594 replies and 40 files omitted.
>>190314Okay, well then change the rank to 'Seaman', or I'll sort it out later.
>>190313>>190315Cavaliere talks to Primed Well softly.
"You made the right choice tying up the batpony. However innocuous he may seem, he is controlled by a nefarious entity that by this method instigated a mutiny on the Stalliongrad ship you were following. Unfortunately it's capable of much more than that. Those noises you hear are skirmishes between its creatures and a far stronger Communist complement that has landed. Both sides are looking for us." >>190313Silver: "What is your name, soldier?"
How long does it take us to get all of the airponies outside the ship?
>>190320Well we have two injured ponies, one of which needs to be brought to before the Traveler gets him, and however many possessed ponies we need to capture.
Also can we not just speed through this at lightspeed? We're not going to take a week to get through the airship, obviously, but we don't need to blow through the scene in two posts either.
>>190327Alright. There's no hurry.
>however many possessed ponies we need to captureAnything I should do? I guess I could see if rolling Hypnosis works. Even if the Traveller has their minds, they might still be vulnerable to enchantment from outside sources, at least temporarily. Maybe try to catch their attention and keep them fascinated for long enough for Silver, Cavalier and Mala to restrain. Idk though.
>>190330>>190327Posey approaches Silver
"How should we go about restraining the quarantined thralls? I have some military background in capture assignments, but my track record in capturing resistant ponies alive is... hit or miss... Cadaver collection was more of my specialty. I suppose we could just try knock them out, but in their state we cannot guarantee that they would not injure themselves if we fought them."
She ponders for a moment
"Perhaps I could use a little bit of trick-magic to distract them and counter the Traveller's influence for long enough for the rest of you to capture. It would require precise timing and coordination though. How does that sound to you, Silver?"
>>190331Silver: "Hmmmm...that could work. We could also have Kira wrap around and subdue them."
>>190332"I am not actually certain I could hypnotize very many at once though... My skills in the art are limited." she admits, her ears drooping
>>190333Silver pats Posey on her head between her ears. "You have our support, Posey."
>>190313Silver looks over at Primed Well. "Are there supposed to be more of you? There are four of you here, one who is clearly possessed by Traveler...where are rest?"
>>190337Posey's ears shoot upwards as a grim realization dawns on her.
"Oh no... Do you think the Traveller might have marched them away? I was afraid that it could happen..." she says, with subtle glare of annoyed-worry as she nervously glances in the direction of the Kostroma
>>190316Primed Well:
"Nothing has been right since we started tailing that ship. Before then, really. No shit it isn't normal. I don't know if it's a demon, some secret experiment or whatever. It's messing with our minds."
He blinks, and there is a pause.
"We need to move, don't we?"
Another pause,
"Did you see a set of ponies as you came up here?"
>>190317He stands up next to Silver, facing perpendicular to him, and looks out a window. The window faces a set of rock, so there isn't much to actually see.
"Captain....." He closes his mouth and looks forward "Weary Weeks..."
"Father?" he says, looking forward. A smile slowly crosses his face. He slowly turns his head towards Silver.
"Father? I saw you. I feel you. I know you are close. You know, for so long I resented you. I was angry at you. I was angry at you for leaving me. Leaving little Tin Hat and mom and me while you went off with the Expedition. I was angry that you never came back. But now... now that I can feel you... again. Heh. Now that I know you are near... I can feel almost elation." His head is aimed towards Silver. it is unclear if he is talking to Silver or past him.
"Is that where you've been? The soft, green pastures of Elysium. It's gentle, nurturing sunlight. No. Where you've been had no light. But this will. We will. And not far away in the beyond realm. Not some 'other side,' but here. It's not a fairy tale. It's here. Heaven on Earth. Not material. Not immaterial. But all the best of both here. Can you feel it? It's coming here to us, and us to it. Father, I wish I had a mare to show you. But I was so afraid of doing like you, I... it seems silly now..."
He sits down and places his hooves on his head.
[Read more] >>190345Silver gives the pony, Weary Weeks, a slap across the cheek. A light slap, not intended to hurt, but to jar him out of his stupor. "Listen, you just had demon from another dimension in your head, found in Skynavia and brought here on board Kostroma. It has taken over minds of multiple ponies on this island already with promises of 'True Harmony'. Whatever it showed you, whatever it promised you, fight against it. You do
not want this thing inside your head. Do you hear me, soldier? Fight it!"
