call it SKULLTAKER!!!

>>139296
>>139301
... The Spectral Gorging Anima....
Yes, this name seems suitable.

I continue to follow the trail before me as I test the name, and nearly miss a scuffling sound off to my right.

I take stock of my current situation. I am currently in the forest surrounding the ruins of Mosmordre, much of the flora and fauna warped, though I can see no animals about at the moment. The trail I am following has been consistent, and other than a patch of rocky ground has been very straightforward to follow. If I had to guess, the tracks were made in haste, as the distance of a given stride is long, and toes have dug into the ground with desperate force to gain more speed. Before me, the trail continues onward for as far as I can see in this labyrinthine forest. I hear no further noises save the wind slowly flitting through the leaves. ...This has been bothering me for a while, but every single track I have seen has looked largely the same, made by an unshod foot too large to be human. Likely they were made by the Premen, but if so... what are they running from? I doubt that two magic users and several warriors would not be able to handle that mutated corpse I dispatched earlier.... so why do they run with such urgency?


What should I do? Should I investigate the noise I heard, or should I press onward, in the hopes of finding the missing Premen?

>>139620

Find out what that sound was. It may be arkus or one of the premen.

>>139620
How dense is this forest? Also, other than the obvious warped nature of the plants in the forest, does anything seem... off? I mean, the trail you've been following has pretty much been a STRAIGHT LINE from the stone circle into the forest. Now doesn't it strike you as odd that:
1 - there is a natural path(unpaved, yes) leading from a ruined area into the forest.
2 - that arkus and the premen would run in a uniform group onto this path when it is inferred that whatever is hunting them is dangerous enough to warrant their top running speed(my point being that the thing chasing them would most likely outrun them in a straight path and would be better dealt with by splitting up and regrouping later.)
3 - The only sign of a chase is premen footprints, no damage to the surrounding forest that would usually come with a predator actively chasing AND attacking it's prey.

Bob!t/UKid4z5s 2010/02/28(Sun)10:43 No. 140146 ID: d1210a
File 12673826333.jpg - (94.44KB , 640x480 , Sqoat.jpg )

>>139683
Yes, I might as well check on this now, I-

>>139854
....Wait. This forest was cursed more than a decade ago, and Arkus was the only visitor from the outside. So why is this trail here, let alone somehow straight in such a twisting forest? I can't attribute the path to the creatures of the forest, as only the Premen tracks seem to be present. Further, if my missing compatriots were so eager to flee, why did they travel in a group, in a straight line? Scattering and taking winding paths through the forest would likely be much more effective.

...And even more strange, now that I look for it, is that there is almost no damage to the plants near this path. A frantic escape while pursued should lead to much more collateral damage to the fauna, yet I cannot find such.

While I mull over these strange inconsistencies and what they could mean, I make my way towards the noise I heard, and after pushing aside some foliage, I see..... this. It makes no moves, though if this is out of fear or shock, I do not know. It simply peers at me, sitting on it's haunches, as it chews.


What should I do?

>>140146
its probably just an animal, leave it alone unless it tries to attack you.

>>140146
Out of the sheer absurdity of the situation, I would attempt to communicate with it. The curse that undid Mosmordre has done many twisted things to the environment, whos to say it couldn't warp normal animals into creatures of pained sentience and suffering? Of course this could always be a trap of some sort. The thing that attacked us in the stone circle was smart enough to try and attack from above, why wouldn't similar beings try to sneak up on us now while we're distracted looking at a rather strange animal?

>>140146
EPIC STAREDOWN.

>>140153
[Fun fact: Mordre has no eyelids, so blinking is impossible, thus Mordre is always staring. ALWAYS.]

>>140152
The attack at the tower still fresh in my mind, I stay wary of attacks outside my field of vision, while I appraise the small creature before me. ...Just in case the creature is sapient, I choose to address it.

"Can you understand me, little one?

The creature stops chewing for a moment and taps it's foot on the ground twice. It then resumes it's chewing, it's eyes still locked upon me, but no fear evident in it's posture or behavior. Still.... could it understand me, or was the tap unrelated? I shall investigate.

"So, you can understand me?

two taps.

"Can you speak?

one tap.

