freedomliveson

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

Excellent! You had a really good gm :)

Cool beans! I'll get you something either today or Monday depending on how crazy work is xD

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

Oh goodness I am so sorry for disappearing. Don't know if you saw my updates, but life went bananas on me for about a month. If you're willing, I'd like to keep going in this thread. If not, no worries :)

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Aw, great! Have fun :)

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

As they proceeded forward, a thick, heavy sense of dread seemed to envelop the dilapidated ship, so much so that more than once Yerbol had to steady himself against a nearby piece of wreckage or a miraculously intact wall. This earned him a few worried glances from both apprentices, which he deflected by pointing forward at Aria, who had taken the lead. Her first set of visions had gone by seemingly quick, Yerbol in the midst of examining what he thought to be a semi functioning nav console when Ethan and Kytra brought to his attention that Aria had stopped. Just as suddenly as she had stopped, she was back to their current reality, informing the party of what she saw. He cast a look at both apprentices before telling them quietly:
“If you start to…see things, just let the vision happen. No use in fighting the Force when it imparts knowledge of this magnitude.” A brief flicker of a tangential thought regarding how much he and Aria might have fought the Force came and went, refocusing his efforts on making sure the group wasn’t surprised with anything from the rear on their path of advancement.

After a few more minutes of rambling, they came to a dead end, albeit a massive one. The nearly cavernous sized chamber they found themselves in held warped machines, shattered terminals and fragments of stairways that more than likely would have led up to the tiered platform that stood on the opposite end of the chamber. The platform’s support beams were exposed from underneath, but somehow they looked solid enough to support their collective weight.
“A bridge.” Ethan mumbled, Yerbol nodding in agreement.
“If we can get up to what was probably the CIC, we can-“ Aria was on her knees, eyes rolled back into her skull.
“Ari?!” Kytra stood behind her master with uncertain anxiety, Ethan joining his fellow apprentice in case Aria fell back while Yerbol took to a knee, steadying his wife by gripping her shoulders with his hands. He stayed silent as her eyes closed, blinking at a near superhuman speed for what felt like an eternity. Finally, she broke out, Yerbol stopping her forward descent by embracing her upper body. As she regained her composure, she told the party what she saw.
“Something tells me that we might be able to get the info we need on the platform. Hopefully it’s not in the form of another vision.” He managed to stop himself from telling Aria to hang back while he and Ethan investigated the platform, knowing that she would have scoffed at the idea.
“You going to be ok?” He asked softly, brushing away a strand of hair that had fallen across her line of sight. Knowing that the answer would probably be a “yes”, he helped her to her feet, telling her through their bond:

Don’t play hero here. If you need a breather, let me know.

With his concern stated, the party found their way up to what Yerbol had referred to as the CIC or combat information center. As far as he knew, all combat ready starships held combat stratagems, nav logs and other relevant data at the CIC, which was normally located where the commanding officer would station themselves. A raised platform on the bridge seemed like a natural enough location for a CO to make their post, hence the assumption. The instinct paid off when they all stepped onto the platform and saw a circular shaped pedestal that glowed faintly with a hazy, starry blue aura that wrapped around the device.
“Let me.” Ethan impetuously stepped out in front before Yerbol could object, apprentice tracing his hand in a circular motion around the pedestal. The motion prompted the pedestal to retract a covering over the central part of the device, allowing for a shimmering projection to materialize, albeit faintly. There were slight glimmers that dotted the projection along with a sphere in the middle that featured several points tagged with labels.
“A scan of the planet post-Mandalorian wars.” Ethan commented with a near slack jaw, pointing at the various pockmarks that indicated craters, labels that were marked with fallen ship signatures and one other marker that was ominously affixed as: “Academy”.
“This map must have been used by Revan and the Exile when they came to Malachor. It would make no sense for Republic or Empire forces to scan a notoriously dead world for shipwrecks.”
“But then why would Revan and Meetra use this map in particular? That would assume that this wreck was here when they arrived and they had their own nav data that they uploaded to this console.” Yerbol’s question put a damper on Ethan’s theory, but didn’t discourage the apprentice from offering:
“Well…if the wreck WAS here when they arrived and they left this map behind, wouldn’t that imply that they left this-“
“For others.” Yerbol finished the sentence as a chill raced down his spine.
“The Hssiss were probably thought of as guardians by those two, seeing as they would be drawn to this site thanks to the strong imprint the Force had made here. They might have gambled that whoever they left this here for would not only be strong enough to kill the Hssiss, but find their way to this specific map.” There was another label that Yerbol hadn’t spotted upon first examining the map, this one simply stating: “Ship”.

So that was where they were.

The distance between “ship” and “academy” looked small enough, but there was no way to gauge the terrain types or actual distance they would need to traverse. They would need to either hope they were plodding along in the right direction or use a portable nav unit and hope it wouldn’t be completely scrambled by Malachor’s atmosphere. Yerbol informed the group of those two options before asking:
“Unless you guys have a better idea?”

