Earths Pawns (reboot)

The ballroom was alive with the sound of machinery. Technology beyond the comprehension of most men lined the walls, whirring happily to themselves as cables and tubes of varying size and purpose snaked across the ground. The extravagant chandeliers that used to adorn the ceilings had been replaced with numerous articifial light fixtures that gave off a unnatural brilliant white glow. A large partition that spanned almost from floor to ceiling split the room in two, with the half nearest the doors having a small workstation covered in strange devices.
As Victoria stepped closer the the centre of the partitioned room, a bucket of a bright pink liquid was dropped on her. As it did, a small hatch opened in the floor before her and the Grand Mechanist's head popped out. He stared out at Victoria through welding goggles, his youthful features framed with mess of unkempted blond hair.
"Who are you?" He began, pointing an accusing finger at the maid. "Are you a spy? An assassin? A Spy-ssassin? As-py? Wait, that's just the first thing again. Note to self; fine a way to blend 'assassin' and 'spy' together without it sounding like 'a spy' again."
As he continued to ramble to himself, the liquid that had been poured over Victoria began to seep into her clothes, making them translucent, far moreso than ordinary water would have.
The Mechanist returned his attention to the girl that was slowly turning naked in front of him. "Don't think that you'll be able to seduce me with your feminine wiles!" he continued, triumphantly, "I'm above such base things. For I am a man of science!"
Then he paused, looked at the liquid on the floor, pooling below the girl. "Oh, so that's what I did with it! The Instant Window batch 23. It doesn't seem to be working on the floor though." He flicked out a notepad and jotted down a few notes.

~~~

The Sanguimancer chuckled at Cecil's quip.
"Yes, quite. Though I'd wager the truth is that your benefactor is of a more...divine persuasion?"
He held his hand up as his gauntlet dissolved back into the rest of his armour and clicked his fingers. In cue, two women walked into the tent,one with deep black hair, the other ginger. Both were dressed in black military uniform accented by golden highlights and buttons, and both were as pale as the man that had beckoned them. However, whereas as the Sanguimancer looked sickly, these two had a complexion like porcelain.
The man leaned forward. "All I have come for today is a trifle really. All I require is some of your blood."
From the same pouch that he had produced the notebook, he withdrew a syringe and a specimen jar and placed them on the table in front of Cecil.
"Now, I'm a patient man. It's one of my few redeeming qualities in fact, so I will give you some time to mull it all over. Just a small amount of your blood, and we'll be out of your hair."

~~~

There was a brief moment where time stood still for all but Ella. Everything else stood frozen around her except for a tall man in almost pure white robes. His features were ageless, but his eyes gave away that he had seen far more than any one being desired to see.
"I'd follow the back streets to the old butchers down Barrow Street." the man spoke, his voice light and calming. " You know the one of course. The path should be clear for you."
The man began to fade as time slowly reasserted itself. "Your guide waits for you there. Whether he knows it or not."
Time's flow returned to normal, the man gone in an instant.

 

Ushi smiled, then lifted the sleeve of her robe, revealing a small glowing tattoo on her left arm. "Yes, and no." She replied. "I was born with the potential to harness an element." She lowered the sleeve, then looked at Brad. "As I grew older, this developed as wind magic...of sorts."

 

Brad shook his head and let out a disappointed sigh.
"Ah well. It was worth a shot, you know?"
His smile soon came back as he tapped the large gun currently strapped to his back.
"Besides, I've got a special power of my own in a way. I can make it rain bullets! You know what I'm talking about!"
He was about to go for a high-five, but nobody seemed to be in the mood so he didn't bother. Suddenly, Ella-- who seemed to be in a daze until now-- spoke up.

Brad thought this sudden inspiration she had was a little odd as his somewhat confused expression showed, but he just shrugged and replied.
"Okay, no arguments here, lead the way."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Diarmid looked around room and noted the absence of someone he'd assumed would be here.
"Where's the innkeeper? You know, mister...ah, I can never remember his name."
"He will not be joining us this evening. Though he is a steadfast supporter of our cause, he is not an active participant in our operations, so it would be safer for him to know as little about them as possible. He has done well to accommodate us and keep our identities secret from the other guests. That is more than sufficient."
Diarmid nodded.
"Yeah, I've gotta say, he's done pretty well for himself in this run-down backwater town."

