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Eloquent Conversationalist
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 Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 12:08 pm
Slifer Ozura "We have a group that wishes to speak to your leader. Only your leader will do, we will take no less. This is your only chance for peace. If you do not comply now, we will march to your city, and kill everyone inside, starting with you. If you do comply, our army will march towards your city, and halt their march there until negotiations with your leader have been completed. If I were you, I would take this deal." The Official's eyes narrowed. Four good man had just been slaughtered for no good reason. Their families would be devastated by the news. One man, he knew, had just become a father to a new baby girl. He fought back his rising ire at the needless death of his comrades, and spoke into his radio. "Get the King on the radio, now. I don't care if he's settling a domestic dispute or signing a treaty, we have more pressing and immediate issues on hand. Four men are down, and they are demanding they speak to the King..." The man on the other end of the radio gave the affirmative, and after a few minutes, the King's voice came over the radio. "This is the Leader of the City of Lament. I understand you have killed four of my Guard, and have demanded to speak to me... Now that you've got my attention, what is it that you wish to discuss?"Meanwhile, the watchtowers in the distance were watching, and monitoring the radio chatter. They took note of the army's continued advance and readied themselves. The main guns of Lament were loaded and ready to start firing the instant things went sour. And they would continue to fire until every last threat had been eliminated.
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Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 12:27 pm
Captain Starrow lounged in his chair, watching the scene unfolding on the ground. That's one way to say hello, he thought. He heard a clacking of bones as one of the communication officers ran up to him, standing beside his chair and awaiting acknowledgment.
"Report."
"Sir, the Vecna and Vengeance are both currently engaged in and dominating their respective zones."
"Excellent. All we have to do then is wait for the opportune moment."
The comms officer saluted and returned to his station.
"Mr. Biggs," the captain said, "I want reconnaissance of the surrounding area. Have the mages scry out to a one-hundred mile radius."
"Aye, captain. Anything we be lookin' fer?"
"I'll know it when I see it."
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Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 8:24 pm
The general smiled at the official as he held up the radio. A laugh came from his body, as he looked down on the small pitiful man. Creatures of life disgusted the General, their bodily functions, their essence was simply abhorent to consider.
"No, this is the kind of proposition that occurs face to face. I don't think you quite realize who you are dealing with here. We are from the Empire in the North, the Empire of Death. We will speak to your King, face to face, or we will not speak to him at all."
The mages in the army were well aware that things could turn sour, they being in constant communication of one another. They began to concentrate alot of effort into the shields over the army, while one or two took all their effort off the shield, and searched the skies. Any incoming projectile would try to be stopped or slowed as it approached the armies bulk.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:37 am
"Sic 'em, boy."
It had been one of those rare bright days in Lament before a single cloud had covered the skies. Even from deep within the city, where the marching lifeless could not be seen nor heard yet, there was no mistaking that the black figure floating so high up in the heavens was an omen if destruction. Its wings blackened the sun, and already, citizen both curious and frightened were gathering to gaze at the dragon of steel.
Between a dumb child and a rich peddler stood, however, one that looked at the machine not negatively, but rather in a calculating way. There was no airport in the city adapted for such a vehicle, and it was not just passing by either.
"I wouldn't mind having one of those for myself ..."
The man started elbowing his way through the crowd, moving toward the edge of the city, his eyes never leaving the airborne mass.
Meanwhile, a small, child-sized animal was flying high in the air, higher than birds usually go, to meet with the floating fortress.
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 1:19 am
Slifer Ozura "No, this is the kind of proposition that occurs face to face. I don't think you quite realize who you are dealing with here. We are from the Empire in the North, the Empire of Death. We will speak to your King, face to face, or we will not speak to him at all." The official knew his life was likely coming to an end soon. But he'd done his job for his city, given his life for its protection. He could deal with that fate. The King of Lament was very honest with the undead horde. He didn't take power-playing from anyone. And he most certainly was not going to be ordered around by someone who had shown him no respect, nor had given him any reason to speak with them face to face other than threats. Negotiations could commence over the radio, or s**t could blow up. Lament was a powerful fortress city. Its partnership with Raven Industries since the last attack had increased the city's power immensely. If they chose to attack, they would suffer losses greater than any force before them. Were they so easily willing to lose those forces without considering an alternative? Or was the leader of the Dead-Men army as stupid and ignorant as he had lead the King to believe?
