[X] Work with Shen on the armor.
[X] Teaching Cattleya-
[X] Beast-magic.​
 
Yessss! Second pinkette get! Collect them all!

No, really, I wanted that ever since we healed her, the dynamics between the sisters was too amusing to pass. We should spec Louise in combat/magery, and Cattleya in R&D/witchcraft, she is a good Vahlen-the-2nd material.
 
Yessss! Second pinkette get! Collect them all!

No, really, I wanted that ever since we healed her, the dynamics between the sisters was too amusing to pass. We should spec Louise in combat/magery, and Cattleya in R&D/witchcraft, she is a good Vahlen-the-2nd material.
And to think, you were one timeskip away from losing her forever. Almost makes you wonder about the third pinkette, doesn't it?
 
What would she do, again? One does not abandon our group unless they are dead. I mean, we tracked Louise through a dimensional rift.

The third pinkette is... their mom, for lack of anyone else? But I somehow doubt she needs Cynric's guidance. Or is it Eleonore? She wasn't all too prominent in the story, but I suppose if it is to spite Karin by taking away all her daughters Cynric could find some time for her too... :whistle:
 
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[X] Work with Shen on the armor.
[X] Teaching Cattleya-
[X] Beast-magic.

Lets not summon the time dragon. Even referentialy.​
 
[x] Crafting: Given your current state, and the state of your dragon summon, and the reputation X-Com has --- you should really craft some healing and regeneration items.

[x] Teaching Cattleya
-[x] Beast-magic.
 
Armor And Beast Magic
After a night of restless sleep filled with the memories of your life before mother died, you awaken in a rather foul mood. Obviously Cattleya's story about her family are the cause, though your injury certainly didn't help either. Your head aches and you can easily see the fatigue on your face in the mirror as you get ready for the day. At least you now have enough magicka to finish healing your scabbed-over wound, though your spell does nothing to reduce the slight feverish feeling you notice once the pain is gone. Leaving your room, you don't see Cattleya in the cafeteria, but several of the local healers spend the meal asking about alchemical theory.

Despite your expectations, neither Flagg or the guards you pass have mentioned last night's incident... Well, the Commander did send you a strongly worded request to notify base personnel before doing so again, but that's it. Perhaps assassinating one of the alien leaders put him in a good mood or maybe you've simply worn him down with the you and the Vallieres' antics. Either way, you aren't going to go demand that he complain to you even if you were willing to deal with the toxic headache relievers that the locals use. Deciding that preventative measures should be taken to avoid such injuries in the future, you arrive in the foundry to find Raymond looking over a steel recreation of your combined armor design.


The armor is suspended on a set of cables to support it's weight while someone inside tests it's range of motion. Standing half again as tall as you, the suit would be required to duck to enter most rooms and the alien alloy version will likely weigh enough to crush weaker building materials under it's steps. Considering the sheer strength and durability increase it should provide, it seems a fair trade... not that you couldn't easily find a way around such problems anyway.

"Ah, welcome back." Shen greets you enthusiastically. "As you can see, we've managed to hammer out the details on the design. It's rather spectacular to see such a blending of techniques like this, I'd never imagined I'd one day make a steam powered exoskeleton."

Despite your less than optimal condition, you laugh along with him at the statement. Even if you couldn't consider yourself a master at the local's various technological methods, you do know how out-dated they consider steam power. "Well, I doubt you could have predicted my arrival. Anyhow, I assume you wish to move on to crafting the final product, yes?"

He heartily agrees and the two of you are soon flanked by several wary looking guards. "When it appears, shoot it until it stops moving." You order the guards as you reach out into Oblivion and snatch up your desired target. The creature appears in the customary swirl of purple fire; olive toned skin adorns it's human appearing upper body, antlers stretch out from it's bald head, and equine legs stumble as you had apparently conjured it mid-stride. Considering the Hernes' limited intelligence, you don't care to bother 'negotiating' with the cloven hoofed daedra, trusting Hircine's minions nature as hunters to ensure their loyalty upon binding with the armor.