A female member of the Watch shot him a dirty look.
"Some of us have lived in this "backwater town" for a while, you know."

Diarmid cleared his throat and replied.
"I meant that in the nicest way possible. Honest."
While a few more people gave him a momentary glare, someone began knocking at the door. There were four knocks, then silence, then two knocks. Everyone at the table, who had been staring right at the entrance, took their hands off of their weapons at the same time as a familiar figure entered the room. Diarmid recognized him as the telepath from downstairs. Akeyar gave him a slight nod and greeted him.
"Welcome back. I assume you have all met Mr. Chambers."

Name: Alden Chambers
Age: 31
Sex: Male
Weapons: Pump-Action Shotgun; Crossbow; Machete; Flintlock Pistol
Power: Telepathy
Special Characteristics: None

"Please, call me Alden."
Alden took a seat and looked around the room.
"My apologies for making you all wait; I was talking to a young member of the Watch downstairs and I took longer than expected. He will not be joining us as he is currently being watched by a civilian, which is quite a shame, as it seems he has quite the interesting story to tell."
"Unfortunate though it may be, we have more pressing matters that require our attention."
Everyone in the room turned their attention to Akeyar as he spoke, practically hanging on his every word. People like him were the closest thing their organization had to leaders and commanders, so they paid him the proper respect and listened closely as if their lives depended on it. Of course, in this current situation, that may very well be the case.
"The swarms are here. The king has made his move. This is only the beginning; his forces will soon fall upon this city and these people have no means of defense. Let us not delude ourselves. The city will fall, it is only a matter of time now. However, we will do what we can to sabotage the king's army and save as many lives as possible. Though we cannot conquer the oncoming storm, we can keep it at bay for a time. Let us discuss our strategy for the upcoming battle."

 

"Where are you?"
Adolph searched the house, growing weary when he was unable to find the source that directed him here. Night fell outside the house. Fed up with the cold air clashing with his fevered and half-dressed body, he thought about leaving, and voiced his intentions.
"Show yourself, else I will leave!"
He made another round through the house, checking the basement last. Not seeing or hearing his caller, Adolph gave up. But on his way up the basement stairs to get out of the abandoned house the abandoned house, he saw something in the corner. A person it seemed, the one who he sensed the calling from. Walking to the person who sat in the corner, Adolph spoke.
"Get up."
Not responding to him, Adolph got angry and kicked him.
"I said get up!"

OOT: Kinda wanting to get things moving along in my end.

 

OOT: Trying to puppet Gut's characters in the meantime.

The Deity of Existence, Ex, appeared before Axel amidst the chaos of the insects.
"Still here and asleep at a time such as this. How foolish. You who are dead yet alive by your uselessness. Banishment to the Realm of Nonexistence shall be your punishment, until you return to your senses, Axel Bishop."
With a swipe of his arm, Axel vanished from this realm, to the place of punishment Ex deemed fit for him.

OOT: @richardthedark1 In case you return, this is to ensure that you are not just killed off.

Oswald listened to Ella's plan.
"Alright, sounds good enough. Brad! I'll help you out with Zillis!"
Oswald ran over to Brad's side, helping out with the unconscious Zillis.

OOT: Oswald will move in tandem with Brad until we load Zillis up. Brad, do your thing.

The being that sat in the corner suddenly rose when Adolph kicked him. Gripping him by the throat, he raised Adolph into the air. Adolph struggled, trying to loosen the grip.
"Show some respect to your elders. I have existed long before this town or you were even thought of."
The being threw Adolph across the room, slamming him against the wall. But instead of simply dropping, Adolph was thrown by an invisible force into another wall. His body pinned to the wall by telekinetic force .
"Even without physical strength, I far surpass you."
The being strode to Adolph, an ominous aura filling the room.
"The answer to finding what you wish to know shall be found, with time. I can grant you more time... for a price."
The being stood in front of the pinned Adolph, and grabbing him, bared his fangs and bit down, sucking the blood from him. Adolph tried to resist, but slowly, his body weakened. When Adolph felt like he was no longer willing to move, that was when the being stopped feasting on his blood.
"Tomorrow, the effects shall take place."
Releasing Adolph, the being vanished in a dark cloud.
"Wh... what the... Hell? Beatrice... I'll... return."
With those final words for the day, Adolph passed out.

