EternalObserver
eYe Gaze baCk
- Location
- The Void
Additional conversation in the Kang Zihao confrontation/arrest in RR
Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)
- Thread starter yrsillar
- Start date
- Original Users' Choice!
Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
[x] Aggressive posture
EternalObserver
eYe Gaze baCk
- Location
- The Void
*ahem*
vote's closed. Not that u have to worry since your vote won anyways
Ahh, just got caught up and skipped ahead to the latest page to vote, didn't see the vote be closed message.
Turn 7: Arc 1-3
Ling Qi flew, clouds streaking by overhead and the earth blurring away beneath, and the wind did not touch her, did not tug at her hair or snap the hems of her gown. The fur lined cloak that hung about her shoulders did not so much as ripple in the breeze. She flew in utter silence, a streak of grey and black across the sky, no more than a passing shadow. Where her passage was silent and tranquil though, her thoughts churned. Despite her sureness that this was the right decision, doubt gnawed at her.
Yet, how could she do anything but trust them? She could not be everywhere, could not clutch everything close and never let go. That was the lesson she had learned from Zeqing. She could not let fear command her responses, that was the lesson of the dream. So Ling Qi flew on and fixed Zhengui's determination and Xiulan's confidence in her thoughts.
Sixiang chuckled, the muses voice a tickling whisper in her ear. "It's not like you left them behind to face an army you know."
"You know as well as I do that something is wrong here," Ling Qi murmured back, she faced ahead, silver light flickering in the whites of her eyes as she scanned the rushing landscape and the churning clouds. The sky was beginning to darken, a harbinger of rain, but whether it was natural or barbarian sorcery Ling Qi could not say. "The timing, the fact that they were spotted at just the right time."
"You're not wrong," Sixiang murmured, but Ling Qi appreciated the attempt at comfort all the same.
"Hmph, we'll just have to kill them and go back quick. It'll be easy for Sis," Hanyi said haughtily from within her dantian.
Ling Qi smiled wanly at the young spirits vote of confidence, but spoke no more. She could see the lines of the second village on the horizon, see smoke rising in tiny plumes, feel the violence in the air and the dots swooping through the sky. She could not yet pick out the details, but the time for talking was over.
She could sense the qi of her peers, could sense the barbarians, as she had guessed it was no mere rabble of second realms, she could feel the power of third realms as well, three… no four presences, with the last lurking up in the clouds, muted and unreadable almost hidden from her senses. However, she knew that they could not sense her. The time had come to change that.
Ling Qi's gaze flashed over the field over the burning thatch, set alight by lightning strikes, the paddies churned by panicked flight and conflict, the first and second realm soldiers running too and fro, battling the rain of arrows that fell from the sky, giving mortals time to flee. In the distance, she sensed one of her peers, clashing with a barbarian of equal stature, and on the road, her senses brushed over a familiar presence.
Shen Hu stood in the middle of the road that wound through the fields, an open tunnel yawning from the earth behind him, people fled inside, men and women, young and old, some carrying children or precious belongings. In a circle stretching around him for hundreds of meters around, stones and pebbles rose in their thousands, reshaped into shielding hands, open palmed that darted and flew batting away the arrows that fell upon fleeing civilians. Above him the rude slab of stone that was his domain weapon shook and smoked as a screaming missile, a vortex of churning cutting air that howled like damned soul slammed down upon it. It was not unique, the air was filled by screaming missiles, arrows that formed the air into spinning funnels of death that howled and screamed as they fell.
Ling Qi saw where they had fallen unblocked. She saw the ruins of a house it's roof gone and walls blown outward by a blast, and the body of the woman lying facedown in the mud, wooden shrapnel in her back. She saw the blood pooled in muddy craters slowly filling with pooling waters, where the defenders had been too slow. Ling Qi saw, and remembered a nightmare of fur and teeth, of screams and bloody bones, gnawed and cast aside.
She turned her eyes toward the swooping gliders and galloping horses, with their ruddy fur and blood damp manes, and her eyes and heart were cold.