Flesh tears apart under a hail of lead, the security personnel gunning the hunter down before it can reorient itself to the sudden shift in environment. When the gunfire dies down, you repeat the process another dozen times. The corpses pile up on the floor as you use up all of your magicka summoning unbound Herne after unbound Herne. After the men disperse, you set about the grisly task of cutting out each and every heart from your victims. In the end you hand a sack of thirteen hearts to Raymond, who looks a bit disgusted by the ichor dripping onto the floor.

"W-well... this is certainly... morbid." He eventually says as the two of you head into the smelting chamber.

You shrug and watch the complex machinery as it cuts, sorts, and begins to melt down chunks of purple and silver metal. Large arcs of electricity swiftly reduce the alien materials to incandescent soup and mechanical arms stir the fluid as it is funneled into dozens of molds. "You get used to it." You respond absently, much more interested in the process before you than the conversation. Of course, you can't simply watch the marvel that would make Eorlund Gray-mane weep in jealousy. "Before the metal is separated into various pieces, you must divide it up into the amount used per suit and toss in one heart each. That should give the daedra something to cling to rather than wait to reform. Once they are trapped in the armor, indulging them in the occasional hunt should ensure they do not attempt to betray the wearer."

"I hesitate to ask, but... how would they betray us?" Shen responds skeptically as he enters a series of commands into a terminal.

Crossing your arms, you watch the machines swing their arms and shift their orientation to allow your instruction to be followed. "Minor things, really. The whole reason a daedra is willing to occupy the metal is because they fear the time spent in the void between reforming bodies, so they jump in the offered vessel knowing it is a trap." You explain. "Still, lesser daedra are generally content if given the chance to cause suffering and do not attempt to fight their bindings. The problem is that a dissatisfied daedra may just bide it's time, building strength until it can trip the wearer at just the right moment or open a gap to allow a fatal strike to the wearer."

Looking down into the bag of organs, Raymond gulps audibly at the information you've given him. "I... I see. Let's hope our new friends enjoy their new homes then." With that said, he unsteadily walks over to another engineer and the two begin to put the hearts to use.

Rather than waste your day watching them build the armor, you leave in search of your new student.

--------------------------

Winded, you wander through the forest around the base. Large masses of chitin scurry in the shadows, watching you with curious intelligence as you search for their caretaker. No other animal life is present, even the birds having been devoured by the chaurus swarm in it's spread across the region. The closest you come to native fauna is the writhing corpse of a deer, visibly infested with the insects' newest generation.

Come to think of it, you haven't seen a Frostbite spider since arriving here. Did the chaurus eat them?

Eventually you find the person you're looking for sitting on a ledge overlooking Springdale. "Enjoying the view?" You ask to let her know you're there.

"I suppose." She answers with a shrug. "The cities here are strange."

"Indeed they are." You agree as you sit beside her. "Regardless, I believe it is time for your first lesson in Reachman magic." Giving you an inquiring look, Cattleya waits for you to elaborate. "I shall start you on a more immediately useful skill before moving on to the rest, though even this may take quite some time. Your first lesson shall be on beast-magic. There are several branches of this craft, from influencing animals to totem creation, but today we will begin with transformation techniques. With enough focus and the favor of the Lord of the Hunt, one may invoke an artificial lycanthrope transformation."

She looks even more confused as she asks, "Lycanthrope?"

"Half human, half creature. Hircine created a fused state of being, melding the traits of man and beast to create monsters of ferocious strength and brutality." With a dark chuckle, you continue. "Were-wolves, were-bears, were-sharks, were-vultures, were-boars... all manner of transformation is possible."

