Herald

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection

Small post is up. Feedback is appreciated.

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection

Izaac "Val" Valentino muttered a curse as he watched the strange object fall out of the sky, trailing smoke and the telltale flashes of reverse thrusters. Only Umbra would have the tech necessary for something like that and that meant one of two things:

Either it was an accident, in which case, Umbra was about to be all over this area and they did not care much for Lawless like him.

Or it was something happening on purpose, which meant literally everyone else was about to flood this area and cause the same problem.

And here he was, leaning up against the side of a ruined building on the border of the city of Ehlm, watching his peaceful afternoon of settling in to wait for the next poor sucker that looked like they were worth a payday to have the misfortune of wandering through his sights. He let out a deep sigh, reaching up and pulling his dust-stained scarf to cover the lower half of his face as he watched the object fall. Estimating it's landing point, not a hard thing to do with such a grand sight, Val muttered another long string of curses as he began to run.

As he reached top speed, he jumped, digging the tips of his hardened boots into the weakened structure and reaching up to climb up a few stories until he reached a small opening in the side of the building. Sprinting to the other side, he unlatched his rifle and headed to the closest hole that would give him a line of sight to the landing zone. Dropping to a kneeling position, he uncapped the scope and extended a small piece of metal he had tied to the top of the instrument to stop the sun from glinting off the glass when he sighted in on his targets. Scanning the area, it was easy to find the crashed object from the trail of smoke, and he adjusted the focus until the image sharpened.

"Wilds-damned Bears...," he muttered, his scope dancing over the figures doing a half decent job of seeking cover amidst the crater. He had always hated the Bears, and he imagined they weren't too pleased with him since they had found themselves in competition in the past. Still, maybe bygones could be bygones if the pay was-

His scope caught a glimpse of the figure stepping out from the pod, a woman in the black, tight material clothing that combined with her apparent means of arrival to this place marked her as Umbra. Or perhaps some kind of escapee, there had been a tale here and there of those before.

"Alrighty Vinny, how's this going to play out...," Val muttered to no one, his scope dancing once again from target to target. If this turned to violence, he would have to pick a side. "Only a matter of time before the Wilds show..."

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection

Izaac "Val" Valentino

Izaac "Val" Valentino

Age 31| Human | Gender Male| Faction & Title Lawless Hunter| Height 6'4" | Weight 195 lbs

Abyssal Connection: Possessive Subjugation (Mercy)

Ability 1: Mercyval

Val's connection with Mercy has given him the ability to take on a transformation, reshaping his body into a dull mirror of Mercy's own form in size and appearance. Due to the swift nature of the transformation, Val must be careful who is nearby when the transformation is triggered and be certain that Mercy's strength is enough to snap any restraints placed on him. A good surprise in a pinch, but an exhausting one.

(LOCKED)Ability 2: Thank Val for Small Mercy

Val has learned to wield tighter control over his own transformation, forcing more of his own essence into the blending that results. Val's Mercyval transformation can be resized between his regular human size and the titanic Mercy while still retaining improvements to his endurance and strength. He still takes on the quadrupedal shape of Mercy, it is only the size that changes, and therefore is unable to operate his firearms or use his knife in this form.

(LOCKED)Ability 3: Promise of Suffering

The connection with Mercy has developed to the point where Val has been permanently altered on a biological level. Just as Mercy's blood can be used to sear his foes with lava, Val's blood can be used to coat bullets and/or edged weapons, becoming a searing heat when it encounters sufficient resistance(i.e. striking a person or object). This is far from Val's first choice of force however, as it requires him to bleed and may make him a target for others looking to 'farm' his blood for enhancing their own weapons.

Goal: Peace. Val has endured 31 years of anger-filled hell, watching dozens of people die pointless deaths trying to make their lives better. He's killed just as many protecting what he needs to survive and hunted what many might consider the most dangerous type of predator to grace the Dust. If he had his way, he'd end his days sitting in a comfortable chair on a porch deck somewhere, with a glass of scotch in one hand and a decent book in the other. There are days when he wonders just how many people he'll have to kill to see that happen though.

Personality: Life in the Dust makes a hard outer shell nearly a requirement for living. Val is no exception in this regard. He can be curt, with an almost military edge to his tone and body language that puts most people off on a first impression. When he warms up to others, he has been known to crack jokes and show a surprising light heartedness. Even this is just another mask, one to hide the pain of his own life for fear others might sense it as a weakness.