Beatrice, back at home, shivered amidst her lust-filled fantasies.
"Adolf... where are you.?"

OOT: @Rayden413 , Night has fallen, and will pass in either your next post, or mine. Sorry for the delay.

 

OOT: It might take a post or two for me to really get back in the swing of things, but here goes something.

Brad smiled when he saw Midnight coming towards the group.
"What up, Middy?! Oh man, I'm glad you made it through this whole mess."
He nodded back to Ella and worked with Oswald to get Zillis up on the horse.
"Alright, ready? On three. One...two...three!"
Together, they got Zillis up on the horse without much trouble. Brad gave Oswald a thumbs up and turned back to Ella again.
"I'm all for getting there before dark. Come to think of it..."
He scratched his chin.
"You still haven't told us where "there" is. Where are we heading, Boss?"

OOT: My other characters will show up in my next post. Also, if we get to the next morning in these next few posts and Lullabye still hasn't posted anything, Terios is leaving with or without Helen. Them's the breaks, Lully.

 

Neji sat in his room in a lotus position meditating. He had finished all of the preparation he was going to need for the upcoming events that he knew would unfold. The god or goddess that had granted him his visions had shown him the path that he must follow. Now it was up to him to follow or stray. All he knew was that he had to stick close to the people he had met today.

His blades were sharpened nicely and his armor had been oiled and polished. It was the least he could do since it was likely he wouldn't get much of a chance to do it again in the near future. He began to think about the people in this country and how different they were compared to his own. Their mannerisms might have been similar but their language was very different. As of this moment he had one person he could talk to that understood him. He vowed right here that he would make an effort to learn their language to the best of his ability.

Opening his eyes he gazed upon his armor on the rack and the blades resting on a cloth beneath his armor. Hard times will be upon us soon. The world will soon be engulfed in darkness and despair. We will need to be extra vigilant if we are to succeed in this battle that has even Gods afraid for their own well being. With a sigh he finally got up out of his meditation stance and drowned the wick of his lamp. Tomorrow would be a hectic day and he will need his rest.

With that, he finally laid down on the foreign bed and closed his eyes.

 

The Mechanist continued to jot down notes, seemingly oblivious of everything Victoria said.
"I'm going to need to study the effected material. If you'd be so kind as to remove every article of clothing that Batch 23 has soaked into please."
He looked up from his notepad at Victoria, who's modesty was only covered by her arms. "Oh, right. Probably want a change of clothes!"
He popped back into the hatch he had come out of and came back after a few seconds of rummaging. Climbing out of the hole, he layed an red ballgown on his work bench.
"Ah," he began, going back into his own little world, "The Combat Dress Mark 4 version 2. Be careful with the hem, it's a bit sharp. What with all the razors and knives at what not."

 

Ushi nodded her head. "I agree." She said to Ella. "It seems that chaos is rearing her head, as of late." She added.

Tranquility now realized that she was missing bits of time. 'No." She thought to herself. 'She's starting to come out.'
'No, my dear Tranquility, I will come out.' Came the voice of Chaos. 'You cannot stop me. No matter how hard you try.'

 

After banishing Axel, Ex looked around his surroundings. Nothing really mattered to him here, but seeing a certain cloak caught his attention. Walking over, he picked up the cloak, examining it. Under it, was Adolph's left-behind coat.
This is Lust's, and this coat must belong to her pawn. I'll hold onto this, could work out for something.
After picking up both Adolph and Lust's belongings, Ex vanished back to his plane of non-existence.

