TheWizardLizard

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Tobias picked up the group's outward momentum rather quickly, it seemed it was time to get this doomed show on the road. Orphans and gold, Tobias. Orphans and gold.

The rogue went upstairs took little time packing his belongings (and a few of other people's - old habits died hard). It came down to a few trinkets, a few extra changes of clothes, road supplies... nothing extravagant.

Tobias slung his pack over his shoulder and proceeded outside, where the rest of the group was making ready their horses. It seemed that someone had been kind enough to donate to the cause - a few more horses and a wagon were available for their use.

Immediately, the thief hopped up into the wagon and wasted no time making himself comfortable, laying back and resting his head on his pack. "For me, guys? I'm flattered, you shouldn't have. I guess saving the day is mighty tiring work..." the rogue closed his eyes and began to fake snoring loudly.

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Tobias ate like he'd never see food again. The food was good, plenty, and best of all, safe, and so mouthful after mouthful of it disappeared down the rogue's throat at breakneck pace.

The dead would had to have risen for him to be shaken out of his engrossment, which, it turned out, is sort of what happened. The zombie plopped down next to him and immediately began saying... something or another. Tobias was busy gawking, taken totally off-guard by the corpse's sudden appearance and remembering full well his savagery from the previous day.

A small whimper emerged from the thief's full mouth as the thing's pet fey descended and began buzzing around. He was outnumbered. It was time for Tobias to execute one of his favorite strategies - run away.

"Oh, look at the time, got to go steal something over there," he said quickly and snatched up his plate, moving it over to the table where Fiona was sitting with several others from the party. He hadn't forgotten he still had business with Sana - but for now, it could wait.

He sat down and gave a broad smile to the child the party had apparently adopted. "Hey there, smiley. Good food, am I right?"

Heart Of Gold - Firefly Inspired RP - Closed

April chuckled and bowed to the companion with mock formality. "Alright, Daije, I'll take her out gentle for you. See you around." With that, she scrambled off down the ship, hurrying to her chair in the cockpit. She reached the bridge quickly, taking care to sidestep the piles of junk and knick-knacks she had left scattered across her space, before leaping into the seat and buckling herself in.

Throwing a comm headset around her ears, April spoke quickly while beginning the launch sequence, eager to be flying again. Truth be told, she felt more comfortable piloting or driving something than she did on her own two feet - too long on the ground and she started to feel restless. Her uncle'd always said the girl should have had wheels instead of legs - that didn't sound so bad to her.

"Alright everyone, this is your pilot speaking. It's a beautiful day here in Bumfucknowhere, shame we have to be departing so soon. Sit back, enjoy the ride, and let April take you places."

She moved a joystick and felt the engines respond, closing her eyes as the ship roared to life. "Ohhhhhhhhh yeah. Cyrek, you're a grease monkey, but you're a damn good one. Initiating take-off, stand by to break atmo."

It was a gentle takeoff... as takeoffs by April Cooper went. The ship moved horizontally at first, picking up speed as it did so... until April yanked back on the stick and the ship went almost vertical, hurtling up towards the atmosphere. "Wooooooo! Heart of Gold, on the road again!"

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Tobias had the running dream again that night. He was in the city again, sprinting through alleyways, across rooftops, the fastest thing in the world. Nobody could have caught him. Nobody could have stopped him. He was free.

But there was something dark just behind him - not a person, not a creature, but a cloud - like the world itself was turning black. It was moving, too - and try as he might, Tobias was always moving just a little... bit... slower.

The thief awoke with a start, sunlight dappling directly onto his face. Hell, whoever'd put that window there had really not been considering late-risers. Where am I who am I what is happening?

The previous day's events crashed back to Tobias all at once. The attack, the death, the murder, the second attack, the hell-hound... Fiona sending him off to bed like an infant... all of it played across his mind in an instant. There weren't supposed to be days after days like that. Everything was supposed to be very quiet, and serious. You weren't supposed to have to wake up, get dressed, go to the bathroom, eat breakfast.

Tobias's stomach had evidently not been informed of that, as it grumbled nonetheless. He readied himself quickly and proceeded down the stairs to where a massive breakfast awaited him. The thief put his head down, did his level best not to be noticed (something he was good at, when he wanted to be), piled a plate with eggs, sausage, and two or three cut up red apples, and moved to an empty table to eat.

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Tobias was staring at nothing in particular, flipping a coin across his fingers to try and quell the shakiness in his hands. He was distantly aware of a great many events transpiring around him - Lob and Vaeri carving up the Hell-Hound, the apothecary bustling to and fro, the man on the white horse observing the scene, and Sana sitting with the child in her arms (any other time, he might have worried about that, considering the woman's demonstrated propensity for violence - at the moment, Tobias couldn't be bothered to kick up a stink about it).

He snapped back when he heard Fiona's voice speaking to him, and her sarcastic comment returned a trademark cocksure grin to his face. "Oh, you should know not to worry about that. Spineless weasel's in my blood - besides, I'd hate to make my angel of war look bad."

