The Glitch IV - Inversion (Ch. 1)

[LadyTevar]

Brian was bored... extremely so. He wasn't even completely in the game and had a Discworld book in his hands and he often alternated between the screen and the pages of the book, "This better not get as boring as that bloody fifteen hour raid."

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

"Hello there, Miss," the high elf said politely as Leandra entered the front of the shop, "am I to assume that you are Miss Leandra, the potions-maker?"

Leandra smiled to the high elf. "Yes, I am. Forgive me, I am in a bit of a hurry... a friend of mine has requested the aid of a cleric." Still, she took a moment to give the high elf a -very- friendly look. "If you'd like, I'll be back later .. unless you'd like to join Thog and I in this venture?"

Back at her little attic apartment, Leah sent Al an invite to start an adventuring party with her. Several of Leandra's spells could hit every person she was in a party with, so it saved the effort of casting them one-by-one.

"Leandra, if you can get people to help, position them just outside the forest. I am going to see if I can ascertain their true intentions before we do anything that could get anyone killed. Never know... they may be talkative if a tree starts asking them questions."

Leandra spoke softly into the contact stone. "As you wish, El.. it's your forest. I'll have Thog and Sviri with me..." her blue eyes drift over to the high elf in open invitation. "... perhaps another."

[Comrade Tortoise]

[quote="Shark Bait"]Vadlenar was drawing close to where his friend was but he stopped along with the procession of about a dozen skeletons that followed him. They were about as quiet as an iron pot full of rocks rolling down marble steps and would certainly give away his position in just a manner of seconds. Vadlenar made the slightest movement of his hand and touched his dry lips, then began to move them silently, farther into the forest Elwyn “heardâ€

[Comrade Tortoise]

He slinked over to a large oak tree just outside the perimeter created by the dark Wolves as the riders set up camp. He was behind the massive tree and invisible to anyone who may be looking around the woods.

He placed his hands on the tree and set his lips very close to the bark. He began to whisper. Phrases and commands which caused the forces and laws of nature to bend and twist. The tree reconfigured itself and grew eyes ears, a nose and a mouth. It uprooted and became animate. Then it spoke in a slow but booming and powerful voice

"Who are you that trespasses in my wood?" the newly formed and temporary Ent demanded.

Elwyn fell back into the cover of the forest so he could avoid any attacks that may be directed against the Ent.

[SirNitram]

Thog's fingers were let off the hook, for now. Their deceptive ways would be reviewed further, and troublemakers would be in for it then. The huge halfgiant pulled the greathammer from his back and followed Leandra in the way he always did; in a good positionto rush anything that looked like it might be dangerous.

More than once, an innocent tree had been bumrushed for looking a bit scary.

[Narsil]

"If you'd like, I'll be back later .. unless you'd like to join Thog and I in this venture?"

"Can't be any more boring than the time I went through a dungeon raid and there was nothing there," the high elf said cheerily, "I'm in."

[Dark Silver]

The tree came to life and spoke to them in a loud, booming voice.

"Who are you that trespasses in my wood?" the newly formed and temporary Ent demanded.

The Dark Riders and thier mounts merely looked at the tree. For a moment, they looked at each other, saying nothing, for a few long moments. To the average player, it was almost as if they had lagged in place.


When they moved, thier intents where clear. The one who lead them draw a sword, the dark metal gleaming in the morning sun as it filtered through the trees, occasionally dulled by a swirling black aura.

The second drew two sabers from beneath his cloak, the blades glinting fully, a black ichor dripping from the tips, killing the grass as it splattered on the ground.

The third drew no weapon, it's hands glowed with power, as it spoke in a gravelly voice, hands moving in he gestures which would focus magical energy, "In Nox Corp".

The Ent, temporary as it may be, was still alive. With the spell cast, greenish black energy flooded the tree, striking the bark, then soaking into it. Moment's later, the Ent's face twitched, eyes widdening in sudden, unspeakable pain, then slumping down, all in the space of few seconds.

The air about them shimmered for a moment as the tree died, and the three, and thier mounts, disappeared.

[Agent Fisher]

Decimus had dispatched three of the quietest and fastest of the militia to scout the forest ahead of him. He and eleven others rode slowly forward, along the edge of the forest. Nothing so far. Suddenly one of the scouts was next to him.

"Sir, three riders, one hundred and fifty meters ahead."

Decimus nodded and led his men forward.

[LadyTevar]

"If you'd like, I'll be back later .. unless you'd like to join Thog and I in this venture?"

"Can't be any more boring than the time I went through a dungeon raid and there was nothing there," the high elf said cheerily, "I'm in."

