Re: Luna's Command: The Continuing Wibbly-Wobbly Saga (Topic Two, to be Absolutely Clear)

deonte9109 Fri Aug 30, 2013 1:20 am

HAHA FIRST....Combat Talents:

Actual Combat:

Status:

Iggy almost by instinct flicks out his ol trusty chakram and threw it straight towards a griffin.
"Can we please kill these guys? Not because I really want them dead but just out of sheer principle."

AProcrastinatingWriter Fri Aug 30, 2013 10:29 pm

Paper Shadow wrote:"Ooh, I know," responds Scorch as he gets a good two-clawed grip on the unconscious ECHO guard he's been carrying around and flings him straight at the... whatever-it-is that is getting rid of the forcefield with tremendous force...

(Athletics Roll: 9 (Roll) + 13 (Bonus) + 10 (Magic Point (0/1 Remaining)) = 32)

The betentacled one backs up a bit, the force field moving forward again, as dozens of creative assaults by the guards - and one creative assault with a guard - assaults its joints, which apparently are vulnerable no matter how many unnecessary angles you add to them.

But the stubborn thing does not let go. Its brothers are gathering courage behind it, Alicorn Armors slowly forming patterns in the background and firing blasts of heavy magical energy at the shield before them. Further back, the Majacks and the Princesses light up the lack of sky with their battle.

"Uuuurgh," comes the groan of the guard that was just thrown, now settling atop the shield. "Where...what's going on?" he asks, standing.

His hoof hits a hangnail.

The beast roars it loudest roar yet - almost a pathetic mewling noise, if not for the decibel level- and backs off further, finally letting go of the field. Built-up kinetic energy reapplies itself, now obstacle-less, and the field closes itself up. Celestia's army raises a full-hearted cheer.

"Oh, berries and biscuits, I've just screwed things up in a major way, havven I?." The guard atop the force field says.

Shining Armor backs off from the field and looks around a moment, taking a deep breath or two. Maybe three. "Alright, everypony," he commands. "PUSH!"

Before another boisterous cry might be unleashed, there is a great noise - a shaking. Then, after a short whistle, something metal flies into the force field and explodes. The blast doesn't go through, and neither does the heat, but Shining Armor's force fields were never meant to stop sound. Even if they were, this one might just get through anyway. See, this explosion is louder and more ear-shattering than the roars of the things from beyond. It's not pure noise; there is a kinetic force to it that shakes the body and sends it to the ground, nausea welling in the stomach. It hurts.

It wouldn't do any of these things ordinarily, ironically enough. As said before, however, magic makes things react weirdly in terms of physics, sometimes, and Shining Armor's field is pure magical energy.

The guard atop the force field is strangely unharmed, save some minor scorching. "Did...did I do that, too?" Well, that and the loss of his fake accent.

The griffin Iggy has just finished throwing a chakram at steps backwards, clutching his now-bleeding neck."GRAGH!" it squawks.

"Oh, is that how you're gonna play it, tough guy?" a different one asks as the first unsheathes its claws, crouching down a bit further.

"When we get done with you-" Another begins.

"Hey, hey, hey, hold on, hold on..." the one furthest on the right says. "Listen. Listen!"

They listen for a second.

"I don't hear any-"

"SHH!" the one on the right shushes one of the others.

"No, no, I hear it too now..." yet another one says.

Then, the party can hear it too - a noise like a stick scraping against a stone.

Except, perhaps, multiplied by thirteen.

Before anypony can process this noise, another joins in - the cry of an eagle, with just the hint of a bestial growl. Not a squawk, or a roar of rage like these sub-beasts engage in without thought, but the cry of a true warrior of the wild and the night sky.

Then the owner of the cry is there, no longer screeching like a proud eagle but roaring the carefully calculated roar of the King of Beasts, electric claws skimming the air to slash at two griffins even as his back hooves utilize gravity in an effort to slam themselves into the chakram'd guard's chest. And here some of you thought hippogriffs were merely a myth...but no time for that now as the source of sticky noises come rushing in, barking and howling as they do so - a battalion of timberwolves, many with with marks around their necks left behind by collars, all of them entering the cave and rushing over the ECHO guards like a wave of furious foliage.

The guards cry out in pain and terror, unable to bring their full abilities to bear against such a large number of ruthless creatures, and as they do so the last winged warrior slowly approaches on blackened wings, landing gently in front of a very surprised party. "Hey, guys. Miss me?" the strange hippogriff smiles, then suddenly frowns and turns. "I don't really understand everything that's going on, but you guys are my friends...even if you don't remember me...and you'll all be in trouble if you don't go downstairs really fast. Go. Please. We'll hold these guys off."

And he leaps back into the fray like he'd been training to do so all his life. Whoever he is.

