The way they responded to him reminded me of rabble around an agitator."
He was very familiar with that dynamic, having been the agitator more often than not. And the rabble... almost inevitably overrun by the Tyrant's forces after their initial momentum dissolved. The position of resistance leader was a grand and inspiring thing in dreams. Reality was not so kind.
He cleared his throat. "He could be assembling reinforcements. Let's go, quickly."
"It'd be quicker if my noble mount weren't indisposed..." Gisena pouted. "Well, at least I don't have to do this in heels. You'd be shocked at some of the outfits my friends wore to the battlefield!"
"Would I now?"
"Well, they had enough findross to make the outfits practical. It was their aesthetic sense that was lacking..." She shook her head sadly, eyes distant.
"Fashion being one's utmost priority on the battlefield."
"Exactly!" Gisena rubbed his semi-corporeal shoulder. "You get it."
They made good time, and arrived at the antechamber without further interception. Strewn around its opening were a series of corpses, adventurer bodies freshly killed not more than a few hours ago.
"There's an effect," Gisena said, reaching out one palm. "A perimeter around the area where the antechamber meets the grass."
He raised his ring and focused on the desire to leave. "And now?"
She nodded. "It's dissipating. I guess the Temple doesn't like it when the unqualified try to use this place. Looks like it would even keep out Temple denizens as well! Such a convenient ring, giving you a free pass."
"Convenient," he repeated, as they walked towards the chamber. "...Wait. I'll give them a proper burial first."
"Alright." She sent a wave of Nullity over the bodies.
"Just in case!"
Even in his diminished condition, he was more than capable of moving those few bodies to an appropriate spot. Away from the entrance, atop a secluded hill ringed with trees, he dug their graves in seconds and used a large rock as headstone. It was almost alienating, this simple reminder of the strength he'd gained. The act of digging a grave was intended to be the somber work of minutes, perhaps hours. And yet his charted trajectory would only carry him further from the human condition. It was a small price to pay, in many ways a trivial one. And yet not one that ought go unremarked-upon.
"Buried by a ghost," Gisena observed, tapping her chin. "How ironic for them."
"And slain by one too, if they fell while fleeing the ghostly knights."
Gisena took his arm. He gave the opening a long look before stepping across the threshold. Of course, it let them through. Casting the dead from his mind, he walked forward.
A murderous perimeter. As if this place weren't suspicious enough. What defensive measures existed hidden around the Temple entrance? If Gisena didn't detect them, he wouldn't know, because the ring served as the pass for all of them. Why would the Temple of a rival ring be so accommodating to his own?
Was that the respect accorded to a worthy opponent, no matter how bitter their feud? Optimistic, but he genuinely felt that might be the answer. He himself would not tolerate the eternal torment of the Imprisoned Ring, be those opposed or not. Perhaps it was the purpose of the Rings to fight, to contest for primacy, and to impede that contest was antithetical to their nature.
They encountered no further oddities on the way back.
Letrizia emerged from Verschlengorge, waving happily as they came into view.
"You're always so badly hurt when you come back," she said, slightly glum.
"We've got to keep you safe from the blue swordsman. It's not like we like you or anything, stupid."
"A-ah! Yeah..."
"I'm kidding. My heedless thirst for more power is the only reason for these injuries. None of the blame is yours, understood?" He gently placed his palm on her head.
"Hey! I'm not a kid, okay? At least s-some of the blame is mine. For bringing the blue swordsman down on us, if nothing else. And I get that there's no point beating myself up over it, because that won't help matters at all. I just wish... there was something I could do."
She looked up at Verschlengorge. "I'm an Armament pilot. We're not used to being helpless."
"Far from it. We'll be relying on you to introduce us to your civilization. I expect the favor to be paid back with interest."
"Of course!" She said determinedly. "I'll make sure you and Miss Gisena get whatever you need!"
"Good. Enough shop talk, let's eat."