"Ling Qi…" Sixiangs sad whisper was a distant thing, something she had no time to acknowledge.
She raised her flute to her lips, and even as the melancholy melody poured forth, and the world was consumed in dark and hungry mist, she released her iron clad grip on her qi. There was satisfaction in seeing heads turn in her direction, in seeing the alarm in their eyes as the churning mist spread, a vast and terrible wave pouring from the sky. The edges of her form wavered, she felt her feet trail off into black mist and the hem of her cloak dissolve into shadow as dark qi flooded her meridians, her techniques activating one after another. Silvery eyes nestled in the folds of her robe, and for a moment she saw herself. A wraith with eyes of flickering silver and glacier blue, shrouded in mist and night, lines and veins of emerald power pulsed and throbbed in the folds of her gown, like shadows in negative. Where she passed, rain become snow and sleet.
Tribesman wheeled in the air and fled before her mist, toward the cloudline, where their leaders waited. Her mist rolled over mortals and soldiers alike, but no horrors waited in the mist for them to claw and bite, and no cutting cold chilled their flesh. For those below her, there was only the melancholy melody of the Vale, and the cold and distant song of the frozen peak.
As Ling Qi at last crossed over the road, she was finally able to take her enemies account. She could sense them, scattered throughout the farmland, harassing and harrying soldiers and civilians. There were over a hundred tribesman, scattered about in little packs, most were first realms, but she could feel at least a score of second realms. Most of which were gathering about the men who had pulled up near the belly of the clouds looking down on her mist, with concern visible in the fluctuations of their auras.
It was difficult to pick out their exact cultivation, she could not tell where the barbarian ended and the beast began, it was not merely the foreignness of their methods though. There was something strange in the air, a subtle static that made the hair on the back of Ling Qi's neck rise. Her gaze rose to darkening rainclouds, where she sensed the third presence, whose was merely a dark blur, a smudge on her senses that set her on edge.
Further out, she could sense one of the two nobles she had come out with still clashing with a third barbarian presence, a third realm and a half dozen seconds at least, or rather, being harried by them. This was the strength of the Cloud Tribesman, the supremacy of the skies over the lower realms. Had Ling Qi not herself used that much to her advantage in the past?
It was unfortunate for them, Ling Qi supposed, that the Lady Duchess and her apprentices had begun to neutralize that strength. One way or another, she would make them regret having come here. She glanced down, and met Shen Hu's gaze on the ground far below, with her mist keeping the tribesman's archers at bay his evacuation was going much more smoothly, already she could sense most of the villagers traveling beneath the earth, back toward the stone walls of the village center and the earthen shelters that she knew lay below it.
A moment of silent communication passed, and he dipped his head, his domain weapon rising to interpose itself between them. He was the shield then, and she the spear. At her shoulder, the mist churned and a second voice joined her song as a spiral blade emerged. Of late, it's song was no longer so discordant, and the melody of the vale rang clear from the blade, echoing her as though from far away and deep under ground.
The only question then, was how to fight.
[] Drive them before you
[Advance toward the main barbarian group at top speed. Force them to scatter before you, be swallowed by your mist, or flee. Be aggressive in your attack, and give them no quarter, focus on offense and breaking their morale as quickly as possible. Neglects defense, and trusts Shen Hu and the other noble, once freed up to handle things on the ground. High Risk of overextension.]
[] Let them come
[While you are here, they are no longer the masters of the skies. Advance and push them back, slowly and methodically, keeping yourself between the barbarians and any civilians, do not let them maneuver, keep them pinned together by fear of your presence and only when your own forces have gathered and organize will you strike them in force. Prioritizes safety of civilians and soldiers and focuses on defense, only striking out when a clear opportunity strikes. Costly in time and risks giving barbarians time to plan.]
Ling Qi techs currently active
Forgotten Vale(all)
Ten Ring Defense
Grinning Crescent Dancer
Spring's End Aria
Inquisitive Study
Seeking Moon's Eyes
AN: so after scrapping a draft I think I have things mostly worked out for this arc. So updates will probably be a bit on the shorter end like this one, but should also come faster for the arc duration now that the background work is done. Enjoy guys.