Spoiler:

Retrokinesis Sat Aug 31, 2013 12:13 am

Brilliant has seen far too many strange things lately to be put-off by this sudden appearance. She nods and, shaking off a strange feeling of deja-vu, bolts for the door. It looks like her honorless foes have earned a stay of execution... for now.

Spoiler:

**Paper Shadow** Sat Aug 31, 2013 12:38 am

(Endurance Roll: 15 (Roll) + 10 (Bonus) = 25)

Scorch makes irritated noises due to the noise, but tries his best to get the forcefield moving forward...

(Athletics Roll: 11 (Roll) + 13 (Bonus) = 24)

RandomNumbers9041 Sat Aug 31, 2013 1:39 am

Costume takes off after Brilliant, still carrying Cobbled. "Was... was that a hippogriff? Note to self: work on a hippogriff disguise ASAP, that was awesome!"

History Check of Mystery:

deonte9109 Sat Aug 31, 2013 1:59 am

Iggy was winding up to throw his chakram again when the noises messed with his aiming. Noticing he was about to get left behind, Iggy quickly followed.
"What the hay is going? What the buck was that noise? Who was that hippogriff? Why does he seem to know us? And please tell me we are running to the outside?"

I wanna roll too:

Dusk Raven Sat Aug 31, 2013 12:47 pm

Wandering Eye winced, temporarily defeaned by the explosion. Holding his hooves up to his ears helped little, and soon he did his best to ignore the pain and ringing in his ears. Channeling the power of the beyond, he launched a beam of energy into the shield to reinforce it.

Checks:

AProcrastinatingWriter Sat Aug 31, 2013 7:03 pm

With a roaring cry, the army pushes as one colt, slowly inching the field forward as the flames begin to die. Creatures of dark and light begin to pound on the outside as the slow creaking of magic across stone echoes over laser fire and shouts of pain.

Somepony screams to "put your backs into it!"

Spoiler:

**Paper Shadow** Sat Aug 31, 2013 7:09 pm

Scorch keeps the force up, although admittedly not as much as before...

(Athletics Roll: 7 (Roll) + 13 (Bonus) = 20)

AProcrastinatingWriter Sat Aug 31, 2013 7:25 pm

Spoiler:

Retrokinesis Sat Aug 31, 2013 11:33 pm

Spoiler:

Curunir Sun Sep 01, 2013 12:25 am

Trusting the hippogriff for some reason (and happy to leave him and the timberwolves to the battle, despite his outrage at the griffons' treachery), Luthier ran after Shimmer towards the door- looking back to make sure that Costume Change still had Cobbled.

"No- we're heading deeper in as our hippogriff... friend?.. suggested. The griffons said something about us being unable to leave." Luthier responded to Iggy. As he ran he shouted to Shimmer. "What do you think they meant by something calling the 'Bounds' going up. Sounds like some sort of magical force-field to me but that's more your area of expertise- have any ideas about it? Sounds ominous, and hippogriff seems to think we shouldn't stick around."

Something seemed almost familiar about the hippogriff.

History Check:

Dusk Raven Sun Sep 01, 2013 5:51 pm

Wandering Eye continued his efforts, infusing the shield with a fresh burst of energy.

Arcana Check:

AProcrastinatingWriter Tue Sep 03, 2013 10:16 pm

As the smaller group (but larger portion of the original expedition) heads down the tunnel, they all experience a strange case of Deja Vu, as many of them specifically name in their confusion.

Except for Costume Change.

When he was a larvae, Costume had been told many stories of the glory of the Changeling Empire. Most of them had been false, of course, and the majority of those had been knowingly false; the old legends passed around the metaphorical campfire were passed down the the family tree, or at least what could be determined of it. However, one of the true ones was the day that the changelings had received help from a pony.

The short version of the tale was pretty fairy-talesque. A strange pony shows up in the hive one day, demonstrates his cleverness and cunning in dodging the guards, gains an audience with the queen, and offers for reasons known only to himself to give unto her the land of a nearby forest (and therefore a larger hive capable of holding more changelings) that were normally protected by the fierce wildlife within it. That is, if she will but heed his instructions. Cautiously, the queen agrees, and before a week's time the empire had conquered a large section of the woods for themselves, driving several species of creatures from the land, and the pony disappeared without a trace.

Thus, the changeling empire was glorified. The changeling substitue for the more commonly accepted "Happy Ever After." (Changelings, you see, don't believe in such an idealistic thing...at least not as a general rule.)

Costume Change knows the story was true because the hive where he'd grown up was precisely where that forest used to be. What he doesn't know, what he couldn't begin to guess, was why he was thinking of that story at a time like this.