Dinner was ration bars and reconstituted soup, surprisingly delicious for so ordinary a meal. Technological advance could result in the most unusual conveniences. Letrizia sighed happily upon digging into her repast, while Hunger ate slowly and steadily. His thoughts wandered, mind unfocused after the wearying events of the day. Could the Ring of Blood be used to improve the taste of food?
It seemed likely. But how to do it? Invigorate the livestock before it was butchered? Or could one augment the taste buds indirectly? That seemed like a task beneath the dignity of the ring, but if it made Letrizia feel better...
Well. Safest to test on his self first. Something to do when he had both idle time and his body of flesh again.
As they finished, he addressed Letrizia again. "So. The Human Sphere."
"Hm? Yeah, what about it?"
"We've been traveling together all this time but haven't heard anything further about it. You mentioned three polities, and that your nation was one of the smaller ones. Is it possible that the blue swordsman's patron is connected to a rival nation?"
"Oh, storytime!" Gisena sat up. "Yes, tell us more! What kind of society will welcome us when we deliver their cute duchess back safe and sound?"
"A-ah! Well, I suppose you deserve to know. Right now the Human Sphere is at peace, but tensions have been growing between all three nations."
She cleared her throat. "Ahem. The Sphere is divided between the Empire (that's my country), the Republic, and the Association. We control about twenty-seven hundred inhabited systems, while the Association controls seven hundred and the Republic holds the remaining eight thousand. However, we hold nearly as many Armaments as the Republic does, while the Association is far behind. There are a whole bunch of geopolitical tensions and complicated issues..."
She sighed. "It's depressing to think about. That's part of why I didn't want to bring it up. Being a pilot, fighting for survival, is so simple. My family - House Artriez - has always held Verschlengorge. Traditionally we've been its pilots as well, but my father had a weak constitution that resisted intervention. Even mages extracted from the Voyaging Realm weren't able to help him. They concluded it was some form of Astral doom and there was a huge power struggle over the Armament. The Emperor wanted to seize the Armament - temporarily - and give it to someone else, while most of the nobility vigorously resisted him, afraid it would set a precedent. So... to cut the knot, I trained to pilot from a young age. There are other pilots my age and younger, but they all started afterwards. It's... not a big deal, but there's always been a distance between us, especially since I've been the most exposed to its Decimation." She shook her head, hair flying wildly about her shoulders.
"Aw," Gisena gave her a hug. "Come here, you. Regardless of all that you turned out to be a wonderful and respectable young woman!"
"Thanks, Miss Gisena." Letrizia returned the hug tightly.
"Anyway, a couple of weeks ago Verschlengorge was attacked by high-level Astral Beasts while undergoing maintenance, including a Sovereign-class, the strongest that can manifest physically. Of course I managed to beat them, but the Sovereign hurled me through a displacement rift before it died. The fact that none of the Armaments stationed in the Voyaging showed up at any point to support me is somewhat suspicious... it's possible the whole thing may have been a Republic plot of sorts. They're always looking to gain any kind of edge on the Empire, and they don't have any scruples about how it's done. After all we'd been through, I didn't think my fellow pilots would have it in them to do something like that... I guess they were just Republic scum after all," she finished, somewhat forlorn.
"Well. Let's reserve judgement until we know more." He laid a hand on her shoulder. "You can rest assured that your new comrades are both more reliable, and far prettier, than any such pilots, especially if they're Republic scum."
Letrizia giggled. "Thanks. I've always wanted to have a supernaturally handsome bodyguard. Now I just need a pony and I'm all set!"
"A duchess of an interstellar Empire can't get a pony?"
"My father said it was frivolous... I agreed."
---
Vote update later tonight.
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Talace
It must be raining somewhere else!
Huh, we've gone from a NGE analogue to something more Star Wars-esque. I'm diggin it.
This is rather interesting--perhaps some insight into the nature of the Ruling Ring?
This is rather interesting--perhaps some insight into the nature of the Ruling Ring?