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 1:33 am
"What are they doing down there?" Captain Starrow asked to nobody in particular.
"Captain, something is approaching."
"Eh?" the captain whirled around to look at the image being displayed on the scrying mirror.
"It's some winged creature. Should we shoot it?"
"No. It doesn't look like anything threatening. If it gets closer, have one of the mages handle it. Prepare to activate shield runes and have the men standby at battle stations. I've a feeling our opportune moment is approaching."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 1:45 am
The creature was humanoid. A gangly little thing, roughly 4 feet long were it to stand at full height. Much like a human, it wore clothes too. A white sleeveless shirt with a hood, and pants that reached above its ankles, red in color. Its shoes looked like the kind elves wear in fairy tales, pointed leathery things with no real shape, more like cloth wrapped around the foot than an actual shoe.
Beyond that, the thing had little in common with a man. Its wings were long and pointed, its curled hair was bright bright red, and so were its large eyes. Its wings were very curious. Not only did they look too small to support the being's weight, but one was leathery and bat-like, while the other was slightly bigger, and covered in jet black feathers. It's long, bony fingers were wrapped around the hilt of a short, one-sided sword, much like a butcher's knife.
Oblivious to the radars, mages, defensive runes, guns or other devices that could roast it like the bird it pretended to be, the little imp flew on, with the firm intent on latching at the base of the flying machine's "tail".
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 8:31 am
The General grunted at the Official who held the radio. He then looked at the sky one last time. If he had needed to take in a breath of air, he probably would have, and then he looked back at the Official.
"I don't think you quite understand us. You see, you were the one who brought an armoured helicoptor close to our marching army. This signifies that you initiated a hostility prematurely. It would be a lie to tell you our army is here for a stroll, a nice walk. I'm sure we both know our reason for being here. However, we believe there is a peaceful way to settle this, but it is not the kind of thing to be done over the radio.
We wish to meet with you, to discuss this...potential peace treaty, if you may call it that. If you wish, you may bring guards to this encounter, if you truely fear our little welcoming party that much. If not, then I suppose as you say, we have no choice but to go to war, right now, but let me tell you, your Highness, I don't think that would be the wisest decision you've made."
The army had continued to march past the General now, and it was time the General took up his post close to the front of the army. He put down a hand and extended it to the Official. He wanted the Official to pull himself onto the General's mount. In front of the General of course, not behind. As soon as that was done, the General would move back to the front of the army. If the Official refused, then he would simply be carried by one of the passing soldiers.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 10:02 am
"You have got to be ******** kidding me!?! What the ******** are you assholes doing? I just rebuilt this god damned city!" scream
wow...Dawn had not used language like that in years.. she had baby nieces now and their mommies wouldn't let her play with the adorable little girls if they knew she used language like that... xp
But the architect had spent the better part of last year redesigning this rotten city and trying her best to make it a nice place for all the normal people to live. She was at this moment standing in the atrium of the new Raven Industries building, ranting at an army that couldn't hear her...and likely wouldn't give a damn anyhow since she was just one little woman...
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 10:52 am
"It looks like some kind of imp, sir."
"What does?" Captain Starrow asked.
"The creature approaching us."
By then, dozens of runes lining the hull and wings lit up. The creature would get about 20 feet from the ship's "tail" before all of a sudden being as far away from the ship as it was three seconds ago... and it would repeat each time the creature approached.
"Eh. Must be lost or something. Don't worry about it. What the hell are they doing down there? Bring me up a zoomed in visual."
Ethereal energy swirled up into a rectangular screen in front of the captain, showing the scene on the ground below. The armies kept marching toward the gates, but the general seemed to be offering the human his hand.
"We don't have time for this," Starrow grumbled. "Charge cannons. Open all batteries."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:23 pm
"What do you mean, it's going away? It hasn't moved at all."
In the outer city, the previous figure stood out like a sore on the tip of your nose. He had the air of a rich businessman around him, and the custom-tailored suit and freshly polished shoes he wore only strengthened that aura. If that wasn't enough to differentiate it from the common obsidian crafter walking his way through the day, the man had also just started talking to himself.