Down below, the field budges another inch further, half a hoof, a hoof, but always, always agonizingly slowly, with the ominous muted thumps of the battle surrounding Celestia's army seeming to shake it, but surely that was an illusion, surely there was no way this field could break so easily, surely...

Then there was a great cracking noise and everything was suddenly moving more quickly than it had any right to.

Almost faster than it was being pushed, the field moved forward, its sharp increase in speed taking down the things from beyond at the ankles and sending them head-over-flagellum to the floor. Smaller creatures were brushed aside or crushed according to their positioning, but Celestia and Luna notably passed through the field without harm or effort or even on purpose, while the Majacks splashed against the field and (Temporarily) lost all pretense of maintaining a physical form.

After about halfway closing the distance to ECHO, Shining Armor's horn glowed once more. The field was dismissed with a small pop, but that doesn't quite capture the intense push of magical force that exploded outwards as the bubble burst - force enough to send the abominations and lesser fiends around Celestia's army to their knees once more. "MOVE!" Shining Armor cries, reigniting the force field- but putting all of its force between his protectorate and the more powerful creatures near the room's entrance.

As the three Princesses combine their magic into a large blast that decimates one of the nearby beetley weapons the remainder of the army, nearly as one colt, does indeed move forward, charging into the ranks of the recovering ECHO soldiers and sending spells and spears and even hooves flying in every direction (and soon receiving laser fire and specialized assault tactics in response). Nearly as colt, it should be emphasized, as two familiar figures stop two others from going any further in the middle of the chaos.

"Hey, hold on! It's us! Special orders!" Plug cries, pushing Scorch and Wander off to the side. "Yeah, it's a precautionary thing with the guards -a code. If Shining specifically says somepony should get to the front line instead of just calling our names, it's a bluff. He didn't want the enemy to know what we were doing, cause...you know...that'd be bad."

Grizzle nods. "Turn your attention to the great wall imposed upon the bedrock," he says, indicating (more precisely) the center of that wall. The unicorn leader was gone at this point, long gone, but several ponies in specialized uniforms were just now following him, and the door was soon closing behind them. "We need most of our heavy artillery here, but a dragon would give us a decided advantage in taking that pony down once we manage to catch up with him. We are to accompany Scorch on the way, should he choose to accept this request as you are, after all, a civilian."

"Aaaaaand these aren't exactly orders, here," Plug rolls his shoulders, "But we figure you'll want to come along wherever your dragon buddy goes, am I right?"

While this conversation occurs, five other beings enter the cave's main...entrance, and are then suitably stunned by what they find. The incredibly powerful creatures pounding on the new force field (Which Shining Armor is keeping up admirably) are shocking enough between the apparent alicorns and the spidery things on the ground, and the psychic shockwaves the extra-dimensional tentacled things are producing from their foreheads seem to be causing the Princesses a great deal of pain (Princess Sparkle is on the ground, no longer flying and looking shaky), and then of course there's an army on the other side of this pink field and that army is fighting Equestria's finest, and all in all...

...the only thing that is familiar in the room (and stable enough to be described without the inherent chaos of run-on-sentences) are four beings off to the side: Plug, Grizzle, Scorch, and Wandering Eye. They look like they're discussing something, and are far enough away from the battle that they might be able to quickly explain what in the name of sanity is going on here. The only problem is getting to them...

Spoiler:

Retrokinesis Tue Sep 03, 2013 10:31 pm

Brilliant simply pushes the chaos of this new sight out of her mind. There would be time to figure out what in the hay was going on *later*, when she wasn't in immediate danger of being disintegrated/crushed/driven insane. Focusing on the four rediscovered members of the group, she tries to think of a way to reach them. A series of precision blinks might be enough to get her across the teeming mass without being seen...

Spoiler:

AProcrastinatingWriter Tue Sep 03, 2013 11:15 pm

Spoiler:

**Paper Shadow** Wed Sep 04, 2013 3:14 am

Once Scorch gets the A-OK from Wandering Eye, he'll begin to power through the battle to the destination. It goes okay-ish...

(Endurance Checks: 17, 10, 4)
(Endurance Totals (Roll + 10): 27, 20, 14)

casey1859 Wed Sep 04, 2013 11:20 pm

Despite not actually... doing anything and just kinda laying on costumes back (unless he isn't anymore in which case i dont even kno tbh), cobbled manages a certain amount of stealth.
No one's exactly sure what he did.
But he believed in the heart of the Dice.

Isn't Roll like a dog or a robot or something:

Probably

RandomNumbers9041 Thu Sep 05, 2013 1:45 am

Apparently channeling every spy movie ever made, Costume expertly sneaks through the crowd. He quickly makes his way to the rest of the party.

"Hello, everypony. Did we miss anything?"

