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Post by Reku on Apr 24, 2012 23:19:34 GMT
That's it, thought Thomas, I've hardly begun and I'm going to die. I'm going to die at the hands of a sadistic, raving, naked, wrinkly old man, and I'm completely powerless.
Thomas could barely see the old man out of the corner of his eye, he was sucking his finger, cooing to himself; 'ouch...'. He sounded closer and as he soon entered Thomas' vision, coming in close to the left side of his face, head cocked to one side, grinning inanely. 'How silly of me hey?' he breathed down Thomas' neck, and although he could barely feel it made him want to wretch. "Now. Enough games" the old man's voice suddenly stern, "I'm going to tell you what I want, and then maybe I'll let you speak, for a moment, just so you can agree. But I've shown you now, haven't I, I have the power'. He raised he hand slowly in front of Thomas' face and slowly pressed his nose with a withered thumb, it gave way with an unnatural softness; 'I have you under my thumb. What I want, of course, is to get out of this Hell, and you my serendipitous sightseers, my trusty travelers, quasi-questers...' he smile broadened, 'you're going to get me out.'
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Echo
Administrator
Keeper of the Multiversal Peace
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Posts: 8,659
Characters: Lexi Elendil, Sergeant Valerie Reyes, Katara Shadowdancer, Emilie Golding, Meghan Squire, Dayana "DG" Grace Williams, Jessica Rose, Chiyo, Aniani and Mirati, Xani, Robyn Luxli
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Post by Echo on Apr 25, 2012 9:30:05 GMT
'Get him out?! He'll be lucky if we don't kill him!' Lexi thought, but under the circumstances she couldn't really see how that was going to happen. Her dry eyes began watering because the paralysis prevented her even blinking. It made her vision blurry, but she could just make out the man coming towards her. A tear rolled down her cheek and onto the dusty ground. "Crying already? The quest hasn't started yet" The man's voice was mocking and he chuckled to himself. Shame quickly turned to anger, which burned through Lexi's mind. 'This naked, wrinkly, sadistic old man is making me feel shame?!' She couldn't bear it. In one last, desperate effort Lexi willed her fingers to move. But nothing happened. The man stood, smiling at her, as if he knew what she was doing behind her blank expression. She gave up. 'Fine' she thought 'I can at least go along with it, maybe an opportunity to kill him will come up' "So, are you going to help me? Or shall I just leave you here, paralysed, just waiting for one of Hell's nasty little creatures to find you?" 'You are one of Hell's nasty little creatures!' Lexi thought, as the man touched her lips and ran his finger down to the base of her neck. A tingling sensation spread along the line and Lexi's throat involuntarily gasped for air. She could move! Well, she could move her mouth and throat. "If you wanted our help, you could have just asked!" She found herself saying. "I mean, if you'd just kept up the mad old bat thing we probably would have gotten you out of here anyway." Lexi considered this. Well, maybe they would have just left him in a bar... "Is that a yes?" "Only if we keep hold of our own weapons." "So you can kill me?" "So we can protect you, of course." Lexi tried to smile sweetly, and ended up wondering what her face must have looked like. "Hmm..." The man seemed to be considering it. Lexi had realised he'd probably try to kit himself out in all their finest weaponry, maybe even done it already if they hadn't been holding onto them when they were paralysed. "What about you, boy?" He crossed over to Thomas.
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Post by Reku on Apr 27, 2012 11:49:15 GMT
The man came round to face Thomas this time, suddenly looking up into his face with an eager, childlike expression; 'Do you think you need to protect me too?'. He bust into a rasping, high pitched laugh. "Ha" he spat, then drew the sharp breath. "Rich isn't coming from her. Don't you agree?" Behind Thomas' stoney features and grim expression his mind was raging, the old old man smiled gleefully as if imagining the thought process in his captives head. 'I'll take that as a silent acceptance. I don't think I need more back chat from squirming humans and half breeds.' Then he stepped back, turned on his feet and clicked his fingers. "I can make you, it doesn't matter what you agree to."
On the sharp snap of the man's fingers Thomas began to feel a strange sensation from his lower back. At first warm and tingling, then growing hotter and more sharper it rose up his spinal cord, spreading out to embrace him as if channeled through the bones of his ribcage.
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Echo
Administrator
Keeper of the Multiversal Peace
PM me if you've got any questions!
