trollthumper

"Please!" said Velak. "Please, I am explaining! There was an autosomal dominant disorder in a large portion of the population! The only real way to shore up against the trait was to introduce Xuli'Ha traits! We wouldn't have done it if there was any other way!" "Bliss." Cavalier stepped forward. "Please. I can't begin to pretend to know how you're feeling right now. But if this thing that they're setting that noise off about is as big a threat as they think it is... well, you're not going to be able to do much to them if they're already dead, are you?" Velak looked to him. "I thought you'd be more comforting about this." "Really? Well, maybe I will be one day." Cavalier dropped his visor. "But not today. Now, where's our Godzilla?" --- The "Godzilla" became clear to see the second they got out of the city. There was a wide field between the borders and the forest, but they could see the path the thing had cut through the trees - ancient, withered things in a field of green. The thing itself was harder to see; there was a great gap in the air, a gigantic blur that seemed to fold and twist in upon itself. A sound came from it, like whale song mixed with an industrial. "That," said Cavalier, almost disbelieving, "Is your titan." "A small one," said Javeen. "Usually they're nastier than this. But if it gets to the city, it can still do some damage." She turned to the guards. "Arms at the ready! Make sure it stays where it belongs!"

The dogs are capable of ably following the scent trail through the maze, down the winding and twisting corridors. I'll let Fox describe the experience of his dogs at play. Oh - and they smell other dogs.

"Something like this, yes." Temperance was trying to figure out how to process Salmon's display - first he came on strong like a sledgehammer, then he seemed to crumble and retreat, mumbling to himself all the while. The best she could do now was try to reestablish some base level of normal. "Freedom is something of an outlier in that regard, I admit. And it can be intimidating, even to people who grow up there. In time, though, you get somewhat used to it." She paused, thinking on what she'd just said in the context of the Salmon's panic. "Not to say that all the perils that come with it get to be rote. They can be rather... disruptive. But in time, the city... I don't want to say it 'adapts.' But the heroes learn how to deal with them, and the people know how to get out of range if chaos breaks out." Temperance turned as she felt Citizen's hand on her shoulder - and soon after, she was up in the air, swept up on a cloud. It was strange to be up here without her sledge under her feet, but after the shock wore off, she was delighted. She held close to Citizen, matching his movements on the thin air. "And you look handsome as always," she said. "The city treating you right?"

It was actually surprisingly easy to accessorize for the party. Eliza was, at first, tempted to pull an Elsa - craft a couture dress out of snowflakes and sleet. But then she realized the clear issues with this. While she might not feel the cold, she could feel chafing, and any ice solid enough to maintain form and function without revealing anything would have... issues. Fortunately, there was no lack of stores in Freedom with blue, white, and teal dresses with silver trim and a general winter theme. It was the kind of thing that she might wear into battle if she didn't give a damn about fabric resilience. Or high heels. And it was the kind of dress that went so very well with a carnival mask. She usually wore an icy confection out on duty, but a party like this gave her an excuse to go extra. So very extra. Pair that with some Angela Bassett braids, furnished with some blue beads and other baubles... Temperance entered the party in her finest regalia, a chill wind blowing behind her - not enough to cut through the warmth of the room, but just enough to make an entrance. "Greetings, everyone," she said. "Let's make this a winter to remember."

It was several hours later, but Temperance was finding nothing. Well, that wasn't entirely true. There were a few coyote spirits running about, and still the rich chirping of bird spirits on the distant wind. But the coyotes kept their distance, even when she called to them. All in all, Wharton seemed a very beautiful barrens. They're not gone, she thought. They must be here. But where? I don't exactly have the license to go knocking on trees - a whole matter of cross-jurisdiction of the Courts - but there has to be something -- That's when she heard it, faint in the distance. Screaming. --- The walk to the Preserve was not much more fruitful. The trees were just as silent as their brethren, and just as flush with power. "Nothing still," said the dryad, confirming Rosethorn's perceptions. "Why these ones? Why here? There has to --" The dryad's reveries were cut off by the roaring of a chainsaw. Following by a cry that pierced Rosethorn's ears. "Again!" The dryad grabbed Rosethorn's hand. "They're doing it again! This way!"