As I consider it's responses, I finally separate out from the soft sound of the wind, that of a distant gurgle and trickle.... there is running water somewhere nearby, though I know not where, the sounds are too broken and erratic for discovery.


What should I do?

>>140185
"Have you seen any humanoids pass this way?"
"Did you hear a roar recently?"

>>140191
Since we are looking for missing party members, we should determine quickly if this creature is a "natural" part of the terrain here, or a sentient more recently turned into this creature. The ability to understand spoken language is hardly a normal trait for wild animals.

Ask it if it has lived here all its life, or if it is native to this form, or something like that.

Also ask if it knows who/what you are.

From the sound of the description of the tracks... it sounds like they weren't running from something. They were chasing something.

>>140191
>>140209
I continue to question the small creature, watching it's tiny feet for it's answers.

"Have you seen any humanoids pass this way?"

two taps

"Have you lived here all your life?"

one tap

"It this your native form?"

three taps?

"Did you hear a roar recently?"

one tap.

...Strange, that this creature has not heard a roar, even if the creature(s) I fear accosted my followers. After all, I know myself to possess a prodigious voice, surely it must..... wait. When did I stop emitting the howling dirge? I know I was maintaining it steadily as I entered the forest, yet by the time I found this creature, I did not have to halt such a noise to communicate with this thing before me.

>>140238
...Well, if there isn't enough damage to the foliage along the trail for a frantic flight, then... perhaps the Premen were the pursuers? After all, Arkus and Sugro both know magic, and the Premen warriors proved their mettle felling that beast earlier when I first brought them here. That would explain the urgency conveyed by the tracks, to be sure.


What should I do? Should I continue questioning the thing before me? Should I continue to follow the path before me? Should I investigate the sound of water I heard? Or should I do something else?

>>140281
One last question:
Are you Arkus? If no, bid farewell, and move on.

>>140282
One more thing:
It strikes this soul that while Mosmordre is important to you, being your home, it is also really crazy and whatnot. Considering we get out of this with everyone okay, we should from this point on minimize our stays here.

>>140281
Ask if the humanoids were chasing something.

i think this creature, and the many others i presume ran around this forest, are in some way magical and/or poisonous. I think one of the makers found one, ate it, turned into the disembowled monster we saw ealier. Before he changed, the others ran off in search of more after hearing how tasty they are (you know fleshlings and what they will endure to find something tasty), then realized the things they started catching are evil, and decided to leave the forest...in a random direction...
find out what information you can learn from this thing, then destroy it with a rock, or if we want to do overkill, use the amaranthine annihilator.

> three taps
Clearly this is but a single manifestation of a greater being. Combine that with the unnoticed cessation of your dirge and the strange path through the wilderness... you are on a vision quest, and squirrelgoat is your spirit guide. Only explanation.

>>140281
"Do you know me?"

>>140284
Unless I miss my guess, the Curse is in some way involved in this. Perhaps rebuilding on this land might not be wise, considering the danger. ....Although, if we could properly tabulate all the idiosyncrasies of this land and ways to compensate for them, we could use the as a form of natural defense.... in any event, this is a question for when we have significantly more supplies.

>>140282
>>140372
>>140291

"Are you Arkus?"

one tap.

"Do you know me?"

two taps.

"Were the humanoids chasing anything?"

one tap.

>>140315
If the Premen were not pursued, as the evidence suggests, nor chasing down anything, then that severely limits the number of rational reasons for their abrupt and speedy flight. Still, it is strange that it took so long for some sort of altercation to occur, the lands were perfectly safe for days prior, what could....

The Premen corpse was most mutated in the stomach.... next to a campfire...

!!!MOMENT OF INSPIRATION[PART 1/2]!!!


..!? Of course. The Premen only brought so many supplies, and fully expected to hunt the land. But the damages of the Curse have most likely rendered any game or plants gathered hear potentially dangerous. That's why the corpse was there, that was simply the first person to eat of the food, or so goes my assumption. The focusing of the mutation about the core of the body, mostly in the vicinity of the stomach, lends credence to this. Further, in lack of any evidence that Sugro or Arkus was responsible, an environmental effect is a likely candidate.

Even their flight makes sense from this perspective. They moved to rid themselves of gathered game, thus neither being pursued nor chasing down anything, allowing for the tracks as they are.

