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Dolan There was only a little time to react, and the elf had the right idea. If worst came to worst, they were in the middle of the farms; food could be found. With a sharp yell, he whips his staff into the mule's backside to get it running, then moves -- quickly -- in the opposite direction.
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Apr 9, 2012 16:47
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Dolan Dolan slowly lifts himself up off the ground, staring after the dragon as it leaves northward. Breathing a sigh of relief, he calmly dusts himself off and straightens his leather helm on his head, then grabs the mule's reins. "We should be off," he calls to the others. "It will be a while before we can change our pants."
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Apr 10, 2012 04:43
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Dolan Dolan shakes his head. "Dragons are still a mystery, what with only having appeared again in the last year. Bloody fortune, many people thought they were myths even in the age of heroes. What knowledge is left is speculation and fabrication." He tugs on the mule's reins again, trying to convince it that the corn stalk is not the most important thing right now, and looks over to Alec. "Try not to waste your strength. We have a long journey ahead."
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Apr 10, 2012 06:01
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Dolan After the long walk, Dolan shrugs out of his pack and unceremoniously dumps it on the ground. He unrolls his blanket and then sits on it, opening his logbook and flipping through the pages. "I should have mentioned this earlier," he says quietly without looking up. "It's my own failing that I did not." he turns his gaze up to Lette and Alec, taking them both in. "No magic. Not yet. To the right people, that can be visible from miles off as easily as any fire. We know the centaurs had a magic user with them, and until I know the extent of his abilities we need to be cautious." Leaving it at that, he goes back to his book. quote:34 kernång, 2412 He slips the pencil back in between the pages and turns to some of the earlier pages. None of them mention dragons, but that's no surprise. It would take far too much digging to find anything like that, if it even existed. Besides, by his own admonition he can't check tonight. He closes his book, quietly eats his rations, and tries to sleep. He had something to do, assuming he had a moment uninterrupted this time.
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Apr 12, 2012 06:09
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Dolan Dolan stirs slowly as he is woken for his watch, having a bit of difficulty believing that it was already time. He had not dreamt, not in the least, which even normally would be quite strange, but especially with the presence. The thought of that presence brings him wholly awake. Or whatever "awake" passes for. It had kidnapped him again, brought him somewhere he did not immediately recognize, and left him naked but for a thin cloud surrounding his body. Movement causes him to turn, hands raised and ready to fight. The sight of the others is not what he expected. Cautiously, he approaches them, seeing that they too have been stripped of arms and armaments, and left even without some misty covering. "Faun, northman, get up." He looks around, taking in the strange landscape again. This was certainly not the same realm they had gone to sleep in. "I think there may be a problem."
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Apr 13, 2012 02:38
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Dolan "I have not seen them," Dolan answers. He looks around again, still seeing nothing that indicates where they might be, or which direction they came from. Of course, it was very likely that they didn't come here from any particular direction. Grumbling, he kneels in the dirt and begins to Draw, then stops. If this were a dream, a Seeker rune would do nothing. It could even have a completely different effect than he expected here. Runic research had always depended on the constancy of the world they were in. Here, where the rules were different... He wipes out the rune, then stands. "We probably shouldn't stay in one place too long. It sounds like we might have predators roaming around."
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Apr 13, 2012 03:31
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Dolan "It's nothing of my doing," Dolan answers in regards to his pink cloud. It was most likely the doing of the Presence. The rest of this, though, it doesn't seem like what the Presence did before. What he remembered before had been so vivid and so real, whereas this seemed only half-formed. He'd had barely any will, any time to react before the Presence spoke and he was whisked awake again. If this was the Presence's work, something had changed, something had gone wrong. He turns, again and again at the sound of the wolf, then the hoof beats, then the dragon, each time turning to face a new foe from all directions. If this is what the Turns dictated, then so be it. "An honor," he repeats back to the northman, kneeling down and Drawing again. Attempting Stone Missile, dumping 4-1 FP into it if successful
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Apr 13, 2012 16:34
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Dolan Dolan starts at the sound of the shout. Normally this might distract him, might make the runes come with more difficulty, or not form at all. In this case, though, they come with such ease, such effortlessness this time. And what he holds in his hand when he rises... He takes in his surroundings again, and the dragon floating in mid-air, the other apparitions staring at him. "I believe that this is no ordinarily illusion, faun," Dolan says. "And certainly not something that poses no danger." He drops the Stone, letting it fizzle into nothingness again. This is no dream, he thinks to the Presence. And you did not bring me here this time, did you?