Well, these are very much not woods. And yet, they are. The bushes are more wild than the groomed things Riley expects from Earth-Prime, but they're stacked in clear formations with clean breaks, very much unlike any wood he's ever seen. Some of the bushes have thorns and berries. As for the ground itself, it looks like it's seen a lot of foot traffic. Some of the surviving footprints have that semi-hard imprint at the ball of the foot that would imply running, and quite fast.

Behold the wonders of the month of Thanks. Angrydurf Phalax: 1PP Ouroboros: 1PP Ace Danger: 1PP BlarghyAdept: 4PPLeviathan: 4PP and is now PL 12 :clap:GM: 60 posts.Note: GM Posts divided between Adept and LeviathanDarksider42Ruby Voxx: 1PPRosethorn: 2PPFoxGaian Knight: 1PP (Ref Point)Wraith: 1PPGrim: 1PPGizmo:Jack of All Blades [Maxed]: 1PP to ReagentMidnight: 1PPGhost Girl: 1PPReagent / Alkahest: 3PPGM: 1.Note: Ref point and Rollover given to Reagent. Heritage:Grimalkin [Maxed]: 2PP to Miracle GirlMiracle Girl: 4PP TotalKnightDisicpleGabriel 1PPCobalt Templar: 1PPThoughtspeed: 1PPJudex: 1PPSun Walker: 1PP Nick Ardent: 1PP Willow: 1PPOlopiBonfire: 4PPBird of Arms: 4PPSha’ir the Spellsmith: 1PPGM: 40SailorEndeavor: 1PPSophistemonPresto the Preposterous: 3PPUpgrade: 1PPPunchline: 1PPTheAbsurdistAsad: 1PPBliss: 1PPErrant: 1 PPGM: 1 (given to Errant)Tiffany KortaBlodeuwedd: 1PPEmerald Spider: 1PPMerge Trois: 1PPMiss Grue: 3PPVoid Zhenschina: 1PPGM posts: 10

"Right," said Temperance. "At times like this... subtlety is overrated." She kicked open the door with enough force that it hit the opposite wall, clanging loudly. Just as she'd intended. Sure enough, the echo soon gave way to the echo of boots treading downstairs. As they did, Temperance extended her will, and a thin sheet of frost clung to the stairs. The descent became a lot less controlled as both firefighters landed with a crash at the bottom of the stairs. As they did, Temperance wrapped them in cocoons of ice, holding them in place. "Now, then. Let's dispense with all lies. We know who you are. We know what you want. Where are you doing it?" The younger man looked at her with hatred. "No. We see you. We sense what you carry. You hate the Burning Lord. Your antithesis is in his soul. We'll never give you what you want." Temperance turned to Aquaria. "Sadly, this isn't my gospel. Do you feel like deflating it?"

Cannonade looked down the weird, darkened maze. "...yeah, you're right," he said. "Plus, if this thing cropped up out of nowhere, burning it on this end might not work. We'd get a pretty bonfire, and then it might be back the next night." He shook his head. Extradimensional labyrinths were the kind of thing he was never happy to deal with, and yet, they kept cropping up, and he kept finding himself in circumstance where he would need to explore them. "All right. Let's go." Cannonade walked into the maze, waiting for the others to follow. When they did, he trudged forth, taking in the sights - well, the ones he could see. The light from the lampposts cut out quickly, the rest of the maze - long, tall walls of leaf and thorn - rising up around them. Some light came back once they cleared the copse of trees, however, as stars shone down from above and the full moon hung in the sky. Never mind the fact that they had entered under a starless urban sky with a Gibbous moon...

Notice checks from both parties. Temperance rolls a 14.