>>140341
....As interesting as this personal revelation is, something has been bothering me for a short time: why did the creature before me tap the ground twice when I asked if this was it's native form? I was under the impression two taps meant yes, and one no. So what meaning could three taps hold? ...This creature has been surprisingly helpful though, I must say...... and the path surprisingly easy to follow, considering this forest's tangled nature.....

!!!MOMENT OF INSPIRATION[PART 2/2]!!!


..!? Of course. This thing before me could not answer yes or no because this is neither is native nor non-native form: rather, it is an extension, a part of something greater.... something that could well possess the ability to force a maliciously labyrinthine forest to render a simple, easy to follow path for this event. Something that, having done that, would still be inclined to help, thus... the creature before me.

[+1 PRISTINE SOUL TOTAL: 2]

Almost the very moment I start considering this line of thought, the creature ceases it's tireless chewing, and peers at me with eyes that seem far less vacuous than a moment ago.

It then promptly turns, and continues down the trail, moving without much speed.

Feeling confident in my estimations, I plod along after the creature, keeping a wary eye to not step upon the tiny form.

....And when I look up next from tending my feet, I find myself emerging from the woods at the bank of a large river despite how much deeper the forest seemed last I looked, nine Premen all turning rocks over and grasping at forms in the water, already a pile of several fish, crustaceans, and strange tubers being sorted and inspected by Sugro and Arkus, both speaking to each-other using the rudimentary language of magic I recall them working on, with a noticeably increased competency in this budding language apparent, yet their words are clearly tinted by haste as they mutter to each-other, none having yet spotted me.


What should I do?

>>140463
"I have returned. The corrupted Premen transformed by tainted meat has been eliminated. Please give me a status report on the situation here."

>>140463
Call out.

"DON'T EAT THAT STUFF, YOU'LL TURN INTO A ZOMBIE." or similar.

>>140463
First, warn our friends that the food they've caught might not be safe to eat.
Second, ask the creature if there even is any safe food in this forest.

Before calling out to them, make sure they're not evil/possessed/an illusion.

greet them, get a status report, and ask about what they encountered/ what happened with the disemboweled zombie premen. This could still be an illusion, so be very attentive to the way they answer, anything that gives way to an inconsistency is to be viewed as highly suspect.

>>140630
I am not sure I would be able to determine such, lacking conventional magical capacity as I do at the moment. However, nothing about their demeanor, appearance or actions indicate them to be anything but the genuine articles. ...It could just be that paranoia can follow magic wherever it may go.... hmph.

>>140692
>>140576
I take a few further strides out of the forest, and note the Premen rather quickly become alert to my presence thereafter. Even though they acknowledge my presence, most continue fishing, with only Arkus halting his work to converse with me. He stops a short distance before me, rubbing his head awkwardly as he glances back at Sugro.

"...Yeah, so I'm supposed to verify whether you are Mordre or not, since some screwy stuff has been happening in the forest, but I can feel the enchantment I put in your eyes, so I feel pretty sure it's you, which makes this whole check pointless.... I'm rambling again. ANYWAY, I don't know if you saw, but one of the Makers, I think his name was Frodd, got poisoned by some food we harvested here when our own supplies ran out. ....Probably should have seen that coming, Curse and all that.

Well, Sugro and the rest of the Premen figured that even if the land is messed up, a river could provide a workaround, since it would just be flowing down from the mountains, so we've been trying to find known edibles, partly so we can eat without worrying, and partly so that we can try to fix Frodd. I THINK Sugro has been saying he knows a magic to use healthy food to undo poisoning, but I'm not completely sure on that, language barrier all that."

I listen to Arkus' rambling explanation impassively, and glance down towards the strange creature that escorted me here, only to find it gone, in it's place naught but an old, worn stone, a few delicate cracks flitting across it's bland form.

Well, the Premen seem to be aware of the dangers the food offers them, good. But there is still work to be done, a search and salvage mission to exploit my carrying capacity whence we return to the north.


What should I say or do?

>>141239
Inform them that it is more than a mere poison they are dealing with. The food is mutinagenic, and turned "frodd" into a monster which attacked you. They need not concern themselves with a cure for him.