*NIGHT HAS PASSED IN GREENFORGE*
Be advised, @Nejat

Adolph awoke on the cold, hard floor of the basement. His body felt dehydrated, stiff and cold. Slowly and dizzily, he stood up, his prosthetic palm pressing against his temple. His hand wondered
Gyah! So... painful.
Slowly, he stumbled up the stairs. Through eyes pained by light, he saw the morning light creep in through the windows. making his way to the door, he shakily pushed it open, exposing himself to the outdoors. Letting his eyes adjust, he looked around the streets, seeing nobody.
It must still be rather early for all the business to start. I should return before people begin to stir. Don't want anyone to see a shirtless, bandaged stranger staggering through town.
Adolph made his way back to the Passionate Traveller, where he left Lust, Beatrice and Lunara the night before. He paused at the door, catching his breath and bracing himself for the two lust-crazed women he left behind, though understandable, considering one was the goddess of lust and the other the daughter of said goddess. He pushed open the door, finding it unlocked.
Not safe. Stupid wom-... godde-... never mind.
Stealthily, he crept in, keeping an eye out for possible threats. Right away, he saw the two women that were the source of his recent grief sleeping on the couches of the living room. Both were undressed, but thankfully for their modesty, they were mostly covered with sheets. But as he made his way by them, Beatrice began to stir, followed by Lust's own stirring. Adolph froze, trying his best to not disturb them anymore than he had already, somehow, done. In spite of his best efforts, though, the women began waking up, their eyes sleepily opening.
Ridiculous! It never fails. Every time a guy ends up in a situation, the women always wake up! And these aren't normal women, either.

 

Brad nodded back to her.
"Yeah, definitely. You never know what can happen at night. Even if we don't bump into the guards, there's always some kind of crazies running around."
He then walked over and gave Zoe a pat on the head, giving her a big, cheeky grin.
"Besides, it's way past your bedtime, isn't that right? Kids like you shouldn't have to worry about these bad, messy adult problems."

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Akeyar unfurled a map in front of the group, pointing out strategic locations in various places around the city.
"We will separate our forces into two groups. One will stay here and defend the city for as long as they can; I have marked these locations because they should be the easiest places to hold against enemy advances. Hold them as long as you can, but do not place yourselves in danger to do so. Retreat as necessary, use hit-and-run tactics as often as possible and try to avoid notice as you move from one location to the next."
He looked over at Alden.
"The defenders will be led by Mr. Chambers. I trust that you are up to the task."
Alden bowed his head respectfully.
"Of course. It would be my pleasure."
Akeyar then looked over to Diarmid.
"Diarmid MacCallum, I believe that you would make a suitable second-in-command for Mr. Chambers, will you accept this responsibility?"
"Right to the point. I knew I'd like this guy."
Thinking this to himself, Diarmid nodded and replied.
"You got it, sir. I'll make it happen."
"Very good. As for the second team, we will circle around and attack the king's army from behind. I am almost certain that they are not expecting any sort of meaningful resistance from a town as small as this, so it should come as quite a surprise when we lay waste to their storehouses and cut off their supply lines. I will lead this force personally. After we make our move, they will surely recall their forces from inside the town to defend their main encampment. Of course, it will only be for a short time until they can regroup and strengthen their defenses. However, in a battle such as this, every hour counts for something. It is another hour that we can use to evacuate the townspeople and perhaps rally any defenders left in the city. The more people we can successfully evacuate, the better."

After laying out the over strategy, Akeyar spent some time assigning people to each team and explaining their individual roles more thoroughly. He then addressed the group one last time.
"Are there any questions?"
The room stayed silent.
"Then we only have one option for the time being. We will wait until our scouts bring news of the army's arrival."

 