History: Val was born the seventh child of a Lawless rent-a-woman and a father he had never known, nor could anyone have likely guessed. His mother named him Izaac, a relic from a time before the Perishing Event or so he had been told, and his last name was taken from the establishment in which his mother worked, "Valentine's Oasis". Raised along with a small army of other children who's parents were in a similar profession he spent every day trying to outwit or outfight others to ensure he had enough to survive. He witnessed death firsthand at age six, when a brawl among some of the older teenagers went too far.

Life can be a struggle even at the best of times, and for the Lawless, it hadn't been the best of times since the Perishing. As Val grew older, he watched the other children taken away on a nearly weekly basis. Some would stay to work at the Oasis, paying off whatever debts their "parents" had supposedly accrued to the owner. Others were sold or traded to other Lawless, more often than not dying within a year out in the uncaring harshness of the Dust. When he was sold to a Bounty Hunter to clear some price on the Oasis's owners head, Val felt certain he was condemned to the latter category.

His new "uncle" was a bitter man, though no more so than hundreds of others roaming the Dust. The training regimen was nearly impossible, the beatings when he failed at tasks would leave scars on his flesh, and the fear of being abandoned and left to die nearly maddening. Each day, he would wake with pain radiating from nearly every piece of him, but each day he also woke just a bit stronger. A bit faster. A bit smarter.

At age fourteen, his first kill was some petty criminal, wanted for a crime Val can't even remember. His second kill was his "uncle", the very next day.

Since then, he has continued to improve his skills, sharpening them to the keen edge needed to survive in a world of monsters. A few more scars have been added to his collection, but in the private moments before he drifts off to sleep during some nights, he still wonders why the world has to be the way it is.

Inventory:((not really sure how in depth to go))
Improvised Body Armor
Basic Trauma Kit - Bandages, needle and thread, a small flask of boiled clean water
Backpack containing a small tent, three books, cleaning and maintenance kits for weapons and armor, flint and tinder
Three small, concealed knives
Combat knife

Abyssal Energy Handgun with spare power battery.
Long Rifle, scoped.

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection

I'm open to the idea. If a player Wild wants to bind up, shoot me a message and we can coordinate.

It wouldn't even have to be a previous binding, could be something brand new from the characters running into each other.

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection

@Lexisheeps Much appreciated. It was driving me nuts.

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection

@Estylwen

Do we need to fill out the NPC and Character Relationship sheets too?

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection

Izaac "Val" Valentino

Izaac "Val" Valentino

Age 31| Human | Gender Male| Faction & Title Lawless Hunter| Height 6'4" | Weight 195 lbs

Abyssal Connection: None

Abilities(No Abyssal Connection)

Goal: Peace. Val has endured 31 years of anger-filled hell, watching dozens of people die pointless deaths trying to make their lives better. He's killed just as many protecting what he needs to survive and hunted what many might consider the most dangerous type of predator to grace the Dust. If he had his way, he'd end his days sitting in a comfortable chair on a porch deck somewhere, with a glass of scotch in one hand and a decent book in the other. There are days when he wonders just how many people he'll have to kill to see that happen though.

Personality: Life in the Dust makes a hard outer shell nearly a requirement for living. Val is no exception in this regard. He can be curt, with an almost military edge to his tone and body language that puts most people off on a first impression. When he warms up to others, he has been known to crack jokes and show a surprising light heartedness. Even this is just another mask, one to hide the pain of his own life for fear others might sense it as a weakness.

History: Val was born the seventh child of a Lawless rent-a-woman and a father he had never known, nor could anyone have likely guessed. His mother named him Izaac, a relic from a time before the Perishing Event or so he had been told, and his last name was taken from the establishment in which his mother worked, "Valentine's Oasis". Raised along with a small army of other children who's parents were in a similar profession he spent every day trying to outwit or outfight others to ensure he had enough to survive. He witnessed death firsthand at age six, when a brawl among some of the older teenagers went too far.

Life can be a struggle even at the best of times, and for the Lawless, it hadn't been the best of times since the Perishing. As Val grew older, he watched the other children taken away on a nearly weekly basis. Some would stay to work at the Oasis, paying off whatever debts their "parents" had supposedly accrued to the owner. Others were sold or traded to other Lawless, more often than not dying within a year out in the uncaring harshness of the Dust. When he was sold to a Bounty Hunter to clear some price on the Oasis's owners head, Val felt certain he was condemned to the latter category.

His new "uncle" was a bitter man, though no more so than hundreds of others roaming the Dust. The training regimen was nearly impossible, the beatings when he failed at tasks would leave scars on his flesh, and the fear of being abandoned and left to die nearly maddening. Each day, he would wake with pain radiating from nearly every piece of him, but each day he also woke just a bit stronger. A bit faster. A bit smarter.

