Flipz

"We wouldn't be giving Chauncey Passion. If Chauncey is really as heartless and power-hungry as you say he is, Passion will not stand for it. Passion is not a weak-willed man. He will take a stand for what's right." Arthur sighs. "One of the things I've learned as a Hero is that problems don't just stop when you've dealt with them; they continue on, lingering in little ways, before welling up again in new forms. The inequality and hatred in Dastan...we fought a great war to restore peace and try to heal the divides among its people, but in the end hatred grew anew, and yet another revolutionary leader arose to spark war. The ancient archdemons of Azazot were sealed away in the temple beneath Eubric, only to be unleashed once more by my more foolish family members. The Eatress, Baba Yaga, was thought to be long-vanished with the sinking of Mercution, and yet she returned, kidnapping my cousin and doing unspeakable harm to him in the process. Dark forces cannot be destroyed, only delayed. One day, it always returns...it's up to us to make sure it's dealt with when it does." "You're in the wrong business if you think this isn't your concern. Heroes are made to meddle. But I'm glad it's you and not some self-entitled king like Eubric's looking for. You don't want to go down that path. Handing power to one person, no matter how well-intentioned, is a recipe for disaster. Imagine what would happen if Hoke or Guts, or Hel, even Chauncey took Eubric's home. Every single one of them would think they'd be choosing the best things for Eubric. And every single one of them would be wrong. Hel, as passionately as I believe in Passion, I wouldn't want to let him rule Eubric. Kings and Queens are a bad idea, and it's high time we moved past them. Better a disunified group of selfish Heroes, whose interests can come into conflict, than a single person with authority absolute." "We're bringing back Hope's brother Passion. It's our only shot of putting together the pieces of the puzzle before the Darkness overtakes us all. We don't like the way the wind's blowing, and we're doing something about it. We were hoping to convince everyone on the Council of this plan's necessity. I take it from your reaction, Lady Piglina, that that is not going to happen. I'm curious to know, who set you against us? Who, in the end, chose to betray their allies and stab us all in the back?"

Miirym steps aside to talk with Bombast while Arthur focuses on Matthias. "<It...I must admit, I am intrigued by the prospect. I would have to escort Arthur home, to Eubric, but perhaps...afterwards.>" She hesitates. "<You must understand, Master Bombast, my life's greatest goal thus far has been to protect him. To protect everyone, really, but especially him. He has given up much to care for me, it only seems right to return the favor. But the opportunity you have offered...it is too great to pass up. Arthur has family in Eubric. He trusts them, and I will trust them to take care of him while I am away. Once he is settled, I will return to Etheria to begin my training. Would that be acceptible?>" OOC: I could give her up for a Quest, but I'm not sure I could do it for the next one in particular. Afterwards, though, I could do it for sure. "Passion has lived a very long life, and has knowledge of many things that are no longer known to any others in this world. The Darkness, these Witches everyone keeps going on about...at the moment, we're grasping at shadows, with no idea of how to deal with them. If we resurrect Passion, we have much greater odds of being able to understand what's going on. It's not so much a mystical power as the power of accumulated experience, knowledge, and wisdom. You are now immortal, it's true, but your experience is still limited to the time you were born. Passion has walked Olegaia since before recorded history. He remembers these things, and unlike Hope he is unlikely to forget them." "I'm not sure how to explain my feelings of doom and gloom. It's based more on gut instinct, a subconscious reaction to events going on in the world, sort of like that feeling you get in the midst of battle, where all of a sudden you can guess what your opponent's about to do and you have a split second to counteract it." Arthur shrugs apologetically. "I wish I could explain it better. It's just sort of a sixth sense you start to develop over time. Enough Quests fall completely to pieces around you and you can start to just tell when a situation's starting to come apart at the seams." Arthur goes quiet. "And that's not even counting the visions. I don't know if you've ever had them before, but I have--not often, but enough. One thing I know for sure: they don't happen without reason. Sometimes you don't get to find out that reason, but it's always there. When I had my vision of the First Breath, that's when I knew for certain that something big was in the works, that my gut instincts were right. I don't fully understand it--but that's exactly why we need Passion to help us."