- Location
- Pindorama
- Location
- Pindorama
Letrizia had no childhood confirmed, as well. I suppose it was kind of obvious given our dynamic, but the urge to protecc still rises.
LordOfMurder
Bhaal
- Location
- Australia
This seems pretty suspicious. Maybe the people controlling the ring are trying to lure more ringbearers in to seize their rings in turn?
So they're currently at peace and tensions are rising and the republic might be trying to whittle down Armament's in preparations for war. I wonder how the association survives despite being so much weaker than the other two?
If Zea has been exposed to the decimation from the young age her life expectancy at this point must be terrible.
Interesting to note that apparently she interacted with pilots from the rival polities at least enough to have a good opinion of them previously.
Obviously we should get her a pony at some point.
I still have no idea which build won though.
It seems likely we didn't kill the merchants then, it could be some other reason but they seem the most likely vector for a story about a guy who never showed up in the encampment being around this area. With an entrance for other adventurer's to try to make use off.
Zampano
🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈
- Location
- Simping for DSB
I think it should be observed that not all our enemies are necessarily aligned. We might find that the knights are not happy allies of the Moon Civilization if we manage even a single diplomacy check against...anyone.
LordOfMurder
Bhaal
- Location
- Australia
Patreon when? I want to throw money at Rihaku.
You could say he got them killed, but that's taking some ownership away from them I think. It might be they were just dupes that got caught up in the moment due to Rank differences making Huger very convincing and successfully bamboozling them, but we could also more charitably say they knew the odds were long and decided it was worth it anyway.
I think the likely scenario is a pyramid with the inners on top, applying varying degrees of carrot and stick to the other inhabitants through Moon power.
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- Location
- Omniverse #1345
Well, I suppose we picked the Magus so this is only appropriate. I can only hope whatever the ritual is it isn't going to blow up in our face. Somehow I doubt Apocryphal is that kind.
Something of a risk, but a calculated one. And one that made fighting the Magus possible, given without nullity we would have been utterly crushed without pity or mercy. Also good for our stated goal of finding people, given Hunger risks his Doom every time he meets someone new.
Versch definitely seems evil looking, the more times it gets described the more that gets reinforced. I wonder what that means? Versch certainly doesn't seem particularly malevolent... but then, maybe there is a reason the Armaments draw Astral Beasts to them? An attempt to feed their curses, a weaker version of apocryphal, or just the power?
...Hunger has totally adopted her, hasn't he? Very amusing. Hopefully she continues to be okay now that Versch is starting to be meaningfully repaired, even if he is still far, far reduced from his apex. What even caused that to happen, anyway? It doesn't seem like the kind of thing that could happen without serious time and power being devoted to hurting the armament. And that doesn't seem like something Letrizia would allow, so how did it happen?
...We may have given Hunger one hell of a fishing obsession. I will never understand that vote or the fallout of it. Oh well, not the worst hobby we could have foisted onto him. Not by far.
Monsters, monsters, and more monsters. No people yet, but we know they are there and it is time to go looking! For within the Temple is neutral ground, compared to actually going to their town.
Indeed, indeed. And always a good plan for Hunger to do as little interacting with unknown people as possible. Once you get to know each other the Doom isn't such a big problem, but before then? Oh boy.
None of the accursed's curses are easy to deal with. At least, none of the ones he bothers to foist off on former mortals, anyway. He probably has some mild one too like a spot on his back that always itches that he can never quite reach. But that's simply too evil to foist off on someone else. Too evil indeed.
But terms Hunger doesn't like shouldn't make it impossible for him to negotiate. He is still capable of making deals.
Hunger hunger hunger... you aren't fooling her at all. You might actually win a round of social combat if you were completely honest! She wouldn't see it coming and can be taken off guard!
See what I mean? Not fooled in the slightest.
Gisena... do you really have to prod Hunger at every opportunity? The trick is to let some pass so they think you are getting sloppy, then launch a devastating blow when they try to counter attack!