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Apr 14, 2012 02:32
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Dolan The Source, Dolan thinks as he watches the dragon begin to mimic his spell. And these are some sort of vagabonds... He doesn't have time to finish the thought before the warning rings clearly through his head. An instant of visible movement is all he needs, and he steps back. Not enough, as it turns out, as the shape approaching him was a centaur. He manages to spit in the instant between when it contacts his shoulder and when the foreign presence is thrown out of his mind again. "Don't let them touch you!" he yells, only now seeing Alec's predicament. Can you do that again? he asks the Presence in his mind, as he launches himself towards the wolf pinning Alec to the ground and jams a fist into its ribs. Karate 14, going for a body shot
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Apr 14, 2012 16:32
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Dolan Dolan is on his feet in an instant, looking to see what had woken him. He sees Lette, moving from body to body, thumping them awake, but Alec and Lo'el stay unconscious. Whether that meant that Lo'el had been taken too or that he was simply not hit hard enough, he does not know. Alec, however, may not last much longer. "We were attacked in our dream by spirits," Dolan says suddenly. "The northman, the faun, and I. No time to explain, we have to wake them." He grabs his staff in one hand and his waterskin in the other. Opening it, he hoped dumping its contents onto Alec's face would be enough.
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Apr 15, 2012 04:10
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Dolan Alerc wake with a sputter, and Dolan doesn't wait to see if the man is okay. Lo'el is still unconscious, and now he would be alone against the other spirits. With no water remaining, he resorts to the only option he has left. He straddles the faun, and cocks his arm back. "Sorry lad," he whispers, before bringing his hand down, hard. AoA Mighty, backhanding Lo'el in the face
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Apr 15, 2012 19:48
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Dolan Dolan doesn't wait for Lo'el's admonition; they could deal with that later. Alec had been in contact with that spirit for some time, and even the brief contact Dolan had felt with the centaur had come with a palpable intrusion. Alec could very well have a foreign presence in him. And as if that weren't enough, Lette seemed convinced that there were enemies here in the waking world to contend with. One thing at a time. Fetching his staff, Dolan leans down next to Alec, just now fully recovering and coming awake. He looks the northman in the eyes, or at least he thinks he does in the dark. "Are you you?" he asks.
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Apr 15, 2012 20:04
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Dolan Dolan shrugs in Alec's general direction. "He sounds okay to me." They would have to wait until morning to do anything more substantial than casual observation. That he had no way of truly testing the northman for any sort of spiritual possession or influence would be a setback. He had been trained to combat men, not spirits, not dragons, not centaurs. He would need to devote some time to the Memories. "I agree, we should wait until morning before discussing this further. We never know if someone is listening in." That, and he would rather have daylight above him for what he had to say. After this, there was likely no reason to keep his own guest a secret. He would like to have had more information himself before discussing it, but the dice had just been thrown, and there was no stopping them now.
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Apr 17, 2012 03:32
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Dolan Clouds were a much nicer alternative to waking naked in some foreign field. He takes in what surroundings there are, then looks to the others, glad to see them clothed as well. And this time Dolan isn't covered in a pink cloud, which would certainly add questions to the mix. That they aren't alone doesn't exactly come as a surprise, but that Isit apparently knows the presence does. Perhaps Dolan hasn't been the only one communing with the other side. "I had thought this place to be a Source, a sort of reservoir of magic," Dolan tells Lo'el. "After what we've seen, I'm not so sure. I'd never heard of spirits residing in one," he adds. Recent events had shown him just how little he knew about the affairs of spirits. Something that, if things kept on as they were, would have to be rectified.
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Apr 17, 2012 20:49
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Dolan Dolan keeps quiet as the "goddess" makes herself known. That she had helped them was worthy of thanks, but he keeps his mouth shut. The last thing he wanted to do was admit to a spirit that he was in its debt for any reason, as if that would make a difference. Vuoksi would probably extract whatever payment she deemed fair regardless of their need for her help. And so would Dinym, apparently. "We should try to rest," he says. "We may be asleep in our physical bodies, but arguing all night probably won't be restful."
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Apr 18, 2012 18:27
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Dolan Dolan stirs on the cloud slightly. Sleep here was... well it was restful, at the very least. The warmth and the quiet was nice after the rest of the evening's events. Alec seemed to be taking his brush with not just death but non-existence rather hard, but he couldn't fault the man. The northerner would have to get used to the fact that he was in another land, though, and that customs and legends here were not the same as he was used to back home. The need to worship gods and spirits was a strange notion to Dolan, but it seemed to give people strength, so he couldn't deny it to them. As if summoned by that thought, he feels that presence invading his senses again. It was stronger here, he knew now, able to manifest itself in at least voice and some power if not physically. So just who are you, anyway? Nadym, come to wrap my body in pink silken clouds? Caria, come to grant me some power just to snatch everything away when I need it most? Or are you one of those-- those scavengers?