"Greetings, Master Bombast. How's the weather?" Miirym glares at Arthur. "...what? Oh come on, I got it too when I practiced, it's an occupational hazard of being a mage of meteorological matters." Miirym rolls her eyes at Arthur, but can't quite hide her own smirk of amusement. Arthur smiles, then looks back to Bombast. "I've been thinking about what you said when we briefly met earlier. Or, well, earlier-ish. And while I'm afraid that me abandoning Miirym to go back to weather wizardry, I did manage to mull over a potential alternative." Arthur glances at Miirym. "As Arch-Meteorologistrate of Etheria, I'm sure you've had many an apprentice--my Aunt Merryweather among them, I'm sure, assuming you were Arch-Meteorologistrate when she and my mother trained here in their respective fields. However, I wonder...would you know how to train a dragon in the art of weather manipulation?" Miirym shows a sudden, keen interest. "<Me?>" "Why not? Sure, it is likely you'd be limited to the element of your breath, but from what I've seen of your power it is not unlike my old Darkness spells. Even the thick, foglike form it takes seems ideal for creating a Dim weather condition--." "Hold that thought, please," Arthur says to Bombast. Arthur leans against Miirym and strokes his stubbly lip for a moment, lost in thought. He slowly slides down the dragon's side until he is sitting on the floor. "Passion was...a noble man. He could be harsh, and hard to read, but you could tell he genuinely wanted to make things better. He was wise, but blunt, and honorable--he never asked for any risk or sacrifice that he himself was not willing to make. I remember when we found him, in the Valley of Ennon. Wren--Dark Lady, chaomancer, former Hero of Heroica--and her compatriot had petrified him in stone for seven years, but even standing there, weak, injured, having been suspended for the better part of a decade on the verge of life and death, he stood by our side, willing to risk further injury and use the last of his dwindling Ether supply to try to support and heal us as best he could. He always saw the best in people, too. He blamed himself for Wren choosing to act as a villain, because he'd wanted so desperately for her to make the better choice." Arthur thinks for a few moments, choosing his words to Matthias carefully, precisely. "He was very mysterious about the whole 'Old Gods' thing, yes. But to be honest, I think a lot of it is because he didn't want to misuse his power. As I understand it, those three somehow...draw energy from the emotions of others, or at least the emotions for which they're named. When we met his brother, Regret mentioned that Wren's passion for Chaos would have fed Passion far better than us mere Heroes. But he chose to help us make a better world anyway. And that speaks volumes." Arthur's head drifts back for a moment as he reminisces, awash in painful memories. "But you know, more than anything else...Passion was sad. He'd lived too long, seen too many ill things, things that wounded him to his very core. You could see it in his eyes." Arthur looks into Matthias' eyes. "I can see it in your eyes, too. Passion once told Haldor--if you were in Baltarok, I suppose you've met him?--anyway, he told Haldor that a leader must stand aloof, and that they lead lonely and sad lives. And that's the kind of life he led. Always giving of himself, never asking for anything, nor even respect, in return. Always putting everyone, anyone, before himself. That's just who he was." "The night he died...I made a lot of mistakes. And maybe Dyric's right, maybe I'm not directly responsible for his demise. But either way you look at it, I still let him down. He didn't...deserve what happened to him. And now his knowledge, his secrets, could be the key to preventing an even bigger catastrophe. Maybe I'm being a little selfish, trying to make up for things I can't change. But something is coming, you can practically feel events building towards a climax. I don't know how to deal with it, Hope doesn't know how to deal with it, no one alive does. But Passion steered us true in taking down Wren, and I'd trust him to do the same in dealing with this threat now--whatever it reveals itself to be." Arthur shrugs. "Does that help answer a few questions, Master Matthias?"

"Maybe. Back in Dastan I thought we proved that Heroica can actually accomplish something, but when we returned I saw that the change we accomplished only really went so far. I personally think Heroica just got more honest, stopped trying to hide behind a veneer of honor it never really had. Heroica is dangerous, and it's focused on changing things. Whether for good or for bad...that's up to you." "I think you're trying to hold yourself to the standard of a god. We're limited, all of us, mortal or not, to our own perspective. We might strive to do better, but ultimately to escape that perspective entirely would be to cease being ourselves. We can only do the best we can, and when we err try to do what we can to alleviate the consequences. You're right in that not everything is obvious, but we can only do what we can to perceive them, and to deal with them as best we can." "I'm going to have a chat with Bombast, but before I go. I heard you mentioning Guts' campaign. Noel's filled me in a little on that political mess, he's quite upset that Sungold rejected his bid to nominate himself for Wizard King of Eubric. These campaigns are one of those hidden threats. I want no part of it, but I have family on both sides...maybe even all three. Tread carefully, brother. You will not pull a Dastan or a Baltarok out of this one." Arthur turns and stands next to Miirym. "Melquiades, please take Miirym and me to Bombast's office. And be sure to fetch us when you take the others to the Ice Room."