Posts: 8,659
Characters: Lexi Elendil, Sergeant Valerie Reyes, Katara Shadowdancer, Emilie Golding, Meghan Squire, Dayana "DG" Grace Williams, Jessica Rose, Chiyo, Aniani and Mirati, Xani, Robyn Luxli
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Post by Echo on Apr 27, 2012 19:00:17 GMT
Lexi forced herself not to cry out in pain as the sensation spread through her. It almost felt like her veins were melting all over her body. "I just meant that three fighters are better than one!" She managed to blurt out in desperation. The man looked like he might be genuinely interested. "I mean" she managed to make her voice calmer "if we're going to get you out of here, would it not be sensible to have two extra people on guard instead of having to do everything yourself?" The sensation became less intense, and Lexi decided she must be making sense to him. "We're agreeing to help you anyway. Two extra pairs of eyes is helpful, but only if they can do something about whatever danger they've seen." The man seemed to take it in and consider this. "How do I know you're not going to try to kill me when my back is turned?" "You clearly have more power than both of us combined, you could probably kill us with a flick of your wrist if you wanted to, so why would either of us even try to attack you? We'd be dead before we'd taken two steps."
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tesslazarus
QA University Graduate
Posts: 16
Characters: Jude Walker
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Post by tesslazarus on Jul 6, 2012 23:55:53 GMT
When the magical whatever they'd used to get Jude to the Quest location - Hell apparently - spat him out he stumbled, dizzy. He was starting to worry he might never get used to the feeling Ahead of him in the distance, just close enough to make out a clear figure though in the huge empty plain their voices faded out long before they reached him, he could see people, presumably the other Questers. He regained his feet and was about to start going over to them when he saw two of them convulse. It was unmistakeable - someone being caused pain by magic, from no clear physical cause. Just like the magical thugs that Jude's mother had employed, though, he shuddered to realise, no-one had touched these two to do this to them. He threw himself to the ground. The third one, who seemed to be naked, also seemed unaffected by the magic attack, though the man was standing with his back to Jude, so it was hard to tell. He glanced around, looking for the source of the attack. He had to find it before whoever it was spotted him, or just tripped over him, frankly. The red dust that had been thrown up and all over him when he hid the ground wasn't exactly great camoflage, slow as he was trying to keep his movements, and his intended allies might spot him any minute, too. But the desert was bare from horizon to horizon, and Jude felt very exposed indeed on the great red plain.
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Echo
Administrator
Keeper of the Multiversal Peace
PM me if you've got any questions!
Posts: 8,659
Characters: Lexi Elendil, Sergeant Valerie Reyes, Katara Shadowdancer, Emilie Golding, Meghan Squire, Dayana "DG" Grace Williams, Jessica Rose, Chiyo, Aniani and Mirati, Xani, Robyn Luxli
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Post by Echo on Jul 11, 2012 9:42:55 GMT
From the corner of her sharp eyes, Lexi saw something that looked suspiciously like a rock move in the distance...
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Post by Reku on Jul 11, 2012 17:40:40 GMT
Thomas' eyes weren't strong enough, and his attention too focused on the sharp pain still burning down his back to make out the movement. The old man flinched, but didn't turn his head, his eyes narrowed. "It appears we have a new friend, hmm?" he said quickly in a raised, harsh tone. In the moment of flinching Thomas felt the pain lessen a little, something had taken the man's attention from them.
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Echo
Administrator
Keeper of the Multiversal Peace
PM me if you've got any questions!
Posts: 8,659
Characters: Lexi Elendil, Sergeant Valerie Reyes, Katara Shadowdancer, Emilie Golding, Meghan Squire, Dayana "DG" Grace Williams, Jessica Rose, Chiyo, Aniani and Mirati, Xani, Robyn Luxli
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Post by Echo on Jul 17, 2012 2:04:47 GMT
'Keep his attention away from the newcomer' was the only thought in Lexi's mind now. 'Whoever it is will likely help us. They must have seen us. What to do? What to do?' Then she had an idea. It would be pointless trying to keep discussing the terms of their freedom with the old man, he was clearly never going to agree to any of it, but forcing him to give them all of his attention could be a simpler task. "This is all your fault, Thomas!" She growled. "You wanted to follow this bastard here! Damn your human curiosity!" She yelled the last bit, and hoped Thomas would take the bait and understand.
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tesslazarus
QA University Graduate
Posts: 16
Characters: Jude Walker
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Post by tesslazarus on Jul 21, 2012 23:46:43 GMT
Jude flattened himself further into the dust, hoping the other Questers would pull this off. If they could just distract the man's attention, maybe he could somehow close the distance and do the one thing he was good for. Or the man might let slip something useful if he could hide longer...Perhaps that was cowardly. God, he was out of his depth here.
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Post by Reku on Sept 7, 2012 21:05:34 GMT
Thomas glared at Lexi, aghast. Drawing attention back to us? Why would that be a good tactic, Lexi? He had felt the cooling relief for a second as the old man had turned his attention towards the new comer, now he was looking between them with that same ferocious intensity. Yet his grip wasn't tightened, and Thomas continued to feel that cooling sensation building in his left hand, he could even feel the nerves tingling.
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