"Wonderful," Leandra beamed, giving him a smile that had struck down more than one paladin as the more mundane task of adding him to the party was taken care of by her player. "Sviri is waiting for us at the forest's edge.. we need to hurry."

Just because Thog had 'forgotten' to follow once, she turned to the half-giant and stated aloud. "The forest is this way... let's go!"

As they marched, she spoke into another, differently colored contact stone. "Vi, we're on our way." she stated, adding the dark elf to the party. "If you want to scout ahead, please do so." There were other things she did as the three of them marched, pausing briefly to 'buff' them with protections.

"Mother Inanna, bless us with your strength" she chanted, granting everyone in the party a bonus to their strength.

"Mother Inanna... grant us the protection of the earth." she cast her second spell, and the effects of a stoneskin spell wrapped themselves around everyone in the party, buffing their defense.

"Mother Inanna, bless this your child in all ways," another chant, this one a particular favorite of hers. It was a low level spell, so she had to cast it on each person singularly, but the spell gave them a luck bonus to all rolls... as well as an additional bonus for every 3 levels Leandra had. One of these days Leah knew that spell would be capped by the Silver Guardians, but until then a +12 bonus to attack, defense, and saves was one of the best spells around. She'd have to wait until she saw Vi to cast it on her, but it was simple to cast it on Thog, the high elf, and herself before they reached the outskirts of the forest.

[Comrade Tortoise]

Seeing this sight the druid was terrified. Thankfully he had not confronted them directly. He spoke into both his communication stone, and into the communique with his necromancer friend

"Alight, I communicated verbally with them with an Ent proxy, they killed it with a slaying spell and teleported out. I didnt get the chance to confront them directly, and I dont think we could have survived the encounter. Something strange is going on. Vadlenar, Leandra, you know killing magics better than I do, if you wouldn't mind coming to take a look at this"

[Agent Fisher]

Decimus and his men trotted into the clearing where the men had been. There was a tree lying on the ground.

He patted his horse when it nieghed. Something wasn't right here.

[LadyTevar]

Seeing this sight the druid was terrified. Thankfully he had not confronted them directly. He spoke into both his communication stone, and into the communique with his necromancer friend

"Alight, I communicated verbally with them with an Ent proxy, they killed it with a slaying spell and teleported out. I didnt get the chance to confront them directly, and I dont think we could have survived the encounter. Something strange is going on. Vadlenar, Leandra, you know killing magics better than I do, if you wouldn't mind coming to take a look at this"

Leandra frowned, hearing the message from the druid. "El, be careful. They may have simply used an invisibility spell."

She pulled out the other contact stone and relayed the druid's warning to Sviri, adding "Be careful, Vi. They may not have left the area."

[Comrade Tortoise]

Seeing this sight the druid was terrified. Thankfully he had not confronted them directly. He spoke into both his communication stone, and into the communique with his necromancer friend

"Alight, I communicated verbally with them with an Ent proxy, they killed it with a slaying spell and teleported out. I didnt get the chance to confront them directly, and I dont think we could have survived the encounter. Something strange is going on. Vadlenar, Leandra, you know killing magics better than I do, if you wouldn't mind coming to take a look at this"

Leandra frowned, hearing the message from the druid. "El, be careful. They may have simply used an invisibility spell."

She pulled out the other contact stone and relayed the druid's warning to Sviri, adding "Be careful, Vi. They may not have left the area."

"Shit, you are right..." he whispered, backing deeper into the forest unseen.

he sent a similar message back to the Warlock

"Be careful, and bring your skeleton host, as much as it pains me... We may need the fire support if they simply went invisible"

[Comrade Tortoise]

The militia had showed up. if they were invisible this could get nasty. Elwyn closed his eyes and called upon a tiny fraction of the life nergy of the entire forest to shield him from death magics and curses. Just o he had a fighting chance

[Agent Fisher]

Decimus pulled out a contact stone.

"Watch officer, this is Lt. Maximus. I'm at the forest border with the industry sector. We have three unknown riders, and what looks like a dead tree or ent. Alert the Baron and place all patrols on alert."

"Yes, Eltee."

Decimus put the stone away.

"Is anyone out here?" He yelled.

[Shark Bait]

Vadlenar moved his band of servants forward through the dense under brush the Skeletal warriors leading the way, with Vadlenar a little behind them flanked by two undead mages.

He arrived to where Elwyn was, “Greetings druidâ€

[Shark Bait]

Decimus pulled out a contact stone.