Yeah, you don't need any building ability at all to run the Fields. While getting new MOCs for splash images for areas that don't have them would be nice, everything other than the Roaming Monster is something Sandy has made already (in terms of both stats and images), and even the Roaming Monster stays the same between runs until a party defeats it. It's mostly a matter of maintaining the stamina to run dozens of battles in a row, with only a day or two in between them.

"It makes you realize that you will have to watch everything you know and love, everything you care about, wither and turn to dust in the winds of time. It forces you to value the time you have with it, because one day it will all be just a memory." Arthur lowers his head towards the ground, raising only his eyes to meet Dyric's. "There...may be a few things I haven't told you about myself. Things that happened during our many times apart. When we get a chance to speak more privately, I should explain them to you." Arthur sighs, then looks back up. "If it was Hoke alone, sure. But Torc...I do not trust that creature. And she does not trust me." Arthur looks to Miirym. "You spent more time with her than I. What was your impression?" "<She is posessed of a fierce drive, one that leads her to seek to guide her partner's path. Beyond that I cannot say. She is not one for much speaking.>" Arthur nods thoughtfully. "I see," he says simply. Arthur exhales slowly, lips pursed. "It depends. Do you mean a hero, a purveyor of great and noble deeds? Or do you mean a godlike mercenary of an organization in Eubric?" Arthur stares unfocusedly towards a nearby torch, watching its flame slowly consuming its fuel as it throws out light across the area. "The two aren't mutually exclusive, of course. But Heroica as it stand is merely a name and a power: the power to survive, to convert one's will and determination into an ever-increasing array of nigh-unstoppable armaments. Any idiot can join Heroica and push their own cause, doing whatever they see fit with no risk of repercussion--at least, not to themselves. They need put nothing on the line, and so selfishly serve themselves without being in any danger at all. Many are bullies, and those that aren't often become them, whether they realize it or no." "Real heroes are those who seek to improve the world, and are willing to put themselves on the line to do so. I've known a fair few people who can be called true heroes--Hans, Poletad, Triad, Phil, even a ship's captain named Illdria. They all sought to make the world better, in ways great or small, and when the time came they chose to risk their lives for the sake of making things right. To me, that's heroism, even if the heroics are as simple as keeping a cheat from harming four uninvited guests. Real heroes take responsibility, rather than leaving the mess for someone else to clean up." Arthur looks back to Dyric. "I can't call myself a hero, in either sense of the word. But for you...yes, 'hero' is a description I can certainly agree with."

"Hmm...interesting. Be sure to come pick me up before you head to the Ice Room, I definitely want to be involved in that...whatever it is." "Indeed. This is a situation with a lot of delicate intricacies. I'm not sure I like how we had to split up, it means that all of us are missing a lot of information about little details that might prove important later. Purpearl in particular...I'll give her this, she is honorable in trade, but I'll be damned if I can get an actual read on her. She speaks much like Hoke, and from what I can tell like Matthias as well, but I don't know whether or not she'll try to stab us in the back out of her hatred for Chauncey." Miirym looks up at this. "<You think they will go so far as to turn on us?>" Arthur nods. "Hoke might, if Torc makes the first move. She is as aggressive as Bellerai. You've grown more aggresive, too, I've noticed." Miirym glances down pensively, but does not say anything. Arthur looks back to Dyric. "I'm hoping desperately that his threats are of the 'if things go wrong' nature, as he says. But on the airship from Dastan to Xu, his dragon nearly attacked me, growing aggressive enough that Lady Felix felt Guffington was in danger. And we both know Hoke is steadfast to a fault, he will follow her into battle if it comes to it." He sighs. "Matthias worries me, too. He seems...hurt. Distrustful beyond measure. He reminds me a lot of...well, me. The old me. I don't know, I keep trying to reach out, to convince him that this is the right path, but nothing I say seems to get through to him. Now I know how you and Haldor and Thothwick felt about me that night in Eubric. I fear that if things do indeed go south, he too might turn against us." "<You need to have faith. In them not to betray us, in me to protect you if they do.>" Arthur smiles, a little wistful at Miirym's somewhat arrogant optimism. "It's a nice sentiment. But he who's walked the traitor's path knows well the winding way. I once stabbed my closest allies straight in the back. I'll be forever looking over my shoulder for the knife aimed at my own."