Lust and Beatrice both woke up, as if they were connected by a mental link. Lust rubbed her eyes and stretched, the sheet covering her barely doing its job of covering her, while Beatrice sat up and rubbed her eyes. For some reason, she felt like she obsessed over something not so long ago. Looking around, she saw empty glasses of whine littering the end table between the couches, the Deity of Lust awakening, and Adolph.
Adolph...
Then, she realized what it was she had obsessed over. She began to stand up.
"Adolf! Your'e ba-!"
"No!"
"But I was worr-"
She started to rise from the couch, the red sheets around her beginning to fall away.
No! NO!
Adolph's yell caused her to be startled, preventing her from talking and standing. Lust opened her eyes at the sound of Adolph's yell, still in mid-stretch.
"Oh, there you are."
She began to sit up, the white covers slipping off of her smooth skin and exposing what little bit of her was covered.
"NO! NIEN! NOOOOO! COVER UP!"
Generally, it is fatal for one's health to not only yell at a deity, but to command one as well, can be suicidal, depending on said deity's disposition. Fortunately for Adolph, Lust was not only one of the friendlier types, she also considered him the one to guard her daughter, Beatrice. Though it can be considered embarrassing for a deity to do what a mere mortal says, she decided to humor him in this case by doing exactly that: covering up. Beside's, she wondered why he was so upset, and why both she and Beatrice were undressed (not that she minded being undressed). Beatrice wondered the same thing as well.
Adolph tried to keep himself calm, breathing in deeply, before giving a hand signal to them to wait for him to come back, leaving the two women in confusion. He went upstairs to the bedroom he had slept in, put on his torn and only shirt, and drank a glass of water that had been left on the dresser, splashing the rest of it against his face for a quick washing. With his thirst quenched, a damaged shirt covering him and his face washed, he felt better walking back downstairs, he sat down in one of the chairs, ready to find out why Lust and Beatrice acted the way they did. Beatrice was the first to say something.
"What's wrong, Adolf?
"My apologies for yelling at both of you. I want to sort out what happened last night. Let's start with the biggest issue: What possessed you two to rape me?"
Both of the goddess' and demigoddess' eyes widened in shock.
"WHAT!?"
"What do you mean!?"
"Correction: What possessed you two to almost rape me?"
This calmed them down, but they were still both confused.
"I... don't remember trying to do anything to you. After talking to you last night, I can't remember what happened after that. I did feel funny right before that, though."
"And you, Cassandra?"
"I was fine, until I came up the stairs and then an odd feeling hit me. After that, I couldn't remember anything. But I did drink something that was dropped off while you were asleep."
"Wait, I drank that stuff too..."
Lust's eye's widened, not realizing that Beatrice had tried it. Earlier, Lust drank it to test the stuff and find out its effects, and to keep Gertrank, Lust's alcoholic sibling, from possibly going on a rampage.
"Then I think we know what was the cause for whatever it was that turned you two into lewd animals last night."
Adolph stood up, glad that he now knew the root cause of what happened was much more innocent than the two woman actually wanting to violate him. A look of determination formed on his face as he clenched his mechanical fist.
"We have some bottles to destroy, for the protection of innocent people."
There was a short silence, before Adolph broke it.
"Oh, and maybe you ladies should get dressed. This is starting to awkward."

 

It was barely the crack of dawn when Neji opened his eyes. His first thoughts were about what had happened the day before. As he rose from the bed he began to gather his belongings into some semblance of order. He grabbed some of the jerky he had bought from the store and started munching on it to sate his hunger as he began to ready everything he would need for the coming days.

His eyes then fell upon his armor sitting on the rack. He had oiled it and cared for it extensively the night before knowing that he would likely need to start wearing it. This land was much different than his own but his armor was specially made to stop even bullets from guns. He walked over to the armor rack with the armor on it and placed his hand on the armor of hardened leather and ceramic plates. He sighed as he began to remove the armor from the rack. I sincerely hope that I won't have to use this at all. My armor and blades are stained enough as it is with the blood of my enemies. Yet, this land is embroiled in so much death that I feel it inevitable that I will be forced to fight against things I have no chance to defeat. He began to place the armor on, sliding the chestpiece over his head and tightening it down with the straps on the side. He pulled out the heavy silk sash and tied it around his waist to keep the leg plates from moving too much and to keep the armor from moving too much as a whole. He located the bracers and tied them around his arms carefully so that they were properly tight so they wouldn't slip nor chaff against his skin. Last he found the leggings and strapped them down tightly.

Taking his blades he tied them to his waist and began to set out of his room. He didn't bother with his helmet since he wouldn't be needing it. But he definitely still appeared as if he meant business. He locked his room's door and set out of the Inn back to the House with the General Store next to it. He needed to speak with the only person in the whole town who could understand his language.