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Apr 20, 2012 16:22
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Dolan The answer takes so long that Dolan isn't even sure the voice is still there. He's about to repeat himself when it finally answers. Not a god. Do you have a name at all? You are not like them, but you are of -- how would you even say it? -- the same species? His mind is of two halves. On the one, he recognizes the emotion the voice spoke with, recognizes its denial of being like those other spirits. The other recognizes only the usefulness of having contact with one of these spirits. The similarity, even if the voice would deny it, still has the potential to be exploited. It does not take long for one side to win out over the other. Do you know how they can be fought? How we can protect ourselves from them?
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Apr 21, 2012 03:26
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Dolan "Maybe they got to sleep soundly," Dolan says. "Whatever attacked us has probably left, letting them sleep normally." It made sense. Scavenger spirits being attacked by a god would probably not stick around very long unless they were more desperate or ill than he gave them credit for. "I'm fine. Just trying to rest and make sense of things. I don't think what happened here is connected to what happened with the refugees, but..." he pauses a moment, thinking. "What happened there was strange, and I don't like coincidences."
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Apr 21, 2012 19:21
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Dolan Dolan looks up and grunts a laugh at the mule, floating along so peacefully. "Well, at least that confirms that animals can exist here. Granted, we already had evidence from the northman's presence, but now we have more."
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Apr 21, 2012 21:48
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Dolan "He's capable, I think. granted I only saw some of the fight. Enough to see that the nobleman does know how to use that blade of his," Dolan offers. "No offense taken. If you had tried to loose an arrow and nearly killed yourself I'd be asking the same. It did leave me, I think." Or it was taken. "Magic is a capricious bitch, dancing at your beck and call one moment and then killing you the next. It doesn't help that the combat training I have is more tailored to fighting men than horses with assholes at both ends."
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Apr 22, 2012 01:01
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Dolan Dolan grows somber at the question. It is a moment before he speaks. "Not much. She's a Wilder. One of those magic users with the inborn ability. I've taught her a bit, but there's only so much she can learn from me. Hopefully she won't accidentally kill herself. It's been known to happen with Wilders."
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Apr 22, 2012 03:20
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Dolan "I will do what I can," Dolan answers before he is awakened. Truth be told, he did not know what he could accomplish. Teaching had never been one of his stronger abilities, and her being a Wilder would complicate things beyond that. To do nothing would be worse, though. Dolan stirs and begins to wake the others as the light of dawn comes, checking that none of them had been accosted in the night by whatever spirits they had apparently attracted. When he gets to Lo'el, he sees the large bruise on the faun's face in the light. "Here, let me check that. Does it still hurt?" First aid 12 to get a look at how bad it is. Not gonna heal it quite yet.
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Apr 23, 2012 19:57
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Dolan "Cold will help for now. After we meet with our 'visitors' I'll see if it's safe to Heal it." He looks around at the corn, seeing where the stalks had tell-tale fire damaged tips. By the pattern, it looked like some had been completely destroyed. "And you say the lass managed this? In her sleep?"
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Apr 23, 2012 22:45
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Dolan Dolan manages to suppress a wince at the sight of the bruise. It wouldn't do Lo'el any good to see that kind of reaction from the man acting as his physician. Well, at least it had been effective at getting him up, and it wouldn't leave any permanent damage once Dolan was done with it. While the mysterious visitors were watching, he didn't want to tip his hat too early; without his robe, they might not recognize him for a runepriest unless they knew what they were looking for. Hopefully.