Yet, how could she do anything but trust them? She could not be everywhere, could not clutch everything close and never let go. That was the lesson she had learned from Zeqing. She could not let fear command her responses, that was the lesson of the dream. So Ling Qi flew on and fixed Zhengui's determination and Xiulan's confidence in her thoughts.
Sixiang chuckled, the muses voice a tickling whisper in her ear. "It's not like you left them behind to face an army you know."
"You know as well as I do that something is wrong here," Ling Qi murmured back, she faced ahead, silver light flickering in the whites of her eyes as she scanned the rushing landscape and the churning clouds. The sky was beginning to darken, a harbinger of rain, but whether it was natural or barbarian sorcery Ling Qi could not say. "The timing, the fact that they were spotted at just the right time."
"You're not wrong," Sixiang murmured, but Ling Qi appreciated the attempt at comfort all the same.
"Hmph, we'll just have to kill them and go back quick. It'll be easy for Sis," Hanyi said haughtily from within her dantian.
Ling Qi smiled wanly at the young spirits vote of confidence, but spoke no more. She could see the lines of the second village on the horizon, see smoke rising in tiny plumes, feel the violence in the air and the dots swooping through the sky. She could not yet pick out the details, but the time for talking was over.
She could sense the qi of her peers, could sense the barbarians, as she had guessed it was no mere rabble of second realms, she could feel the power of third realms as well, three… no four presences, with the last lurking up in the clouds, muted and unreadable almost hidden from her senses. However, she knew that they could not sense her. The time had come to change that.
Ling Qi's gaze flashed over the field over the burning thatch, set alight by lightning strikes, the paddies churned by panicked flight and conflict, the first and second realm soldiers running too and fro, battling the rain of arrows that fell from the sky, giving mortals time to flee. In the distance, she sensed one of her peers, clashing with a barbarian of equal stature, and on the road, her senses brushed over a familiar presence.
Shen Hu stood in the middle of the road that wound through the fields, an open tunnel yawning from the earth behind him, people fled inside, men and women, young and old, some carrying children or precious belongings. In a circle stretching around him for hundreds of meters around, stones and pebbles rose in their thousands, reshaped into shielding hands, open palmed that darted and flew batting away the arrows that fell upon fleeing civilians. Above him the rude slab of stone that was his domain weapon shook and smoked as a screaming missile, a vortex of churning cutting air that howled like damned soul slammed down upon it. It was not unique, the air was filled by screaming missiles, arrows that formed the air into spinning funnels of death that howled and screamed as they fell.
Ling Qi saw where they had fallen unblocked. She saw the ruins of a house it's roof gone and walls blown outward by a blast, and the body of the woman lying facedown in the mud, wooden shrapnel in her back. She saw the blood pooled in muddy craters slowly filling with pooling waters, where the defenders had been too slow. Ling Qi saw, and remembered a nightmare of fur and teeth, of screams and bloody bones, gnawed and cast aside.
She turned her eyes toward the swooping gliders and galloping horses, with their ruddy fur and blood damp manes, and her eyes and heart were cold.
"Ling Qi…" Sixiangs sad whisper was a distant thing, something she had no time to acknowledge.
She raised her flute to her lips, and even as the melancholy melody poured forth, and the world was consumed in dark and hungry mist, she released her iron clad grip on her qi. There was satisfaction in seeing heads turn in her direction, in seeing the alarm in their eyes as the churning mist spread, a vast and terrible wave pouring from the sky. The edges of her form wavered, she felt her feet trail off into black mist and the hem of her cloak dissolve into shadow as dark qi flooded her meridians, her techniques activating one after another. Silvery eyes nestled in the folds of her robe, and for a moment she saw herself. A wraith with eyes of flickering silver and glacier blue, shrouded in mist and night, lines and veins of emerald power pulsed and throbbed in the folds of her gown, like shadows in negative. Where she passed, rain become snow and sleet.