Current theory would be that anything which consumes something from the tainted land suffers the curse itself. So if this river is near the border, there is some hope untainted supplies can be found, but they should still use caution. The risks for failure are too high.

Get Arkus to pick up the stone. Tell him that the tainted food has transformed Frodd, put a hole with teeth in him etc, and that they will not have to worry about curing him (Crack knuckles to make it clear what happened.)

>>141246
do this.
ask arkus if they have found any safe sources of food, and if so, if they have stockpiled any.
We should try to safe enough of this safe food to last us until the end of this mission, im guessing a week, maximum. Then we should go back to the castle, salvage, then leave.

It might be best if we not be overly callous about the fact that their efforts to cure Frodd are useless. Don't try to excuse your actions or anything, just make it clear that you were left with no choice in the matter.

>>141246
>>141286
I tell Arkus about Frodd's form when I arrived, and my theories concerning what happened, and the true danger of the food here.

"....Okay, wow. ....Uh, I guess we don't need to worry about curing him... Yeah, based on what you saw, your guess sounds spot on. ...Ah, I still can't communicate too well with the Premen, so do you think you could tell them too? You do speak their language, after all."

After Arkus gives some form of signal to the Premen, I see tension drain out of several forms, and Sugro pushes himself to his feet to stride over, the fishing Premen making their way over as well. I tell them what I told Arkus, paying attention to not be unnecessarily callous about the death of one of their comrades. I see a few faces look crestfallen, but even they are shortly focused again, as I conclude my update. Sugro shakes his head sadly, before he responds to me.

"..Feared such could happen. Arkus so wary of land, should have treated it with more caution. A deathly place to call home."

"Has the stream yielded any safe edibles?"

"Yes, many fish seen back up north, swim here. Besides, running water hinders magic, the Curse could not exert as much influence here. We are sorting, making sure only untainted food chosen. Now that Mordre returns, we need not stock as much food, if Mordre intends to return soon."

>>141249
My eye still drawn to the not so humble stone where the strange creature used to be, I make a snap decision.

"Arkus, pick up that stone there. Tell me, does it seem strange to you?"

Giving me a somewhat skeptical look, Arkus nonetheless bends to pick up the stone. Yet a scant hairsbreadth away from touching, a spark jumps violently from the stone, leaping to Arkus' outstretched hand. The moment it touches his flesh, it seeps into his skin, and pulses along his nerves, a ripple spreading through his body.

Arkus starts and falls to the ground, but the strange phenomena has already passed, and he simply inspects himself in confusion. He shakes his head as he takes a pouch from his belt, and scoops the stone in without touching it again.

"Well, I'll need some time, but I'll take a look at it, see wha....." Arkus begins to speak as he rises, dusting himself off. But the very moment he gazes upon me again, his jaw goes slack as his words trail off, and he stares at me with a look filled with wonder and fear.

"...Wha-what.... what is, uh, whatever that is!? That thing, but not a thing, um soul? No, not a soul, not quite.... almost feels like a leyline, but.. balled up, folded somehow, maybe? But that wouldn't..."

Arkus continues his ramblings, his shock fading and his words turned into muttering, his mouth narrating his mind working feverishly to grasp something it has never seen before.

Hm, what happened? Something to do with a spirit, one lacking a body, I believe? Hmm....


What should I do? Arkus is still muttering to himself, Sugro has turned back to sorting catch, and the other Premen have resumed fishing. Should I say something to someone?

>>141353
He's talking about the spirit entity that took residence within you. Whatever that stone is attached to has allowed him to see it.

make sure arkus can actually hold the stone without being zapped, gather everyone, and head to the castle

>>141353
This stone must allow humans/humanoids/mages to see strong magical entities such as the one we house within. We should tell Arkus the full story of what happened before we freed him as soon as he snaps back to reality.

>>141356
>>141457
Arkus speaks of the entity that I wrested from Arkus with an exchange of vessel made as an offering. That he can perceive it now is interesting, as even Kyorto's spirit, who seemed for more adept and experienced (if currently of limited mobility), could not detect my spiritual passenger. That the stone could let Arkus see it could indicate many things.

It could be that the creature I saw, and the stone left behind were at the behest of the spirit dwelling within me, and that Arkus has now been given some sort of connection to the spirit via the stone, that allows him to bypass whatever veils the spirit uses. Certainly possible, but does not explain why the spirit did not just converse with me directly... though it has been most quiet since I allowed it residence within me.