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Apr 25, 2012 04:54
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Dolan Dolan spits at the mention of centaurs, but holds his tongue. He didn't exactly trust these newcomers; only one had revealed herself, and she and the others were clearly capable of remaining hidden any time they wanted. As she herself had said, she preferred to win, not fight, and that meant getting a sense of one's target, sussing out weaknesses and personalities. Or perhaps they were being honest, and they could be allies. too many possibilities, not enough lives to test them all. Detect lies 11
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Apr 26, 2012 06:21
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Dolan Dolan gives a non-committal grunt at Mary's declaration of her thoughts towards the monsters, but says nothing. The familiarity of her sentiment was almost haunting. perhaps if things had been different... But no, the Turns had him here, and this was where he was. he could not change that now, and he wasn't even sure if he wanted to. He packs up his belongings after Mary and her invisible entourage leave, and after a suitable amount of time passes and they are likely distant, he looks to Lo'el. "He was in our dream last night, floating on a separate cloud. Likely the work of our guest. Perhaps she cannot aim that ability, or thought him in danger as well. Come, let me deal with that wound." Casting Minor healing (skill 15), spending 2 FP for 3 healing, assuming it looks like the coast is actually clear and Per 12 for that
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Apr 27, 2012 01:41
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Dolan Dead bodies were nothing new to Dolan. The manner in which they had been killed was interesting, however. Six bodies, each killed very cleanly, for certain definitions of clean, laid out beside their bedrolls. It didn't look like they had been dragged out, which possibly meant they were awake when this happened. Slowly, he begins to check the camp for signs of the corpses being dragged to where they were. He looks up when Martin finds the journal, but is unable to read it. "May I see that book?" He looks over and checks out the prints that Alec mentions. From a man to a beast in one step. Formidable. "Shapeshifter," he says. "Difficult, but possible with the right magic." That he seemed to do it mid-stride leaves Dolan sceptical that this was magic. Even a skilled mage would find that bloody hard to do. Forensics, Search 11 to check if the bodies were moved after the fact, also checking out that book to see if i recognize the language and the footprints for anything tell-tale but idk what
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Apr 28, 2012 17:40
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Dolan "Here," he says pointing to the ground and to the bodies' clothes. "The dirt has been rearranged, and caked into their clothes; the bodies dragged to where they are now. Judging by how dry the blood is, they've been dead since this morning. Unless your camouflaged friend can teleport and turn into a bird, this was not done by her." He looks at the book, and raises an eyebrow as he examines the runes within. "Northman. Come here a moment. I think we need your expertise."
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Apr 28, 2012 17:56
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Dolan "This script," Dolan says, handing the book to Alec. "It looks like one of the ones your people use. Can you read it?"
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Apr 28, 2012 18:00
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Dolan "Scouts," Dolan says simply. "Kobolds, humans, and a satyr, all working under the same banner. Likely a banner of rebellion, if this sigil is any indication. I doubt they could have picked anything more cliché if they tried. All six with their throats cut, no signs of struggle which means they were either killed quickly or willingly, and then arranged to make it look like they had been killed in their sleep, all within visible distance of what may very well be a friendly monster army. "So," he says quickly, and with a long pause, looking to the others. "Who, how, and why? Thoughts?" Gus Hobbleton fucked around with this message at 19:38 on Apr 28, 2012 |
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Apr 28, 2012 19:26
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Dolan Dolan nods to Isit, and gets to work. "I can guard the area from scryers for some time, hopefully obscuring our presence. Sending a message may be more difficult. I will have to make preparations." Suiting actions to words, he begins Drawing. "This will take a moment, and some effort on my part." Once the runes are Drawn, he sends each of them to appropriate placements. There was no way he could cover the entire camp, but he could cover some of their tracks. Casting 3 uses of Scryguard at 3 FP each. Putting them in areas we have trafficked heavily and made actual changes to like the Satyr corpse, the human's bedroll where the journal was, and where we moved these boxes around or whatever the hell those two are doing. Gus Hobbleton fucked around with this message at 23:03 on Apr 28, 2012 |
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Apr 28, 2012 23:00
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Dolan Dolan nods, then Draws the Rune but does not Channel it. After the multiple attempts to get a single spell properly situated, he was somewhat fatigued. Next time he had the opportunity, he would have to get himself a midorlam. Perhaps Noah could provide one, for a price. "You should be able to do it with just that," he says. "My Channeling means nothing, and neither does the rune, not to you. If you want to do it, you can." He had left the bird tracks unwarded, so if she focuses there, she might be able to get something.
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Apr 28, 2012 23:37
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Dolan Dolan nods, standing up again and wavering slightly. "Let's go then, before we're found. Find somewhere safe nearby. I need to rest before I can send a message back."
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Apr 29, 2012 01:46
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Dolan It takes them much longer to make it down the hill than Dolan would like, but the only one he has to blame for that is himself. So exhausted from the recent spellcasting (a foolish idea, to cast so many spells in such quick succession), he finds himself stumbling most of the way in what is nothing more than a protracted, controlled fall. When he finally has a moment to rest, he takes it gladly, and opens his logbook to one of the earlier pages. he still had work to do. "I'm afraid I must admit, when I said it would take a moment of preparation to send the message, I lied. Preparation is an ill-suited word for this. What words, exactly, would you have me communicate?"