You spend the rest of the day in the woods with her and teaching her how to walk silently through the brush, skipping both meals and ordering her to fast for the next two days to get used to feeling hunger. She'll need to practice over the next few weeks, getting accustomed to ravenous hunger and preparing for when Hircine tests her, but you've seen more pitiful people succeed... she should be fine. Of course, there's always the quicker option of giving her some werewolf blood, but that would be much less potent, as she would be reliant on the moon to transform.

It isn't until late at night that you stumble into your room for another night of restless sleep.

--------------------------

Jeremy ended the call, rubbing his face as he leaned back in his chair. He'd taken the call in his office, not wanting any potential bad new from the council spokesman to get out until he heard it first. Needless to say, the council was of mixed opinions about current events.

Oh, they were more than happy that the alien invasion had been halted. The problems came from everything else, including how the the invasion was being waylaid. A giant snake dropping debris indiscriminately on half of Europe, horse sized bugs swarming across half of the U.S. and devouring the local wildlife, not to mention the footage of X-com employing what appeared to be a twelve year old girl as a shock-trooper. Not having any other option, he was forced to reveal the fact that X-com was being supported by a group of reality traveling magicians.

Watching the spokesman choke at the news was almost worth the six hours of repeated questioning and disbelief he'd been regarded with. Powered armor, weapons development, genetic augmentation, enchanted armor, potions research, summoning demons... More than half of the council nations immediately withdrew their support, not believing his claims even when presented with the laser breathing proof in the sky. Oddly enough... or perhaps not so odd... the remaining countries of Asia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, and the United States chose to double down on providing funding... If certain conditions were met.

Colonizing other world he could understand, it wasn't as if he hadn't thought of it himself. The fact of the matter was, the portal could only fit a limited amount of material through at a time and establishing a secondary base, much less a colony, would require massive amounts of resources and months of transporting materials into a feudalistic world of magic and monsters. This was all discounting the fact that their other demands were free distribution of research information and reproducing their allies' magic by 'any means necessary'.

Status: Uninjured, tired, feverish.
Magicka: (650/650)

Choose 2:

[] Gene-mods.

[] Crafting write in.

[] Summon random creature! 1/6 chance of a spider, a horse, a bird, a lizard, a cat,a snake.

[] Write in.
----------------------------------------
A/N: So after several botched attempts to draw a decent picture of the armor, I decided to just make a mash-up of the MEC armor concept art it was based on and several Dwemer automatons.
 
That's true... we still have to retrieve her sister's soul from Louise, too...

[x] Crafting: some healing and regeneration items.
[x] Check up on both your apprentices.
-[x] Louise:
--[x] Check to see if there's any other evidence of mind-control.
--[x] See if you can retrieve Quelana's sister's soul while Louise is... preoccupied.
-[x] Cattleya:
--[x] Give her a few tips on currying the Lord of the Hunt's favor, it never hurts to stack the deck in your favor.
--[x] Give her information on possible dangers, warning signs and the like to be aware of.
 
Asia is a country now?
Yes.

Really though, it was more 'the remaining countries of Asia as well as Brazil, Australia, Canada, and the U.S.' rather than Asia being a single country.

That's true... we still have to retrieve her sister's soul from Louise, too...

[x] Crafting: some healing and regeneration items.
[x] Check up on both your apprentices.
-[x] Louise:
--[x] Check to see if there's any other evidence of mind-control.
--[x] See if you can retrieve Quelana's sister's soul while Louise is... preoccupied.
-[x] Cattleya:
--[x] Give her a few tips on currying the Lord of the Hunt's favor, it never hurts to stack the deck in your favor.
--[x] Give her information on possible dangers, warning signs and the like to be aware of.

You haven't even confirmed if Louise has Quelaag's soul IC, let alone being able to steal an intangible mass of spiritual power from the girl.
 
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[x] Summon random creature! 1/6 chance of a spider, a horse, a bird, a lizard, a cat,a snake.
[x] Check up on both your apprentices.
-[x] Louise:
--[x] Check to see if there's any other evidence of mind-control.
--[x] See if you can figure out if the girl has Quelana's sister's "soul"
-[x] Cattleya:
--[x] Give her a few tips on currying the Lord of the Hunt's favor, it never hurts to stack the deck in your favor.
--[x] Give her information on possible dangers, warning signs and the like to be aware of.
 