The other option that crops up swiftly is that of a third party, who has chosen to assist Arkus, thus allowing him to detect the spirit. This explains my help to a degree, but what could this other party be?

>>141447

"Can you touch the stone, Arkus?"

"........."

"Arkus?"

"...Wha? ...Ah, ah, uh.." after some brief prodding being applied to the stone with some reservation, he continues. "Yeah, seems... seems I can. .......So.... what is that?"

I bark out a quick command to Sugro, to collect what untainted food they could claim from the river as they have, and to make ready to return to the castle shortly, so that we may return to the Drazken Clan expeditiously with our salvage. He nods as he sets back to the pile of caught game, and the Premen work their way back onto the sand, some spearing a last fish on the way.


What should I do? How should I answer Arkus' question?

tell him the truth, how his world-magic spell called a great spirit to him and how it now resides in you. he should also try to stop comprehending it, you can sorta understand it because you are designed to deal with spirits/souls.

(i also wonder what charge lvl our annihilator is at, all these days of hiking has to have done something)

Tell him the truth, and also ask if there's an upper limit for the Annihilator, because if we don't fire it for a month and need it, I don't want us blowing up a country.

We might just need to release it like once a couple months or so. straight up.

It'd be a nice display.

tell arkus everything we know about it, he may be able to give us helpful insights, and perhaps possible uses, for the spirit.

>>141522
That's the plan if it has no upper limit. But maybe because Arkus isn't the most powerful of mages, it won't build up beyond a certain amount of power.

Or maybe past a certain amount our head will explode. Magic is confusing.

if it has no upper limit but it also has no chance of head explosions then it may be able to get enough power that it could cool another soul-grave to the point it's fire goes out.

>>141544
I'm not quite sure that's how it works, but we should try blasting the small tomb anyways.

>>141550
Maybe we should try a different target, we still need the small tomb. Once we can aquire the needed mage skins for Kyorto, she can command the small tomb and make it useful for us.

Tell him... it may be the spirit of the world itself.

>>141508
>>141535
I tell Arkus the truth, stark and simple. I met a being of vast force that inhabited his form when he melded with the mountains, and I allowed it accomodation in exchange for his freedom. I can see his face working, multiple attempts to question me further aborted again and again. He seems almost lost in his own mind, trying to bludgeon himself into being able to accept this new data.

>>141520
Now that I think on it, I know little of how exactly the enchantments on the Amaranthine Annihilator work, beyond simply leeching and storing power from my movements. How much power can it store? Is there danger to leaving the ability unused too long, some repercussion to storing too much power? Can the charge ever build up enough power that I could apply this to a Soul Grave?

I decide to jolt Arkus out of his fey mood, to learn more about how this enchantment works.

"Arkus, tell me more on how mine eyes work. Beyond simple method of function, explain your crafting. Is there a limit to stored power? Any dangers from storing it too long? I need to understand my armaments more fully, mageling."

As I address him, I am presented with the image of Arkus pitching over in surprise as I begin speaking, before he responds distractedly, not even standing, his eyes distant, his mind clearly still on the force housed within me.

"Like I said before, I don't really know about any sort of upper limit, there was no reference to estimating that in the documents I used, so I have no frame of reference. I do know that the spell is grafted to your own spell matrices, so I can't see how you even could overcharge, if such a thing were to start happening, the excess energy would be subsumed by the soul forge within you, or so the texts said. So, no real reason to think the enchantment could be a danger to you, unless you somehow hit yourself with it, I guess."

He sighs as he finally turns his gaze back to me, still sporting a confused look.

"...So what could well be the spirit of the mountains, maybe even the planet itself for all I know, appropriated my body when I was in the cave and now... it's hitching a ride with you, to see the world? ....Fine, you know what, forget it, let's just move on."

Thereafter, little is said as collectively we pack away what foods the Premen claimed, several dozen pounds of fish and crustaceans slipping into hide sacks, and we make our way back through the woods. The Premen seem a bit confused when I lead them into the brush, but upon reaching their old trail I dispel their doubts. The march back is gloriously uneventful, and in little time we stand before the tower in the ruins. But rather than rest, the Premen trundle off to begin gathering piles of salvaged tools, placards and other miscellaneous goods situated about the camp.