"Watch officer, this is Lt. Maximus. I'm at the forest border with the industry sector. We have three unknown riders, and what looks like a dead tree or ent. Alert the Baron and place all patrols on alert."

"Yes, Eltee."

Decimus put the stone away.

"Is anyone out here?" He yelled.

Vadlenar turned to the voice after extending his greeting to Elwyn, “Hail warriorâ€

[Comrade Tortoise]

Elwyn couldnt risk giving his position away. So he did the intelligent thing and used another proxy. He whispered a few words, and another woodpecker, they were so useful, alighted on a tree near the Lt.

It started pounding a message into the bark of the tree. Tapping in letters with it's beak

"Yes" the message said The woodpecker moved down a couple inches

"Not Safe"

needless to say this took a few seconds and the bird cackled to bring attention to it and the message it had scrawled

[Agent Fisher]

'Oh, god, a necro.'

"Hail. What do you know about what happened here?"

[Dark Silver]

The three watched.

The militia filed in, common NPC guards, with a few player characters who were close by when the call went out. Some high levels, though most appeared to be well outfitted.

It would be a massacre.

From the edge of the clearing, the first of the massive wolves attacked. The poor militia men where caught offguard and scattered as the wolf seemed to miterialize from nothing. The spray of blood as the throat of three militia men were ripped out. The other two wolves joined the first, each time a milita man tried to run, the wolf caught it, and tore it to shreds in a moment.


The milita began togather in the middle of the woods, trying to form a defensive formation, when the words of power filtered through the trees.

"In Jux Hur Ylem" repeated three times.

In the midst of the men, the screams where the loudest, as whirling tornado's of spining weaponry appeared. The blade spirits sliced open men with little reguard to what they wore, blood and bodyparts flew in whirling clouds of crimson and gore.

The well trained formation instantly fell apart, as the men fled for thier lives.

"Kal Vas Xen Nox" the voice spoke out again, as a green tinted humanoid form appeared. As it walked, the forest sickened and died almost instantly, noxious vapors flooding from it's body.

It was a poison elemental, a creature made of pure poison, deadly to all life. One unlucky militia man ran through the elemental as it formed, the flesh stripped from his bones as the poison ate it away.

Between the blade spirits, the wolves, and the poison elemental, the militia unit were being decimated....it was doubtful anyone of them would escape alive.

Within seconds, a well trained fighting unit had been destroyed utterly, the grove was a gorehouse, blood splattered everywhere, and the dying screams of the men echoed even to the town.

Behind Decimus, the leader of the riders stepped forth, it's breathing the only sound it made, as he raised it's sword in a killing stroke.

[Rukia]

"Got it." Sivri whispered. She was sure to take extra precautions to keep hidden. She hoped that she wouldn't be found out by the riders before everyone showed up. "Le? Have El meet me somewhere, I'm not liking scouting this out alone"

She waited and heard the sounds of a fight and added, "Le, they're attacking! I don't know where they are though, how fast can you get here?"

She started running to the sound of the fight. As she approched the clearing, the fumes nearly made her sick.

[Comrade Tortoise]

Elwyn wove a quick spell as he slunk back into the woods. CLuds gathered quickly above the section of forest. In a few seconds, lighting bolts would start raining from the heavens.

And the first one struck out from the clud toward the Dark Wolf

...
\Justin was beside himself. A combination of fear and excitement coursing through every neuron. He didnt know if he would get out alive, or if he would have an opportunity to Tree Jump out or what.

[Agent Fisher]

One of the few men left yelled to Decimus.

"SIR! BEHIND!"

Decimus turned and brought his sword to parry the blow.

[LadyTevar]

Leandra saw the clouds gather, and heard the lightning strike somewhere in the forest. Faint screams came from within. "0|-| 2|-|1+" she cursed in leet, glancing to the High elf and Thog. "I think we need to find out what's happening in there." She started forward, only then getting Sviri's message

"Vi! Can you see what's going on? We're hearing combat."

[SirNitram]

Thog grunted as he saw the lightning, and nodded to the leetspeaking Leandra. He hoisted his hammer and started to run towards the disturbance. This was, amusingly, the one area he excelled. He charged like a freight train and hit like a comet. He didn't necessarily win all the time, as he frequently rushed the nastiest opponent first, but he was going to go down bashing either way.

[Rukia]

She stopped and saw that someone was posed to kill someone. She sprinted to him and knocked him out of the way, catching the end of the sword with her shoulder. She rolled on the ground away from the knight. and looked at her wound.


"Le it's getting bad. I just saved the knight that was trying to arrest me. I caught a blade in the shoulder."