[X] Crafting: Ring of Reflect
[X] Saito: Have Shen fit the zombie for a suit of armor. Be sure to accommodate the extra arms.
 
not to mention the footage of X-com employing what appeared to be a twelve year old girl as a shock-trooper.
Ouch. That hurt.

Funnily enough, it appears that the chaurus infestation is one of their more serious problems, as I can't see a way of effectively controlling them without nuking away the rest of the biome. I don't suppose Cattleya has any means of herding them? If they breed any further, they will have to start eating humans. What do they eat in the vicinity of the base, anyway?

On the other hand, it would be in line with our other solutions that end up worse than the problems they were meant to solve, so good job!

Bear chaurus cavalry would be fantastic, though.
Oddly enough... or perhaps not so odd... the remaining countries of Asia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, and the United States chose to double down on providing funding... If certain conditions were met.
That's a strange request. Well, okay, they can withdraw their funding, what do they think happens next? Especially since X-COM, courtesy of Cynric, has a way off this messed up world, and they don't.

That reminds me, didn't they forget to ask someone's permission before making demands? Cynric is the one who has control over the Oblivion Gate, and 'funding X-COM' isn't much of an incentive to cooperate. The world can burn for all we care.

Should we be worried about ourselves being mind-controlled, or do we have a way to tell these things? What was that feverish feeling that a healing spell left it out?
 
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[X] Crafting: Ring of Reflect
[X] Saito: Have Shen fit the zombie for a suit of armor. Be sure to accommodate the extra arms.
What type of reflect? Melee, magic, ranged, or something more specific? The more specific, the higher percentage it will be, but less versatile. And of course your 'Karin's longcoat of reflect melee won't fit over the massive suit of armor.
Ouch. That hurts.

Funnily enough, it appears that the chaurus infestation is one of their more serious problems, as I can't see a way of effectively controlling them without nuking away the rest of the biome. I don't suppose Cattleya has any means of herding them? If they breed any further, they will have to start eating humans. What do they eat in the vicinity of the base, anyway?
They're imprinted on Cattleya and won't eat humans unless they get desperate or attacked, but she doesn't have a method to control them any more than you would a trained dog. They're demolishing the entire food chain in the region, including insects and a good portion of the plants that are easier to consume as they spread across the land, underground, and the hunters carry the eggs to more distant locations.

On the other hand, it would be in line of our other solutions that end up worse than the problems they were meant to solve, so good job!
Indeed! You've yet to truely help anyone achieve a better end than their canon fate!

Bear chaurus cavalry would be fantastic, though.
And is actually what some Falmer use them for.

That's a strange request. Well, okay, they can withdraw their funding, what do they think happens next? Especially since X-COM, courtesy of Cynric, has a way off this messed up world, and they don't.

That reminds me, didn't they forget to ask someone's permission before making demands? Cynric is the one who has control over the Oblivion Gate, and 'funding X-COM' isn't much of an incentive to cooperate. The world can burn for all we care.
The leaders of the remaining council nations aren't concerned about the wants of three individuals in the face of extinction. Cutting funds could be an issue to X-com(not cyrnic's group) because they aren't self sufficient and rely on outside support. All the alloy and possibly nonexistent portals doss nothing for them if they can't feed their people. Any means necessary is quite a bit of leeway and x-com was created to get results.

Should we be worried about ourselves being mind-controlled, or do we have a way to tell these things? What was that feverish feeling that a healing spell left it out?
Cynric isn't susceptible to magical mind-control, psionic and parasitic are possible, but you'd at least get hints at the first and the second would be obvious. You're just sick from using a bloody rag from an alien's corpse to bind an open wound.
 