The trees were absolutely quiet. No one came answering at Rosethorn's call. And yet... she could feel something thrumming through the trees. There was power here. Much more power than she'd felt off of any of the old growth trees on the grounds of Claremont. Hell, perhaps more power than she'd felt in any tree in Freedom City. Whatever the spirits were doing in their demesnes, it was clear they weren't just laying back and watching Netflix to get through the long winter. "It is the same with all of them," said the dryad. "They have this... project going. They won't speak on it, when you can get them to speak. I had to knock long and hard to hear from each of them, and I speak the tongue of roots. They don't want to speak." --- Temperance, meanwhile, was taking in the scene. She found the roots that she had expected. It was clear the crime scene techs wouldn't have suspected these to have a role; they were dried, withered, signs of growth long gone. In all likelihood, a tree or plant spirit had brought them to life and pumped enough power into them to complete their purpose, then cut off the flow so that they could return to base earth. Of course, that raised the matter of which tree spirit. Temperance stepped towards the nearby trees. Still no spirits hanging around them; she knew it was winter and they'd be fairly docile, but she thought she might at least see a face in the trees. Nothing. And yet... there was vitality. Power. Flowing from root to branch. Something ran beneath. Clearly, she needed to find someone who could spare a few words on the project...

Damnit. And here, Temperance had thought she'd been trying to be firm and fierce in the face of someone who seemed to have ideas about how it all operated. Instead, she'd brought the full force of a flamethrower down on an ice cube. He did sound like he had legitimate concerns, and while he may have bulldozed over her, she'd steamrolled over him in turn. This was really not in keeping with the holiday spirit. Temperance took a deep breath. "I understand," she said, aiming to be a lot more conciliatory. "You wanted to share information on matters of local importance. So important, in fact, that being brusque would be perfectly understandable in order to convey the sheer scale of their importance. There's nothing wrong with that. And I will make sure that he's aware of this issue. He should know everything about the city, after all." And with that, she reverted to the earlier warmth. "Hopefully, we can put that awkwardness behind us. I don't think I got your name..."

Aquaria crept along the ceiling, working her way up the shallow incline of the interior of the stairwell. The voices soon grew clearer... "It's a shame that we can't be there to see the arrival." "We have our role. We must keep the texts safe. If - Living Flame forbid - something goes wrong, or the offering is rejected, we must go forth to carry on the work. To make sure that the word survives." The two could be seen through the frame of the open door. One was older for the men, with a salt-and-pepper mustache. The other was younger, with forearms that had that weird sheen of healed burn scars. Aquaria lay close to the ceiling so that her head could not be seen over the small alcove into the stairwell, relying on the shadows to provide cover. "Will it draw His attention?" "It's the biggest altar in this city. Filled with offerings ready to be made sacred. It has to draw His gaze..."

APPROVED

Wharton State Forest Saturday, December 10 10:32 AM Temperance was trying to read the water. True to word, Jack Perkins had been waiting for her at the Ranger Station. She'd gotten there a few minutes early, realizing Google Maps didn't exactly have a suitable option for flying ice sledge. From there, it was just a matter of time until they were at the crime scene. The treads were still carved into the soil, even if the actual car was long gone. As Temperance was not one to read the history of death itself, she would have to rely on ephemeral witnesses. Trouble was, she couldn't seem to find any. The pond that the car had seemingly been dragged into was absolutely still. No spirits swam in its depths. The ice was still broken and had yet to freeze over, but she could still perceive nothing floating under the surface. Nor was there much more in dry land. She could hear distant birdsong that sounded a little richer than the usual stuff - often the sign of bird spirits showing off - but for the most part, the woods were quiet. That was to be associated with winter, but... If I say "too quiet," that will be a big honking cliche. --- It had taken some time for Rosethorn to get to the forest. Being accompanied by a bevy of young dryads had made the journey rather interesting. But now, as they led her through the woods, she could see what they meant. She saw the ragged stumps that had been somewhat less than clearcut. She heard the quiet of the woods, feeling the general tranquility - or barrenness - of the spiritual landscape. "See?" said the youngest dryad. "They stay withdrawn. To themselves. We don't know why. We wish they would share..."