What should I do? The Premen seem busy preparing to leave, should I ask them anything? Or should I do something else, like investigate the Small Tomb again? I admit curiosity as to what would result from using my chilling gaze on the molten arms of the ducal palace's defender.

>>141637
We should get back to the Drazken camp quickly, we've more pressing matters to attend to there anyways. I've no intrest in trying to destroy the small tomb or test out our weaponry on it, besides a fully charged A.A. shot would be better used elsewhere. We don't have any idea what would happen if we shoot it, the small tomb could repel the beam and bring down the ducal palace along with any goodies it might've held.

another thing to think of is what would happen if it impacted our steel fist, seeing as it contains a shard of Thomro with the rest residing in the fist.

>>141661
All of this is irrelevant before the real reason we don't want to go testing our weaponry on it: Its worth to us INTACT is incalculable.

Also, we should inform Kyorto that all is well. Whats she going to be doing while we're gone, anyways? Honestly, at this point her spirit is likely going to have become used to contact with people once more, and I'd hate to think of what deprivation of social contact would do to someone in such a state.

The morale of underlings is an important facet that is all to easily overlooked.

Perhaps there is a way to use magic (an artifact or some form of runecraft) to allow limited contact over long distances? Would Arkus be up for such a task, if there was?

Golem Quest Arc 1: COMPLETE Bob!t/UKid4z5s 2010/03/04(Thu)12:18 No. 142043 ID: d1210a
File 126773391466.jpg - (469.17KB , 800x1000 , The Watcher In The Forest.jpg )

>>141699
Come to think of it, I possess another piece of Thomro's soul within my left hand. I wonder what would happen if the fragmented soul were reunited under my own control...

>>141839
I stride over to the tower, and once more step into Kyorto's confined realm.

"||The incident has been concluded. The local food was mutagenic, and caused the magic surge you felt. We are preparing to claim what salvage we can, before we depart. When next we see each-other, I should have the means to free you.||"

I start to contemplate the ramifications of re-exposing such an old soul to socialization, and then returning them to solitude for a potentially extended period. Especially considering the potential resources Kyorto represents, I would be loathe to see her harmed, psychologically or physically, if I can avoid it.

But the dancing lights that resolve themselves into Kyorto's form show no unease, and I see a faint smile flick across her transparent visage.

"||Yes, your companions informed me of your plans.
I have resided in this tower for a long time,
A bit more won't cause me undue discomfort.
I hope to see you with those skins sometime soon,
Mordre, Well Of Souls, The Thinking Soulgrave||"

...Perhaps I need not worry about her after all. She seems to lack much of the mental frailties fleshlings possess.... perhaps this is due to shedding her fleshy form.

>>141661
>>141836
I decide to leave the Small Tomb as it is for now. A functioning golem that could be commanded by one of our number (Kyorto, once I have brought her five mage skins) likely would hold more value than whatever I could salvage from the palace, or the worth of unifying a soul. Military power is still the most critical component to my foundling empire, and the competency the Small Tomb demonstrated is something I desire.

I step back outside, to be beset by the Premen outside, all attending surprisingly large piles of materials and miscellaneous items. With nothing left to occupy my time here, I kneel down, and assist the Premen as best I can in securing as many of their salvaged goods to my form as possible.

It takes enough time the sun has noticably shifted in position above us, but soon everything the Premen claimed is either in their possession or part of my new burden. After checking that everyone is ready, we set off, back to the Drazken Clan.


..................................................................[???]..............................................................
....

A petite figure within the woods, no larger than a child, watches Mordre and the rest as they leave, thoughts whirling through her head.


So... it appears those gutter rats were telling the truth, there was a Soul Grave still here, waiting to be found! A shame it could not be claimed as another of ours, more materials to work with are always useful, but.... they were telling the truth about their other claim as well, it seems: The golem acts on it's own. Fascinating! Oh, this promises to be most entertaining!

The vary air around her ripples and quakes, before it envelopes her form completely, and she vanishes, not even leaving behind footprints.

.....................................................................................................................................
......


END OF FIRST ARC: THE MOUNTAIN BOUNTY