One ring calls to another. It's a good thing she was able to nullify it from herself, that would have been... bad. Especially given how potent the Call seems to be to most people, who don't have an artifact to filter it through. Eventually she will be able to remove it completely, if we focus on leveling her up. Though there's little point to that now, given Hunger has decided to answer.
Amazing that monsters which gave us such trouble earlier are now just fodder Hunger can sweep aside without risk or serious effort. The power of Progression is immense, even if we are falling a bit behind.
Yep, our power is a wonderful thing. We grow so very much so very quickly. Perhaps a bit too quickly, though. We stop gaining from enemies very quickly.
As always Gisena instantly catches on to what it means and Hunger continues to lose to her. Damn it Hunger.
Round whatever-the-hell to Gisena. Again. Hunger you are never going to win these verbal spars.
Running away is not an appropriate means by which to win verbal combat, Hunger. No matter how much it might seem beneficial.
Hunger... please man, please. You're embarrassing us all here.
An army of knights... I'm pretty sure we didn't pick the Legion yet we ran into an army and casually dispersed it anyway. Hunger has seriously grown.
Hunger grows at an insane rate, but this prompts him to take risks at an insane rate. We need to manage that, somehow. I too wonder about the realm and what is really going on here. Clearly they had a purpose in mind for creating it, but what?
I wonder what all the parallels mean.
He engaged in idly thinking about philosophy while destroying knights by the dozen. Hunger, I think you may have something of a problem.
Thank you, Gisena. Hunger would never have caught that in time without you.
Unfortunately the attempt to catch the enemy off guard failed, as he had significant defense. It is very lucky we have a powerful Nullity user with us. Without her we wouldn't stand much of a chance here.
He's powerful and confident enough all of his abilities being nullified only annoys him, rather than feeling like a true threat. This is someone seriously beyond our level. Fortunately he does not have a counter to Nullity. Not yet, anyway.
So we are in the ritual ground, and this mage is cleaning up the weaker adventurers it draw in before they become a real nuisance of themselves. Makes sense, though he's underestimating us if he puts us in the same calibre as them... even if we are weaker now our growth is incredible.
Even a shield he put up presumably precisely to stop her was insufficient to stop Gisena's Nullity. We probably shouldn't underestimate her ourselves.
Good, best not to have him flee completely and prepare for Nullity. That may lead to... complications.
Teleportation + invisibility is a powerful combo. Less so against a foe that knows you are still around and can fling attacks in every direction... while your defenses are still compromised as a result of the Tide of Nullity.
The Evening Sky tries so hard, but the mage is so much stronger than it. So much stronger indeed.
And yet again am I thankful we have her with us here. We would have been crushed at least 4 times so far without her.
The mage is starting to pull out his strongest powers, here. A word like that is... a significant investment of strength. But for all that power it was not sufficient to kill Hunger outright. And that makes it a mistake.
And now the mage starts to get enough time to seriously begin calling on spells. This is going to get very, very rough.
...Or not. I suppose against a magic user a Sea of Nullity is always a valid answer unless they outclass you by so much they can brush it aside. For all Hunger is weakened by the Sea a mage is left nearly defenseless.
Not entirely, though. A knife, and he clearly knows how to use it given his attempts. But without his magic and without his defenses he is seriously outmatched.
Gisena does not yet have sufficient power to keep the sea going for more than a few moments. Though moments were sufficient this time, next time... maybe we need to get her something nice, t keep up.
Ah, magic dagger. Makes sense. Best not to give him the time to actually use it for anything.
Victory. At surprisingly little cost - Gisena is exhausted but that's nothing compared to what might have been.
Never would have happened, Hunger. That man would have died before he talked, and he wasn't something we were able to contain anyway.
See, Gisena agrees with me!
Still sparring with Gisena I see, Hunger. Glad you're in good spirits, at least.
Gisena, on the other hand, overdid it a bit.
Indeed. Best not to risk staying here longer than needed. The mage was already enough of a risk, I think.
Best to never use Rage. Ever.
And isn't that a terrifying thought?
1352 words.