Tribesman wheeled in the air and fled before her mist, toward the cloudline, where their leaders waited. Her mist rolled over mortals and soldiers alike, but no horrors waited in the mist for them to claw and bite, and no cutting cold chilled their flesh. For those below her, there was only the melancholy melody of the Vale, and the cold and distant song of the frozen peak.
As Ling Qi at last crossed over the road, she was finally able to take her enemies account. She could sense them, scattered throughout the farmland, harassing and harrying soldiers and civilians. There were over a hundred tribesman, scattered about in little packs, most were first realms, but she could feel at least a score of second realms. Most of which were gathering about the men who had pulled up near the belly of the clouds looking down on her mist, with concern visible in the fluctuations of their auras.
It was difficult to pick out their exact cultivation, she could not tell where the barbarian ended and the beast began, it was not merely the foreignness of their methods though. There was something strange in the air, a subtle static that made the hair on the back of Ling Qi's neck rise. Her gaze rose to darkening rainclouds, where she sensed the third presence, whose was merely a dark blur, a smudge on her senses that set her on edge.
Further out, she could sense one of the two nobles she had come out with still clashing with a third barbarian presence, a third realm and a half dozen seconds at least, or rather, being harried by them. This was the strength of the Cloud Tribesman, the supremacy of the skies over the lower realms. Had Ling Qi not herself used that much to her advantage in the past?
It was unfortunate for them, Ling Qi supposed, that the Lady Duchess and her apprentices had begun to neutralize that strength. One way or another, she would make them regret having come here. She glanced down, and met Shen Hu's gaze on the ground far below, with her mist keeping the tribesman's archers at bay his evacuation was going much more smoothly, already she could sense most of the villagers traveling beneath the earth, back toward the stone walls of the village center and the earthen shelters that she knew lay below it.
A moment of silent communication passed, and he dipped his head, his domain weapon rising to interpose itself between them. He was the shield then, and she the spear. At her shoulder, the mist churned and a second voice joined her song as a spiral blade emerged. Of late, it's song was no longer so discordant, and the melody of the vale rang clear from the blade, echoing her as though from far away and deep under ground.
The only question then, was how to fight.
[] Drive them before you
[Advance toward the main barbarian group at top speed. Force them to scatter before you, be swallowed by your mist, or flee. Be aggressive in your attack, and give them no quarter, focus on offense and breaking their morale as quickly as possible. Neglects defense, and trusts Shen Hu and the other noble, once freed up to handle things on the ground. High Risk of overextension.]
[] Let them come
[While you are here, they are no longer the masters of the skies. Advance and push them back, slowly and methodically, keeping yourself between the barbarians and any civilians, do not let them maneuver, keep them pinned together by fear of your presence and only when your own forces have gathered and organize will you strike them in force. Prioritizes safety of civilians and soldiers and focuses on defense, only striking out when a clear opportunity strikes. Costly in time and risks giving barbarians time to plan.]
Immediate Vicinity
~40 First Realm gilders
12 Second Realm Horse Archers
2 Appraisal(?) Leaders
Overall
~100 First Realm Gliders
~25 Second Realm Horse Archers
3 Appraisal(?) Leaders
1 ???
Tribesman Leaders (Stats approximate to the letter, baseline w/o techs)
Health: C Init: B
Hit: B Pen: A
P. Avoid: B P. Armor: C
S. Avoid: B S. Armor: C
~40 First Realm gilders
12 Second Realm Horse Archers
2 Appraisal(?) Leaders
Overall
~100 First Realm Gliders
~25 Second Realm Horse Archers
3 Appraisal(?) Leaders
1 ???