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Hi there!!!

So, finally, life has stabilized. FINALLY. Stabilization included:
-Getting our bathroom remodel done (that was...ick)
-Completing errands both large and small (including some family favors)
-Getting our trees trimmed
-Getting settled in my new job that doesn't involve teaching kids

Thanks a ton for your patience as always, my friend. It is greatly appreciated!

Oh boy, that doesn't sound good :/. Sorry to hear about your laptop...although, you have mentioned how much trouble it had given you in the past. Might've been time to get a new one anyhow xD

How have you been other than your laptop busting?

In regard to posts, I'll be getting you one today or tomorrow and then we can go from there? :)

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

That knock doesn't have to be Kari, by the way.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

His throat had dried upon seeing her, legs crossed as she tinkered with a light fixture. What else was new? Kari was always trying to fix something, improve it, make it "glow" again. Was that why she had been with him? To fix him? Shaking the line of thought of away internally, he shook his head, quietly telling her in a decibel a tone or two lower than normal as he turned around:
"Just passing through." He looked to the other woman who had openly commented on his presumed status as "admirer" and asked her in the same voice:
"Could I trouble you for a room and water? Would like to see where the rooms are, too, if that's alright." He walked back to the main area of the inn and quickly ducked into the room that the keeper had shown him, shutting the door before removing his axe and placing it against the wall, hilt up. Raul then sunk to the bed, hands covering his face. He hoped she wouldn't get curious, he prayed that she would just forget about the potentially strangely familiar voice of the traveler and choose to keep working. But what if she did knock? What if she wanted answers? He wasn't prepared for that yet, couldn't allow her to know what was hunting him. No chance of that.

___

The man stood on the cliff, cat-like eyes glowing in the still darkness as he fixed his attention on the village below.
"Is it wise to expose yourself like this?" A voice asked, her tone betraying a hint of worry.
"He has evaded us for far too long. We must handle this ourselves."
"But if any recognize you-"
"They will be in no state to tell anyone." A smirk played across his lips as he looked to the woman next to him, her metallic chestpiece contrasting with his full length hooded robes. Silence between the armored and robed for a few moments before the armored one spoke:
"When do I bring them down?"
"Give him a few more minutes of hope. Then we will strike."

___

He had removed his leather overcoat and chainmail shirt when he heard a knock at the door. His heart froze.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

The road is dangerous. A trope, a banality that he shirked in favor of gallivanting across the ruins dotting the Steadfast, crew of vagabonds and cutpurses trailing in his wake. Danger bowed to his every whim. His men knew this. They admired him, some in awe. Then the Beyond. Beyond civilization, Beyond civility, Beyond humanity. He wasn't ready for what he saw. Coming back alone, tattered, in rags, greatsword shattered in pieces that he placed in his bag and wouldn't let go of. Monument to his failings? Monument to his triumphs? Didn't know at that point, but knew that he would have to find help or die. Blacked out. Woke up, saw her face, face of a goddess, face of divinity. He tried to reach out, imbibe the glow she had, failed. She wanted to take care of him, make him whole. They talked, laughed, shared love sooner than later. Savored her, revered her like they revered him. But he knew. He knew what he had seen. He wouldn't allow her to get taken by it. Never. Left like a coward, a thief. Stole a kiss on her cheek before slipping out the back. Didn't want to be around. Would try to stop him, insist she go with him.

No. No one could go. Doubted even he could finish it. Had to.

___

His leather gloved hands gripped the hilt of his battleaxe in a vice grip, eyes wildly scanning the cliffside for any other reinforcements. They had come again, their eyes glowing, hands laced with that same blue light that had been haunted him for the past year. Thankfully this bunch was weaker than the ones he had encountered previously and had an easy time dispatching them. A breeze flitted through the air, ruffling the nearly shoulder length ash brown hair of the axe-wielder, who looked around for a few more seconds before placing his weapon onto the sheath spanning across the wide frame of his back and sifting through his would-be assassin's belongings.
"Always have something with you to blend in...yep." He found a pouchful of shins and other gleaming coins of unknown worth across the triage of bodies, pocketing the currency away before turning his attention back to the village visible from the cliffside. Lanterns burned late into the night, giving him hope for shelter. This far away from Sagus Hills or any other part of the Steadfast was dangerous territory, something he was all too familiar with. It would be nice to have a roof over his head.

He proceeded down the path adjacent to the cliffside, descending into the valley where the village lay before spotting a sign indicating that he was in front of the local inn. Raul stepped inside, dark green eyes surveying the envir-

He froze.

Kari. Here? No.

Goodbye, my almost lover. [Numenera]

Ok, make that post tomorrow! Sorry for the delay!

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Ok, so to clarify the visions:

Yerbol is experiencing a mixture of visions from the end of KOTOR 2 and when Revan and Meetra return to Malachor. Their force imprint is so strong that the duo's thoughts are somewhat discernible along with their actions.