 

By the time the group was on Barrow street, Brad had scooped up Zoe and she was riding on his shoulders. He started looking around when Ella told them to look around.
"You got it, Boss. I'll call it out if I see anything."
He looked up to Zoe with a grin.
"And you're gonna help, right? You're real high up there so you should be able to see really far."
He then continued looking around the area, keeping a watchful eye out for anything suspicious. Although he was keeping a brave face on for Zoe, he was starting to get a little nervous at how quiet things were. He carefully checked every corner, every shadow for anything that might be a threat.
"A lot of crazy things have been happening today...let's just hope we can get somewhere safe before anything else goes wrong."
He kept his worries to himself and despite the slight feeling of dread he had in the pit of his stomach, his doubts were still overshadowed by his firm belief that Ella would steer them on the right path.

 

Ushi nodded her head and looked over to Brad. "Well," she paused for a moment; "I sent a message to my sister a few days ago." She looked over at Ella. "I don't think she'll come around this way," she paused for a moment in thought; "and I can't see her showing up around others." She shook the thought out of her head. "She probably won't arrive." She picked her bag up off the ground, and held her staff close to her. "Shall we go?"

Chaos had finally broken free from Tranquility's resistances. "It's far easier if you just give in, like you used to." Chaos said to herself, as her long hair cascaded down her form. A few strands of her hair slowly changed colors from black, to red, then green, then to blue, yellow, then back to black...her eyes did the same.
Chaos slowly walked over to the underwater cave's entrance, and folded her arms. "Tsk, Tsk" she spoke, in an almost sing-song voice. "I see you've put up some sort of barrier to keep me from leaving here." She placed her hand slightly above the barrier. She could feel the heat from it, mostly because it was her direct opposite whom placed the barrier.
"You've grown weak with age." Chaos' eyes flashed, and her hand began to glow softly, as she grabbed hold of the 'magic' that created the barrier. With one fluid movement, the barrier that Tranquility had cast, snapped. Bits of the magic that had broken, fell to the ground, then vanished as soon as it touched the ground.
"Time for Chaos to reign."

 

The Butcher's looked as though a bomb had gone off. The glass from the store front was strewn across the pavement and the door was blewn clean acroos the street, splinters imbedded in the building across the street. The counters, shelves, everything wooden was covered in scorch marks, small flames flickering on some of the surfaces. Amidst the destruction lay charred corpses of the plague insects that had swarmed through the town, some of them popped from the heat of whatever had engulfed the butcher's.
From where Ella and her group were standing, they couldn't see into the butcher's proper, but they could hear the unmistakable singing of someone sharpening a blade of some kind.

~~~
The Mechanist waved at her dismissively. "I'm sure he'll be fine with you being a bit late. He's a big softie when you get to know him."
He grabbed Victoria by the arm and pulled her along behind him, much like a child would do with a parent. He pulled her through the dividing curtain and left her stood at the foot of an enormous machine.
"You stay here, I'll get you something more suitable." He said, disappearing into a small room that was most definitely not on the original floorplan.
"The weapon's frame is nearing completion." The Mechanist began from the other room. "The power now is powering the thing. I mean, we could have every factory generator running around the clock and maximum capacity and we wouldn't even have enough power to blast through the city walls, let alone end the war like his Majesty wants."
There was a brief pause followed by the russling of fabric, before the Mechanist came back out of the room carrying a bundle of cloth in his hands.
"No, if we want to get this thing up and running we'll need something of a more mystic persuasion." He stared blankly at the naked girl for a few moments before he remembered what he was doing.
"Oh, right." He unfurled the cloth in his hands and held it in front of Victoria. It was a modified version of her current uniform, only with sleeves that would end at her upperarm and the hem of the skirt that would stop just above her knees.
"Sorry it took so long. I had a spare uniform hung up in their but then I got to thinking that you spend a lot of time on your hand and knees in service to the King the adjusting the hemline and arms so they would be more accomodating and you wouldn't have to wash them as much." He held the garment up to Victoria, seemingly completely oblivious of the possible connotations of what he had just said.