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Indeed! You've yet to truely help anyone achieve a better end than their canon fate!
I don't know canon, but Cattleya would probably disagree. That's a plus, right?
Louise, though, is probably screwed.

All we need for chaurus problem is to introduce a Watchbird to the US ecology system to stem their growth. :whistle:
...cue the planet full of rainbow-laser-shooting monstrosities in the atmosphere after a few iterations...

Cutting funds could be an issue to X-com(not cyrnic's group) because they aren't self sufficient and rely on outside support.
I mean, cutting funds to X-COM is like shooting yourself in the foot, since it's the only thing standing between them and the aliens... and the X-COM can guarantee their own survival (or survival of chosen individuals) if they cut a deal with Cynric, while the rest of the world can't.

Feeding people is hardly a problem with magic either.

Quite frankly, X-COM is in the position to extort the Council, and not the other way around. All that is stopping them is their loyalty to their planet/governments.

...new goal: probe the staff about the possibility of X-COM dominating the planet instead of aliens. Vahlen would approve. Think of all the Science they could do!
 
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I don't know canon, but Cattleya would probably disagree. That's a plus, right?
Louise, though, is probably screwed.
Depends... She didn't get cured in canon, but her family grew together rather than being torn apart as their world fell into ruin and damnation.

All we need for chaurus problem is to introduce a Watchbird to the US ecology system to stem their growth. :whistle:
...cue the planet full of rainbow-laser-shooting monstrosities in the atmosphere after a few iterations...
I think Australia might disagree with that plan. Prior experience and all.


I mean, cutting funds to X-COM is like shooting yourself in the foot, since it's the only thing standing between them and the aliens... and the X-COM can guarantee their own survival (or survival of chosen individuals) if they cut a deal with Cynric, while the rest of the world can't.
didn't stop them in canon.

Basically, they don't have any guarantee that Flagg is telling the truth and want proof in the form of research notes and hard evidence. If xcom were to be shut down, the data would come back to them anyhow, so in their eyes, they're being generous in light of the audacious dlclaims being made. For all they know, rayquaza is just a representative of another alien faction and the chaurus are an alien pest/bioweapons.

Feeding people is hardly a problem with magic either.
The disaster at Ionith would prove otherwise. The Empire attempted to colonise Akavir, but their naval supply line was severed by a storm that destroyed the fleet and they hadn't had time to grow enough crops for the winter. Spring brought no relief, as only dry heat was visited upon their fields and the relief effort from Tamriel was waylaid by more storms. The native snakemen of Akavir besieged the city at this point to prevent subsistence on hunter/gathere methods. Though a mage can conjure water, it is not enough for farming and food is not something that can be created through spell work. The legion was routed and the emperor cut down by a hail of arrows while attempting to allow his surviving men to flee when the fleet finally arrived.

Edit: I suppose it would be possible to use Reachman magic to encourage crop growth, but it would still take time. Familiar of Zero 'alchemy' could be used to enrich soil as well, but still no spell to simply create food.
Quite francly, X-COM is in the position to extort the Council, and not the other way around. All that is stopping them is their loyalty to their planet/governments.

...new goal: probe the possibility of X-COM dominating the planet instead of aliens.
Not denying the truth in this, just pointing out that X-com has about 50 guards and three combat teams that include a fair number of 'rookies'... Though X-com rookies are, lorewise, chosen from the best of council nation militaries and mercs.
 
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Well fuck the rest of the world. If they don't believe in magic after the flying lighting lizard then it's not worth the time and effort to make them believe.
 
[x] Crafting: some healing and regeneration items.
[x] Check up on both your apprentices.
-[x] Louise:
--[x] Check to see if there's any other evidence of mind-control.
--[x] See if you can retrieve Quelana's sister's soul while Louise is... preoccupied.
-[x] Cattleya:
--[x] Give her a few tips on currying the Lord of the Hunt's favor, it never hurts to stack the deck in your favor.
--[x] Give her information on possible dangers, warning signs and the like to be aware of.
 
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