Tribesman Leaders (Stats approximate to the letter, baseline w/o techs)
Health: C Init: B
Hit: B Pen: A
P. Avoid: B P. Armor: C
S. Avoid: B S. Armor: C
Immediate Vicinity
10 Red Sect Guards
3 Yellow Sect Guards
Shen Hu
Overall
25 Red Sect Guards
6 Yellow Sect Guards
Shen Hu
4 Red Sect Scouts
2 Yellow Sect Scouts
Appraisal(2) Inner Disciple
10 Red Sect Guards
3 Yellow Sect Guards
Shen Hu
Overall
25 Red Sect Guards
6 Yellow Sect Guards
Shen Hu
4 Red Sect Scouts
2 Yellow Sect Scouts
Appraisal(2) Inner Disciple
Ling Qi techs currently active
Forgotten Vale(all)
Ten Ring Defense
Grinning Crescent Dancer
Spring's End Aria
Inquisitive Study
Seeking Moon's Eyes
AN: so after scrapping a draft I think I have things mostly worked out for this arc. So updates will probably be a bit on the shorter end like this one, but should also come faster for the arc duration now that the background work is done. Enjoy guys.
Last edited:
globalwarmth
ruining the weather.
- Location
- Polar ice caps
[] Drive them before you
they came for the lamentations of our people so its only fair
they came for the lamentations of our people so its only fair
Hard to say how far we should extend. We are exactly the level where we could be baited into a fight we can't win, but at the same time we are seriously powerful for our level and have decent disengage. Keep in mind the above warning I suppose, but balance it with expediency.
Shall defend
We support yo
Also, let none leave, we caught like 100 of them in our mists?
We support yo
Also, let none leave, we caught like 100 of them in our mists?
Last edited:
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Yeah, with this level of strength, I am not inclined to rush in. We have 3 Appraisals and 1 Mystery Guy, and while I doubt he will be as scary as BINO was, Yrs has made the risk of overextension quite clear. Maximizing the safety of the civilians is the goal here.
- Location
- United States of America
We... are utterly terrifying. Barbarians are happily plundering and raiding and then all of a sudden the world decends into mist and night with this thing with eyes of flickering silver and glacial blue, cloaked in the substance that the world has descended into with veins of emerald pulsing to an unknown beat. We don't need Meizhen's fear arts to be utterly terrifying.
- Location
- Earth
Those are the candidates for a story upgrade here
I don't like giving the Barbs time to plan a counter attack, especial with that Mystery Lightning caster up top.
Snowballing is playing to their advantage
Snowballing is playing to their advantage
Last edited:
fictionfan
Please sir, may I have some Meows?
- Location
- Tempe, AZ
When we have a bunch of qi batteries to drain we should be able to regularly manage 3 on 1. Also these are raiders if we act confident there is a very good chance they will think that our confidence is justified and run.
Last edited:
- Location
- The United States
- Pronouns
- He/They
I say we move fast here.
There's a second village we know is under attack, then our own to worry about.
I don't think we have the time to trade.
There's a second village we know is under attack, then our own to worry about.
I don't think we have the time to trade.
Furthermore, drawing out Mystery Lightning means our Team isn't getting bodied who/what it is. If we can disrupt 'Their' plan then we can forumulate a response against an opponent that isnt in a ideal situation.
It also splits the Barbarians focus between forces on the ground, and an aggressive terror mystery mist.
It also splits the Barbarians focus between forces on the ground, and an aggressive terror mystery mist.
- Location
- New Brunswick, NJ
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
I'm inclined to go hard here. Costly in time is a real cost; we abandoned our assigned position for this and we don't want to take so long fending off this assault that they have time to muster another attack in force on the south. We need to keep in mind, not just the safety of this village here, but of the entire defensive line. And in the event that we overextend, we have good escape potential.
We don't need to chase them down and hunt them to the last, we just need to hit them hard and fast enough that they pull back and let the situation stabilize for our slower-moving ground comrades. Qi cost of our techs is basically irrelevant while we have mooks to drain. Plus, while the mystery nomad is spooky, it's a spooky that we should get actionable intel on if we can, and the best way to do so is by forcing them to react to us instead of letting them whip up something nasty to hurl our way.
We don't need to chase them down and hunt them to the last, we just need to hit them hard and fast enough that they pull back and let the situation stabilize for our slower-moving ground comrades. Qi cost of our techs is basically irrelevant while we have mooks to drain. Plus, while the mystery nomad is spooky, it's a spooky that we should get actionable intel on if we can, and the best way to do so is by forcing them to react to us instead of letting them whip up something nasty to hurl our way.