His eyes were locked to the sky as he tried to understand what the telepathic message he just received meant. The little imp was so feral, it rarely tried to use intelligent speech to communicate, and making sense of the mind shrieks and growls it sent was a complicated task. When the man saw the soft lights of runes working their magic though, he understood.
"Okay, pill yourself. if it's not enough, come back to bird-height."
Much higher in the sky, the imp never gave up. This time, before flying to the fortress, it turned its back to its target to look in its pocket for a little object, something like a plastic donut hole. Once found, the "pill" would find it way to the imp's toothy little mouth, and he swallowed it whole.
With the most devilish of snickers and a powerful screech, the imp flew once more. He had to gather a lot of momentum, because in four seconds, it would transform in a chunk of solid ice. These don't tend to fly really well, but the ice acted as a magical buffer, a decoy if you'd like. The runes would teleport the ice far away, while the imp would ... well, crash against the ship's hull, and with some luck, manage to get a good grip.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:31 pm
Unless that ice somehow destabilized space-time long enough for the imp to pass through the barrier, it would appear where it was three seconds ago again, and now on ice, or with the ice in front of it... however it came into being.
"Sir, it looks like it's trying to get inside."
"That imp again? I thought I ordered you to get one of the mages to handle it."
"Er, right away, captain!"
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 1:09 pm
Slifer Ozura "I don't think you quite understand us. You see, you were the one who brought an armoured helicoptor close to our marching army. This signifies that you initiated a hostility prematurely. It would be a lie to tell you our army is here for a stroll, a nice walk. I'm sure we both know our reason for being here. However, we believe there is a peaceful way to settle this, but it is not the kind of thing to be done over the radio. We wish to meet with you, to discuss this...potential peace treaty, if you may call it that. If you wish, you may bring guards to this encounter, if you truely fear our little welcoming party that much. If not, then I suppose as you say, we have no choice but to go to war, right now, but let me tell you, your Highness, I don't think that would be the wisest decision you've made." The radio was silent for a moment, but after a few seconds the King replied. "...Very well. I will agree to meet with you. But you must halt the march of your army until we can finish any negotiations. Your meeting party should be the only forces you continue to allow to advance. If you can do this, I will take it as a measure of trust, and will be more willing to listen to any demands that you may have. As I said before, I am not an unreasonable man. But in order to build trust between our forces, we will both have to make some concessions to the other.
We will meet in the middle of the field between our two respective sides. A helicopter will ferry me to that location, and I will be escorted by two guards. The helicopter will contain a pilot and copilot. I am putting my trust in your honesty, sir. Please, do not make me regret that decision, or the repercussions will be detrimental for both our sides."The radio conversation halted, and the Official glanced up at the General. "I suppose you've got your answer..." He unwantingly gripped the hand of the General and rode on his mount. If he didn't think that he was going to die before, he was certain he was now. He was the perfect meat-shield in his current position, or bargaining chip. He silently hoped that his King would make a decision that would benefit the many, rather than the few. A few minutes later, a helicopter would be see traveling towards the area between the two forces. It would land, and await the arrival of the party that was to conduct the negotiations.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 1:41 pm
When the runes activated, they did their job, they teleported away the incoming nuisance. Except, the magical ice was there. Just like flares take missiles off their path, the ice absorbed the spell, breaking into pieces and teleporting it away, but the creature within remained. Of course, if the runes had a very small cooldown, they could just as well teleport him away right after, and it would've been useless. Then, even if the imp did reach the hull, there was no guarantee that he'd be safe from the runes' reach, but it was a gamble worth playing.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 9:41 pm
The General smiled as he heard the reply on the radio. As soon as he heard this, he yelled in a bellowing voice, in the Dead-man native tongue, instructions to his army. They certainly all stopped, and seemed to stop all aggressive activity, but the mages within the army were working on something special.
Meanwhile, the General gathered the Official on his mount, and called out to the supposed messenger party. A group of five Dead-men, three Elites and two mages assembled close to the General, and then proceeded to close the distance towards where the helicoptor had landed.
The Official was right in his thinking, he would most certainly die very soon, but it was all for the greater good, for the cause. It wouldn't be his people's cause of course, but it would serve as an example. A useful example at that. As the General rode towards the helicoptor, mages within the front-lines of the army began to gather energy in secret. It would appear as though these mages were meditating, simply gathering energy before a potential battle, but a much more sinister plan was in the working.
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