"Decently. Purpearl, Hoke, and I met the Forge Master. Apparently, if you have any loose gems, you can convert them into the Ethereal variety." Arthur shows Dyric his new Garnet by way of example. "It seems a very useful service, but you have to fight these gem sprites while under the effect you're trying to imbue. A very useful service, if difficult to accomplish. I think you'd have to let Purpearl handle that Amethyst for you, but the Opal might be something you can manage. ...Maybe," Arthur hastily adds, observing Dyric's defensive artifacts with dismay. "I'd like to buy and convert the Forge Master's Sapphire and my own Opal myself, but I'd much prefer to get one of the Ethereal Opals the Norn promised us if we helped her get into the Ice Room. Any luck convincing Melquiades to let us help clear the place out?"

Hmm...I might try the sapphire gem fight, then, if I can get it done before the Ice Room stuff.

OOC: My Garnet should now be an Ethereal Garnet (Earth+Sealed). I'm not sure how Zeph is handling experience, either. Arthur bows to the Forge Master. "Thank you for giving me this opportunity, good sir. Rest assured, I will be back later for your Sapphire, but first I would like to check in on my friends. Melquiades, please take me and Miirym to Dyric."

Arthur attacks Sprite A from the Front Row, while Miirym attacks Sprite C from the Back Row. Battle Order: Arthur Miirym

Prophet meditation, it's a separate roll that generates large amounts of Ether. Originally, the Critical Hit roll of Prophet would (while meditating) restore all Ether; now it just restores 25 Ether.

The real advantage of SoL is that you can use it even if you don't have a Nostrum handy, and that in some Quests you get Ether back for free by resting. In a Quest where neither condition is true, it's not the best option. (Although a free Luck in the first Round of combat via Lens of Speed-Reading can be nice too.)

*insert "¿Porque no los dos?" gif here.* Alternatively: try thirty pieces (shekels?) of silver.

Miirym switches to Sprite C, Back Row. Arthur continues his attack. Battle Order: Arthur Miirym

Arthur nods in thanks to Miirym, and strikes at Sprite B from the Front Row. Miirym switches targets to Sprite A from the Back Row.

OOC: Assuming the battle stats are the same as the others'. Arthur attacks Sprite A from the Front Row with Zoot's Rebel, while Miirym uses her Breath on Sprite B from the Back Row. If either attack results in a regular Hit/Breath, they swap targets on the next Round.

Congrats, StickFig!! Hope everything goes well for you all.

Arthur uses a Mead on Miirym. "Drink up. You'll need it." Arthur and Miirym are ready to fight. OOC: Thanks.

Arthur drinks a Mead in preparation and applies his Shining Polish to his Shadeaux Cape. "Ah. In that case, yes, I am ready to convert my Garnet." OOC: The Mail of the Renegade Commander should be SP:3, bringing my Defense to 54, and then applying the polish should bring it up to 58. Also not sure how I got a duplicate Hollow Lance in my inventory, I'm 90% certain I gave it back to Hoke (especially since it's already in his ). EDIT: OOC: By the way, are the Water sprites supposed to be Dark as well, or are they supposed to be of a different enemy type? Knowing this affects if I decide to use any more consumables.

Oh, heavens, I know that feel. I have at least two mechanics sitting in the works that I just don't have the storyline to support. Hopefully something will pop up eventually that I can marry them into. Interesting to hear that. Any idea when it'll launch? My upcoming Diana Quest is already tied into two others, why not take it up to 11 and tie into a fourth?

"Hmm...I was planning to convert it myself, but if you want to borrow it, sure. I'll just try to help out with the Ice Room situation instead."

What is up with the lack of activity around here? It seems like nothing's happened for like two weeks, is everyone on the planet away at PAX South, or did all the exams get moved to January or something? As a reminder: I am still looking for people willing to build interiors for my upcoming Quests. Drop me a PM if you're available and interested.

"In that case, I would like to convert my Garnet to an Ethereal Garnet, please. And I would be interested in buying your spare Ethereal Amethyst as well, since it does not seem possible to remove the Amethyst from my weapon at the moment."

"Former," Arthur replies. "If there was some way I could cast spells while still staying by Miirym's side, I would, but until then I have to make do with mundane imbuement." Arthur frowns at the notice of short supply. "Well, I am still interested in removing the Amethyst from this weapon and converting it, but if that is not possible I would like to know what effects I would gain by converting my Opal, Garnet, or Ruby. I'm still deciding which I'd like to tackle first, though I am leaning towards the Opal."