>>190345>I don't know if it's a demon, some secret experiment or whatever. It's messing with our minds.""It is not exactly a 'demon', per say, but for all intents and purposes that is close enough to describe it. An otherworldly entity of chaos has been infecting the minds of ponies on this island." Posey says
>"We need to move, don't we?""We will soon, yes."
>"Did you see a set of ponies as you came up here?""We sat some communists fighting monsters on the way here. Are you referring to the rest of your crew? Did they wander off?"
>deranged ramblings"Oh, for the love of-...!"
Posey rushes over and pulls out a bone pendulum, waving it back and forth in front of the pony, attempting to counter the creeping silent influence with hypnosis as she did with Pipette
"Calm down. Stay with us now. Look into my eyes. Listen to my voice."
Hypnosis check
[1d20+8 = (8+8) = 16] [Read more] >>190346In the moment that Silver slaps him, his pupils dilate, and he seems to refocus, tending towards the then-closing in Posey. But it does not hold
"Fighting? Is that not what we've done our whole lives? Fight? Have you forgotten what you are fighting for? Harmony - Harmony, friendship, you can't get that in this body. You must transcend the self. Return to the Universe but do not lose the self. Sielu on vahvempi kuin luulet. Vaikka jumala söisi sen, se ei häviä, vaan sulautuu muiden kanssa. Miksi pelätä kuolemaa? Mitä sinulla oikeastaan on menetettävää? Etkö näe, mitä voisit voittaa?"
His eyes tremble and tick, as if trying to focus on the swaying bone, but not entirely succeeding. His pupils are massive, and see much.
>>190349>But it does not holdWell, that didn't work... What could bring him back to reality? Hmmmmm..
"Desperate times call for desperate measures..." Posey says, sighing as her horn glows bright
She telekinetically grabs him by the balls, and squeezes sharply.
Per the BoVD, this uses the Intimidate skill:
[1d20+15 = (20+15) = 35] >>190350Even Silver reflexively reaches for his own sack on that one, slumping down as he gets hit with a wave of sympathy pain.
>>190350His pupils do
not decrease in size,
"Он пришёл ко мне во сне. Он показал -
Neigh!"
He falls to the ground. "Oww..." And starts to turn over, on his back. "Oww..."
He breathes in through his teeth
>>190353Silver is slow to get up, himself. His balls ache now. "You back with us in world of sane ponies, Captain?"
>>190353"Pain is something I grew to appreciate as a warrior. The path of an Eldritch warmagus is one of loneliness and disassociation. Pain is what grounds the living in reality, lest they forget the dangers before them." Posey says, with a flat tone
She stands over the stallion
"Did that do it for you?"
>>190354>>190352In a high pitched voice,
"What is wrong with you..."
Primed Well:
"Did you just grab the Captain's balls?"
>>190356This post still applies to
>>190355 >>190356Silver: "Grabbed
and twisted." Silver looks out, and calls to the commies ponies. "По-видимому, достаточно скрутить гениталии одержимого существа, чтобы вывести его из этого состояния."
Turning his attention back to Primed, Silver asks again, "What did happen to rest of your group?"
>>190356>"What is wrong with you...""If you would really like to get to know me, we could talk about it over a drink when we get home, but for now we have more pressing matters at hoof." Posey say with a coquettish smirk that betrays the underlying storm of psychopathy, and a playful swish of her tail
>"Did you just grab the Captain's balls?""I do what I must." she replies, nonchalantly
>>190358>По-видимому, достаточно скрутить гениталии одержимого существа, чтобы вывести его из этого состоянияNow we know how to take them out, Commissar. Spread the word.
Primed Well's mouth hangs open,
"You let the commies over here? Why are you speaking to them? You... uh, uh"
>>190359"Gack..." He is still on the floor, wincing in pain
>>190360Silver: "We are all allies against Traveler and its summons. Also they are being hunted by Spetsnaz because of their knowledge about Traveler. Important thing is that you have not answered our question, yet. I count five ponies, there should be three more."