I know, I can't believe these rolls either:

Dusk Raven Thu Sep 05, 2013 1:46 am

Wandering Eye nods to Scorch and activates his invisibility spell once more, before darting amongst the chaos of battle with... a certain amount of ability.

Rolls:

Curunir Fri Sep 06, 2013 3:50 pm

"...Oh my." Luthier exclaimed as he skidded to a halt in front of the sight before him, temporarily stunned. Turns out leaving to report to Luna or find backup would have pointless- here both were, along with a strange assortment of beings apparently aligned with ECHO. "Wait for me!" Luthier managed to whisper instead of shout as Costume Change disappeared into the crowd and Shimmer teleported away. He followed as best he could, taking advantage of the chaos of battle to make his way to his friends, his instruments silently flying behind him, weaving through obstacles.

Stealth:

AProcrastinatingWriter Fri Sep 06, 2013 4:02 pm

Spoiler:

There's no time for intense narration of events - only a dragon roar that manages to make itself heard over the noise of battle, followed by the dragon itself flying through the midst of it, touched but never scratched, and directly behind and utterly unnoticed is his ponyish partner. Then, of course, having a great deal of trouble following them was the rest of the motley crew, but they manage to catch up after a while. at least in the literal sense; not much time can currently be given for asking "what the buck is going on here".

From there, reality emulates a whirlwind: the noise of war manages to catch up momentarily as a staggered Celestia similarly staggers one of the eldritch things assaulting her mind, and then the party is all too suddenly in the middle of a hallway leading deeper and darker into the cave - but not lower into it, not any longer.

And then there are four different tunnels leading in slightly different directions.

"Ah, great. Of course," Plug says. "Which way do we go now?"

Spoiler:

**Paper Shadow** Mon Sep 09, 2013 7:14 pm

Scorch looks around for any sign of which way to go...

(Perception Roll: 7 (Roll) + 8 (Bonus) = 15)

AProcrastinatingWriter Mon Sep 09, 2013 9:25 pm

There is nothing that is immediately obvious - except that the door on the farthest right leads into a hallway going upwards and the other three go down.

Spoiler:

AProcrastinatingWriter Thu Sep 12, 2013 3:38 pm

Spoiler:

Grizzle looks around once more, trying not to look overly-concerned; no need to scare the civilians, after all. Eventually, his eyes light upon the roof of one of the caves, and he smiles. "Up there," he said, pointing with one hoof. "You see those? I am no vetrinarian, but I would recognize the claw marks of the chupacabra anywhere." He squints. "A fierce beast, but one whose marks fade away quickly, by way of strange magics. He was here recently, though I don't know what made him assault the ceiling..."

"Yeah, and I don't care!" Plug said, rushing into the cave headfirst. The rest of the party, save for Grizzle, followed his lead immediately.

Grizzle, for his part, sighed. "Musn't consider all the variables, of course...that might actually save somepony's skin." Then he went after everypony else.

The hallway is relatively short, especially considering some of the cavernous ways by which the party had arrived to this point, but it is the simple awareness of it that makes it seem longer than it was. It was the awareness that it might end at any second, and end with yet another horrifying creature in ECHO black raising its weapon, pulling the trigger...

...bang came the end of the hallway. Too soon, really.

One more room, far too large for the number of creatures currently inside of it, brilliant gems adorning the walls, and a slightly open red door at the other end. Several beings stand before the party - black uniforms, silver collars on all but a few grunts. The variety is large, somewhat staggering: the oft-mentioned chupacabra is indeed here, and so are two griffins, a smaller-than-average unicorn, a pegasus with what was hopefully not fresh blood on his hooves, and a pair of zebras, movements oddly in sync. Most impressive of all, though, at least by sheer visual intimdation, is the minotaur, which was several sizes larger than any regular-sized minotaur might hope to be. Or possibly even want to be.

Just at the open door, the unicorn - the unicorn - stands, in the process of pushing it open further with his magic, a sort of dull white glow around the tip of his horn. He turns his head the slightest twinge, the only evidence of any surprise being an ambiguous halting in the opening of the door. Everypony, which is to say, everybeing turns their entire bodies to the newest distraction on what is turning out to be a very tense day.

Reality pauses a moment.

"Operatives 487 through 492 and Operative 76," the pony in charge finally says, seemingly unrattled. "If you would please stay behind a moment longer? This will take time."

That's all it takes for the large minotaur to draw two axes, each the size of a small tree, and let loose with a bellow. Below him, nine ponies (three of each type) raise their weapons in the party's direction. All the others head inside the door, opening quickly now.

"I get the feeling that whatever's in there is the crux of their operation," Plug mumbles, drawing his dagger.

Grizzle nods agreement, wing experimentally flapping twice. "Now if we can just get past these guards..."

Spoiler:

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