"They say that they are busy," said the young dryad. "I don't know what with. They think it's not a matter for a young shoot such as I. But they say things like... 'We must grow deep.' 'We must keep together.' 'Our roots must stay strong.' But they will not let me in, and they will not say why. Perhaps they have become exclusive in their old age --" "Oh, sure, flatter a girl," said the crone. " -- but I am not sure that it is... normal. But I haven't sensed anything wrong, besides the men and their tools... and my roots do not reach that deep..." The dryad shakes her head. "It is a matter for another time. When we are safe." --- Temperance parted ways with Jack and headed back to her dorm. After buying supplies for the next day from the campus convenience store - a Thermos for coffee, a bag of jerky, some trail mix, and a couple of sandwiches - she retreated to her room to do a little Google search on Wharton. Apparently illegal logging was a new scourge for the area, one that dated back just a few months. Aside from that, there wasn't much in the way of folklore to explain why someone's SUV might have been dragged into a pond. So... wild territory. Going in, asking questions... always great in an area where the spirits may be nervous. I'm... pretty sure I can do this with nothing exploding.

Temperance turned towards the man in the fish costume as he made his request. Ah. She'd met a number of heroes in her time with special traits and quirks, some subtle, some... otherwise. She should have guessed one of the heroes tonight might be cold sensitive - or even cold-blooded. "My apologies," she said. "I guess I must have gone overboard in crafting a festive mood." With a flick of her hands, the snow began to rise up from the lobby, back into the room where she had crafted it - a room with an industrial-sized sink, meant to capture all the excess snowmelt without creating a mess. As she focused mostly on packing the last of the snow away, she turned to the Salmon, saying, "My name is Temperance, and --" But, due to the awkwardness of modern conversation, her greeting was somewhat steamrolled by the Salmon's entreaty regarding Citizen. A little bit of the warmth left as Temperance felt herself sliding back into her standard demeanor. "Ah. I'm not sure I got your name, but you seem quite concerned about Citizen. I am, too... and yet I'm not. I've seen him face down things that ended worlds. I've seen him deal with things that tore his friends - and him - apart. This isn't the 'my boyfriend can beat the world' thing talking. I trust him to handle Emerald City. I know he can be... a handful sometimes, yes, but he cares. I'm curious as to what might have happened that makes you think he's blustering in."

There it was. Another little reminder. Remember that you will die. It was kind of hard for Cavalier to forget right now. "Jessie White in... time, did... will do..." Javeen tripped on her words, trying to expand on Kee'lee's story. Finally, she sighed. "You have no idea how hard it is for us to talk about it in these terms. We knew this day would come for centuries, and we still haven't been able to figure out the right tenses. Or how to talk about it without sounding insensitive, or dismissive, or... or giving too much away... and again, I'm sorry Bliss had to find out that way --" "I really don't think we're the ones you need to be apologizing to," said Cavalier. "Not directly, at least." He paused, taking the city in. "Is there anything you can tell us about what we did do?" "Well, as you might imagine, Aquaria became a spiritual leader to the people, helping many find comfort in the issues of the anomaly. The crew of the Korata formed the infrastructure for the early settlements and made sure their knowledges - medical, scientific, technological - passed on to the next generation. You served as the first sheriff's settlement, because... well, things weren't entirely perfect. Lifeboat rules and all. The crew of the Voidrunner, Jessie, yourself - you all led expeditions to chart the planet as a whole. Find any of its secrets, as well as territory for new crops, new power plants, and so forth." "So I was this planet's law-talking guy? How did we not all die?" Velak looked shocked. "Sri Steward... I know you may be in a state of shock, even disbelief, but... the things you did for these people... you led us through some dark times. Saved us from some great threats. You kept a light going in the darkness." "All right. There. That's what I want to talk about. You said you're closely clustered. You said I - not the agriculture guys, not the electricity guys - saved you from 'great threats.' Is there some Godzilla-level bull**** on this planet or what?" Velak was silent for several seconds, as if he might have given something away. Before he could spit out an answer, however, a klaxon split the air. Those who had gathered to celebrate began swiftly moving off the streets - not panicking, but getting away, as if they had done this before. Guards came streaming out of a nearby building, wearing... it wasn't the full armor, but it sure as hell looked like the gauntlets and breastplate had been reverse engineered from Star Knight (or Spectrum Knight) armor. "I'm guessing that's the 'or what.'" "It's a Titan alert. They're... well... we're still not sure what they are. The best way to explain it is to see..."