>>190361He stares at Silver, and loudly exhales. Then inhales.
"The Lieutenant went out with a few able-bodied ponies looking for help. Did you see them?"
He looks past Silver, towards the Captain on the floor
>>190360"It appears as though you are with us once more. If you feel yourself slipping away again, I will be here to bring you back to your senses." she says, with a cold glare
"Silver can explain the situation to you."
because I have to sleep >>190362Silver blinks once, then twice, lifts his head up into the air, then...
"СЕЛЕСТИЯ, ТРАХНИ МЕНЯ СВОИМ РОГОМ И ОСТАВЬ МНЕ БЕСПОРЯДОК!" The outburst is loud enough to cause the ears of the creatures inside the airship to ring, with how it bounces and echoes off of the metal floor, ceiling, and walls. Even Kira from outside holds her sensitive ears in apparent discomfort.
After the ringing has gone down enough that he can be heard, the rather upset Silver looks at Primed with irises that have turned from their normal light blue to red. Their gaze feels like it burns straight through the stallion. "
In which direction did they go?"
>>190364Primed Well sits down and leans back, eyes wide, ears down and back. He timidly raises a hoof, and points to his right and somewhat forward.
>>190365Silver raises his hooves towards the display in a show of "what am I supposed to do with this", before speaking out loud and authoritatively with "
Use your words."
>>190366"... D-down the hill. Somewhere. I don't know exactly where. They were looking for a plane that was passing by."
>>190367Silver closes his eyes, breathing in and out slowly. In and out. In and out. When he opens them, Primed can see Silver's red irises shift from red to purple and then back to blue. His voice returns to its normal level of volume and authority. "How long ago?"
"If there are airponies missing, it is plausible that they have been captured or enthralled by The Traveller. If that is the case, they would likely be at the Kostroma. Either that, or they may have sought out telecommunications devices and shelter in the lighthouse." Posey remarks
>>190362>>190364>The Lieutenant went out with a few able-bodied ponies looking for help. Did you see them?>"In which direction did they go?"Posey speaks up
"If they help during daylight, their trail should still be fresh. Travelling in a group, they would not be difficult to track."
She turns to Kira
"Kira, be a dear and use that tongue of yours to tell us what direction the Lieutenant went in."
>>190373Kira: "I'm not a deer, I'm a lamia."
Survival: All the same, Kira flicks her tongue out into the air to try to get a whiff of the Lieutenant's trail.
[1d20+11 = (17+11) = 28] >>190375The DC should have been 17-ish, so let's hope that works.
Cavaliere mentions, "Before you go off alone, Miss, I should accompany you on the way. The others are badly needed here."
That is unless anypony wants to go instead.
>>190377"We do not need to follow them just yet. We just need to know where they went off to so that we may plan our next move."
>>190375I'm going to roll to assist, in the unlikely event that 28 isn't enough.
[1d20+1 = (10+1) = 11] >>190377Cavalier has the track feat, so he is able to follow tracks with DCs above 10. If he assists Kira's Track check in the same way a trained falcon would, he could provide a bird's eye view and more readily determine where the airponies went.
Knowing what direction the airponies went would let us determine what to do next, since we already decided to find them before we raided the Kostroma.
>>190405With Garv tracking from the air and Kira from the ground, they absolutely can find where they went!
Cavaliere frown at Posey's "treatment" but says nothing of it. To the captain he says,
"We're sorry about that, Captain, but you have no idea what kind of danger you and your crew are in. Please get yourself composed. You have three ponies missing, lead by your lieutenant. Do you have any information that can help us find them?">>190405I suppose I can roll now, but I hope we can get some feedback to help save their lives.
Track:
[1d20+3 = (4+3) = 7]>>190411Does Cavalier have balls?>7Even if his check fails, he should be able to assist Kira's roll, or at least I think that's how it's supposed to work (I was looking at lines for having a pet bird assist a Ranger).
.
.
.
"Yes, any information would be helpful, particularly their colors, so that we may spot them at a distance."
>>190414Metaphorically or literally? It's up to Posey to find out for herself.
>>190415I guess Posey should know more about griffin anatomy by now. She did eat most of Luminous's body.
>It's up to Posey to find out for herself.Hmmm, that sounds like a challenge.