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Apr 29, 2012 04:48
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Dolan "That should do for now then. I'll send that as soon as I can. Communicating over this distance is difficult, and it may take more than one attempt." Dolan turns to the earlier pages in his logbook. This would be difficult, but doable. He'd never gone this deep before, but it should be possible. He was more afraid of the side effects than of the actual act. This could easily make for a very interesting few days. Steeling himself, he looks to the runes, those already penned into the logbook months, years, decades, centuries ago. All of them timeless, existing and having never existed. When they were gone, he would have to fill their space with whatever occupied their pages. This deep, he knew not what to expect. Taking one final breath, he Channeled. Stars filled the void, glittering and shining and reflecting until there was no void, no time, only their light. In the midst of it all, brighter even than the stars, was a single bar of light, focusing and refracting everything, gathering all the light of the universe. he reached out, and touched the bar, and saw it for the staff it was. His staff. Slowly it began to Turn, and the stars Turned with it, bending their light to its will. They swirled in a perfectly organized chaos, illuminating countless worlds. He struggled against the light, pushing the staff harder, spinning it faster. The stars burned him as they swirled, and he fought past them. The stars blinded him as they spun, and he fought past them. The stars shot through him as they whipped in the void, and he fought past them. After an eternity the staff ceased to exist, only the disk of its perfect omnipresent form. The void became a perfect singularity of stars existing at all points and no points simultaneously, and Dolan became them. He was Datan Tuneddud, and he used simple, undetectable magic to find the assassin who would kill his king, and sacrificed himself to protect him. He was Melbil Ilrathidas, and he probed the weaknesses of men to drive them to insanity, then he turned them on his foes. He was Deler Ingishbelal, and he was the royal Justiciar, charged with finding the truth where ever it may lie. He was Sodel Edaningiz, and she scoured the minds of foes as she flayed them alive, learning their secrets and toppling kingdoms He was Iton Mengegen, and he infiltrated enemy armies for his kingdom, reporting on their every movement then stealing away in the night before they were attacked. He was Unid Taldonud, and he devised a network of communication between the Mountain Homes that revolutionized trade and turned the dwarves from a loosely banded group of peasants into an economic superpower the likes of which the world had never known. He was Qurik Limuldur. He is Dolan Togaldatur. An instant had passed in six lifetimes as he opened his eyes. Power filled him, and he felt what he was looking for, so far away now, yet right beside him. He slipped in, and he spoke. Captain Dirksen, it is I, Dolan. I am communicating to you across the void through telepathy. We have located an army north of Noah, roughly half way between Noah and Paldiski, north of the fork in the road. We do not know their intentions yet but we believe they may be moving against us. We have also discovered what may be a free agent. A shapeshifter or very powerful mage, able to change into animal forms as well as take on the appearance of men he has killed. How should we proceed? Spending 5 CP on Sense Foes, Sense Emotion, Truthsayer, Mind-Reading, and Mind-Sending, bringing each to 14, then 2 more on Telepathy, bringing it to 14 as well. Casting Telepathy. Gus Hobbleton fucked around with this message at 23:58 on Apr 29, 2012 |
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Apr 29, 2012 05:52
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Dolan Dolan considers a moment before responding. What will this help entail? He had the distinct impression that receiving help from a spirit would not come without some sort of cost, likely only partially explained and extracted at the most inopportune time.
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Apr 29, 2012 21:32
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Dolan Well, if it was his own energy to begin with... Do it. This message needs to be sent.
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Apr 29, 2012 23:34
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Dolan It is a recent development, Dolan answers, in total sincerity. We will attempt to scout the army to determine their numbers. I must also add that I apologize for the suddenness of this contact. Unless there is anything else, I will contact you again in the morning with our report.
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Apr 30, 2012 00:14
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Dolan Dolan severs the connection, and stands up, feeling rather energized after being so exhausted a moment ago. "It's done. Dirksen would like us to scout the enemy, see if we can't get an idea of their numbers." He looks to Isit. "We'd best wait until night to attempt this, I imagine?"
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Apr 30, 2012 02:15
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| # ¿ May 10, 2024 13:22 |
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Dolan "The refugees are a low priority right now," Dolan says. "In the very unlikely event we can get them out safely without endangering ourselves, we can make that attempt. Otherwise," he shrugs. "Sunrise tomorrow," he says to Isit, nodding. "'As for a password, 'Get caught outside in any incliment weather?' to which you respond 'Aye, nothing I couldn't stand, but I need a stiff drink.' One of the various standbys I used to use."
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Apr 30, 2012 06:18
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