Last edited:
First let me start with my pick
[] Drive them before you
Ling Qi has the advantage of surprise here. While her defensive abilities are great there's no point in letting the barbarians regroup so that they can actually give her trouble.
The majority of the enemy are low realm and this kind of cleanup is what she excels at.
Sweep forward, drive them away, shatter their ability to fight and force the hand of the enemy when they don't know exactly what she's capable of.
Even if we overextend Ling Qi has another specialty in maneuverability and escape, she has a very good chance of being able to escape any sudden moves to stop her. They know we can sneak because of how we arrived, and they'll see our power as we rush, but its unlikely that they'll get a chance to see how we evade before they have to intervene or lose. Right about now she's the proverbial cavalry charge through enemy lines and they'll come prepared with spears when they don't know our horses can teleport (shh its wuxia). We can afford to be bold.
After this we can always set up the full domain over the battlefield and do the 'stand in one place and be a fortress' act when they don't have the people left to force it.
[] Drive them before you
Ling Qi has the advantage of surprise here. While her defensive abilities are great there's no point in letting the barbarians regroup so that they can actually give her trouble.
The majority of the enemy are low realm and this kind of cleanup is what she excels at.
Sweep forward, drive them away, shatter their ability to fight and force the hand of the enemy when they don't know exactly what she's capable of.
Even if we overextend Ling Qi has another specialty in maneuverability and escape, she has a very good chance of being able to escape any sudden moves to stop her. They know we can sneak because of how we arrived, and they'll see our power as we rush, but its unlikely that they'll get a chance to see how we evade before they have to intervene or lose. Right about now she's the proverbial cavalry charge through enemy lines and they'll come prepared with spears when they don't know our horses can teleport (shh its wuxia). We can afford to be bold.
After this we can always set up the full domain over the battlefield and do the 'stand in one place and be a fortress' act when they don't have the people left to force it.
Last edited:
- Location
- United States
[] Drive them before you
we don't have time to get drawn into a stalemate. I'm worried about the mystery guy but unless he's good enough to one shot us it is pretty had to trap us in a fight.
Our arts are meant for feeding on large groups of fodder rather then stand off duels.
we don't have time to get drawn into a stalemate. I'm worried about the mystery guy but unless he's good enough to one shot us it is pretty had to trap us in a fight.
Our arts are meant for feeding on large groups of fodder rather then stand off duels.
I think we can trust Shen Hu with the defense. It is his speciality and he is already defending the civilians. About the risk: They apparently didnt notice LQ coming at all, so she should be able to disengage again and fall back to Shen Hu, if the opponents are stronger than expected, but I am not that worried.
First Realms are pretty much irrelevant against Ling Qi and given that we are already set up, even Second Realms should also be fairly neglectable, given that we already have quite a few techs set up.
The 5 Appraisals are a challenge for sure, but if you compare stats, then Ling Qi can reliably hit and deal damage to them and they dont have that much Health, so it seems pretty doable to me.
The only problem is the ??? person, but we are going to have to deal with them one way or another, and i think fighting them after dealing with the first group sounds better than letting both groups gather together
First Realms are pretty much irrelevant against Ling Qi and given that we are already set up, even Second Realms should also be fairly neglectable, given that we already have quite a few techs set up.
The 5 Appraisals are a challenge for sure, but if you compare stats, then Ling Qi can reliably hit and deal damage to them and they dont have that much Health, so it seems pretty doable to me.
The only problem is the ??? person, but we are going to have to deal with them one way or another, and i think fighting them after dealing with the first group sounds better than letting both groups gather together
Logically they should not have expected a flying cultivator here, considering those are cyan usually, so this being a lure them in trap seems a bit weird unless they where baiting a cyan cultivator from somewhere and then whoever is in that cloud is way above us either way.
Attacking now would take advantage of that while they are on the back foot from sudden death cloud.
Attacking now would take advantage of that while they are on the back foot from sudden death cloud.