Joe turned his eyes towards the walking masonry, wondering where he might have come from... until he saw the familiar blue and yellow of Claremont, and heard the clear nervousness on the kid's voice. A few years ago, I might've been quaking in my boots, coming to a shindig like this. With that somewhat subtle body language he had mastered after months with Asli - you needed a way to signal while maintaining stealth in the field, as well of a way of saying you needed to get out of this party now - he gestured over towards The Gargoyle. Then, after taking a second to establish they were on the same page, Joe headed over to join Alex and Mike in talking to the kid. "Glad to see you made it out," he said, extending his hand to The Gargoyle. "Name's Joe." He hadn't heard Mike give his trade name - then again, Mike didn't really wear a mask, so he was still somewhat unsure on protocol tonight. But trade names could come later if requested. "Welcome to the weird and wild world of superhero Christmas parties. How you liking it so far?"

The group split up, moving silently through the park. Cannonade cleared the park in leaps and bounds, taking to the air and seeing if he noticed anything that looked out of place from above. Of course, most of the part looked the same from about 200 feet up in the air, so as he landed again, he cursed not being able to notice crap. Woodsman, however, was able to notice the eccentricity quickly. It was a hedge, looming out from between two barren trees. The dead branches provided plenty of cover - and support, which kept him from plummeting right into it - but he recognized the type of hedgerow. It was a deciduous plant, meaning it should have been dead and barren as well - but here it was, vital as ever. The Sidhe, Grim's dogs, and Gabriel all noticed the hedge soon after. The Sidhe could feel that faint aura of glamour rising from it like mist, solid enough now but likely to sublimate at some point. Grim's dogs could smell the freshness as well, and jumped as they heard - and smelled - fellow dogs from somewhere within the depths. And Gabriel could hear, from deep within, the same chuffing of hounds, as well as the faint peal of a bugle...

All right. I will post the results in the IC thread.

"They aren't," said the crone from the back, "but then, when has that ever stopped humans? They see your home, and they think it might make a pleasant thing to sit on or store things. We tend to appreciate our homes as long as we have them - which is why, I'm guessing, some of us don't want to take in interlopers." "Those trees are large and old!" said the dryad. "So large to allow room for a season! But they are busy, they say. I --" She paused, catching her breath - if she could be said to have breath. "Anyway. You can make the trees. You can give us new shelter. And you can make sure that these men are driven out, so that nobody else loses their home to their greed. Yes?" The crone gave Rosethorn a look. "Ah, the hope of the young. Just remember: Don't promise them the sun if you can't deliver a spark. First rule of spirits. Or, well, it's somewhere in the first ten."

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The dryads looked to one another. "We do not quite know the human name," said the young one that led discussions. "We merely know that it is wide and green, with thousands of us. We got here through the Root Roads." "She means the great network of trees," said the crone. "It's not quite a massive root structure, but it does allow for travel if need be." "I... I can backtrace the path. Give you an idea." Before Rosethorn could say anything, the young dryad took her hand. Suddenly, she was there, but not there. She was insubstantial, suspended in thin air. Then she was sucked into the ground, vanishing into a nearby root. From there, she felt herself traveling underground at high speed, jumping from root to root like a nerve signal crossing synapses. She felt herself traveling miles upon miles before erupting out of the ground, finding herself a large, gray forest, where snow blanketed both ground and bare branches. While she couldn't name it, she did gain a sense of place. It almost reminded her of photos she'd seen of Wharton State Forest. Then, the vision was gone, as she was swiftly yanked back to her body. The young dryad stood before her. "You saw, yes? You know?"

The back door was remarkably open. Aquaria did not even need to whip her tongue to break the lock; the knob yielded easily. As the door swung open, Aquaria could see the depths inside. It was large and somewhat cavernous; yellow draping clothing hung on a nearby wall, with those tiny yet tall shoes that humans used to hold their tiny and fragile feet. The substance of the shoes was rubbery, like... dolphin skin... and the clothing looked like the same fabric as tough yet old fishing net. One of those long screaming red vessels, like the one at the building, was also resting nearby. There were also two empty bays nearby, ones that looked like they could hold similar vessels. She could hear voices coming from the stairwell. It was hard to make out, but she could get details. "...staying behind... can't believe it..." "...our sloppiness... reason there's a trail..." "...has to happen now?" "If not... notice... the pyre must be..."