At age fourteen, his first kill was some petty criminal, wanted for a crime Val can't even remember. His second kill was his "uncle", the very next day.

Since then, he has continued to improve his skills, sharpening them to the keen edge needed to survive in a world of monsters. A few more scars have been added to his collection, but in the private moments before he drifts off to sleep during some nights, he still wonders why the world has to be the way it is.

Inventory:((not really sure how in depth to go))
Improvised Body Armor
Basic Trauma Kit - Bandages, needle and thread, a small flask of boiled clean water
Backpack containing a small tent, three books, cleaning and maintenance kits for weapons and armor, flint and tinder
Three small, concealed knives
Combat knife

Abyssal Energy Handgun with spare power battery.
Long Rifle, scoped.

Umbra: The Abyssal Connection (Post-Apocalyptic Sci-fi Adventure)

Interest achieved.

Feeling a bit lawless or maybe ghost resistance, but I'll confirm when the OOC is up.

Welcome to Vradia

Post is up, made a couple of references to Gus, but tried to stay away from dictating any actions or placement.

If anything needs changing, please feel free to advise me.

Welcome to Vradia

Conn leaned against the tree, his eyes half-closed as he pretended to be snoozing. All around him, men readied themselves for the ambush, their weapons drawn and arrows nocked. They had been working up their courage for the past twenty minutes by Conn's count, a common tactic among men about to go into a fight of life and death. The bandits were right to be nervous, even if they had no real clue as to the real threat to their plan. Of course, Conn had equal reason to be nervous. If he or Gus had made a misstep and tipped their hand too early... well, they would undoubtedly be dead long before the approaching mercenary party. He just hoped Sir Dorian's friends wouldn't accidentally... or purposefully... bleed him out before he had a chance to explain the ruse.

He opened his eyes and glanced towards the sky, smiling as he saw a white eagle in flight over the nearby path. A good omen, he thought to himself.

"It is time," Conn said aloud. He rose to his feet, brushing away the dirt that had gathered on the lower part of his robes and straightening his collar. Presentation was everything when meeting new people, after all.

"Armúr Draíochta," Conn muttered as he stretched. The arcane words vibrated the air around him, gathering light and energy for a brief moment before coalescing around his body. Magical barriers shimmered into existence, anchored to his physical body and taking on the form of plated armor. Conn rolled his shoulders and shifted his weight from foot to foot. The magic was practically weightless, and while not as strong as true steel it would deflect lesser strikes away from his body. It's true advantage however, was that it did not interfere with the sometimes delicate art of shaping magic into spells. Close by, he heard the snap of bows as arrows shot into the air, arcing towards the white eagle.

The next moments were a blur all around him. When arrows failed to bring down their prey, the bandits lunged forward with sword and dagger, further causing confusion among their archers as they now had to avoid striking their own. The mercenaries had no such qualms, as they were outnumbered six or so to one and so their attacks could go wild without endangering their own side. Still, the numbers and the surprise were on the bandits side, and it seemed one of the mercs had already collapsed to an unseen issue. Conn continued to observe as more bandits dropped from the mercenary attacks, only to be replaced by another foolish thug.

"Well?," a bandit said, holding back from the fight as he noticed Conn just standing there, "c'mon, get your payday!"

Conn turned to the man and gave him a sad smile, "for what it's worth, I am sorry about this. I did enjoy sharing breakfast with you all this morning."

"'Ey? Wha-," the bandit began, the realization beginning to fill his face. The man's turned to brandish his sword against Conn, but it was already too late.

"Codlata domhain", Conn's hands darted through a series of motions, tracing arcane energy through the air. He needed to clear space around himself if he was going to try to help the mercenaries. Glittering dust filled the air as Conn spoke the arcane words, falling upon the nearest bandits and causing them to suddenly become fatigued, perhaps even falling over where they stood even as the snores of deep sleep slipped past their lips. It would be only seconds before the bandits realized they had been betrayed from within and began to target Conn as well as the mercenaries.

Conn mentally reached into the well of his own being, drawing upon the warmth that had filled his soul since his days when he called the church his home. He had changed much since those days, but his faith had not.

Gods guide my allies blades to the hearts of their enemies, and may their feet carry them from harm., he thought to himself, reciting the prayer in his mind as he connected with the divine power behind his faith. He lifted his left hand up, and soft blue light began to radiate outwards, seeking the forms of the mercenaries as well as Gus to provide them with a blessing.