Tobias's smile faded. He smelled the hell-hound's hot breath on his face, the tempest of smoke and blood. He heard the screaming, the gurgling, the terrible sucking sound of a stabbed chest cavity. He saw the corpse of the man he'd killed, reddened and defiled. He watched Sana plunge an arrow into a screaming man's face, the zombie crack a man's skull open, the dark knight rise from things no man could possibly survive.

"I'm... glad you're okay." Before he knew it, the rogue had awkwardly wrapped his arms around the girl in front of him and drew her forwards to bury his forehead in her shoulder. "I... I had a really bad day, Fiona."

The contact lasted just a moment before the rogue broke it off again just as suddenly. "Eh... heh. I should, I mean, I've got to go... steal something."

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Post up. Perhaps superfluous, but it makes my character (and I) feel better.

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Tobias's attack was brave, ambitious, and mighty, three things that all present would agree were totally unlike him. As such, it shouldn't have come as much of a surprise when it completely failed.

The rogue crashed to the ground, face in the dirt. He was just beginning to scramble to his feet when he looked up and saw the Hell-Hound's slavering visage fixated on him. Well, at least he'd gotten its attention away from Fiona. Hell-Hound bait - maybe they'd put that on his tombstone, if anyone bothered to give him one.

The claws sang forward, eager to usher the rogue off this mortal coil. Tobias closed his eyes and waited for a death that never came. When he opened them again, there was a song filling his ears, haunting and beautiful. Everything burns.

"Get away from him!" Fiona cried as she cut into the monster, her blade finally putting an end to its unnatural life. For a moment, though she was spattered with dirt and blood and gritting her teeth with the effort, she seemed to be the most beautiful woman the rogue had ever seen.

More had entered the fight - the whole gang, it seemed. They were currently dog-piling the rider of the Hell-Hound, even managing to break its arm and knock it prone. Vaeri seemed set to finish the job, appearing to conjure some spell or another over the knight, a beam of light marking it for destruction.

But then, maybe that wouldn't be enough - it had survived plenty so far. Pulling himself upright, Tobias sent a knife sailing towards the knigt, shouting as he did so: "I've got your child right here, fucking prick!"

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

A familiar, reassuring voice came from somewhere far, away. "I've got your back. We can do this."

The rogue nodded, took a deep breath, and was nearly set on fire. The hell-hound's mouth opened very slowly, and the rogue almost instinctively rolled away mere seconds before he'd have been immolated.

He looked back up and saw that Hugh, Fiona, the orc-thing and Vaeri had engaged the monster. It had even been dismounted due to a crushing blow from the orc-thing, and now the hell-hound was menacing... Fiona. Fuck, this thing was making a point of threatening things the rogue actually gave a shit about.

Before he could talk himself out of it, the rogue sprinted forward, yelling and waving his knives. Running up from behind, he leapt up at the beast, attempting to plunge both daggers into its back.

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Whatever that potion was, it was working. Tobias was feeling positively recovered after his nap under the table, and was helping himself to a hearty plate of on-the-house stew (being a hero had perks - he got it free and didn't have to steal anything). The jovial expression was returning to his face as he eyed a group of local girls, trying to find exactly the right words to tell the tale of his earlier heroism. Indeed, it seemed the worst was behind him, at least for today.

That was when the heard the hoofbeats pounding. You have to be fucking kidding me.

Sana burst into the room, carrying something precious - the rogue caught a glimpse of blonde hair and saw that it was a child. She ran up the stairs and back down almost as quickly, and that was when Tobias heard it.

It was like nails on a chalkboard - it hurt just to listen to. "Give me the child!"

A child. Tobias could let men, women, dogs, cats, horses, dwarves, elves, orcs, and halflings die without guilt. Why was it always children?

Tobias was out the door just in time to see Sana crash to the ground. It was out there, massive, riding some sort of demon-dog. If the rogue hadn't been so dehydrated, he was sure he would have peed.

The elf crashed out the window and faced the monster without fear, an actual smile on her face. For his part, the rogue stepped forward, a dagger in each trembling hand. His throat was dry, but he managed to choke out a statement. "Y... y... you're not getting any kids. Not while I'm here."

Heart Of Gold - Firefly Inspired RP - Closed

April scrambled out of the way of the (somewhat anticipated) wrench. "Hey, woah, grease monkey! Look, I know yall does dirty things to these engines when nobody's looking, but it don't mean nobody else can take a look at them. Maybe we'd actually get somewhere if you wasn't this ship's crazy, jealous ladyfriend!"

April put her hands to her hips, fully prepared to have another spat with the engineer, when the com box beside her crackled. "April, get your narrow behind out of there before Cyrek throws a wrench at you! Well, before he throws another one!" April rolled her eyes and spoke back to the box. "May be narrow, cap'n, but I can do great things with it." She turned and left the sputtering engine room and its fuming guardian.

Moving back to the cockpit, her eyes half dulled with boredom, she happened across the captain talking to a stranger. From the gist of it, it seemed like the man was asking for transport on the ship, and was prepared to pay for it with ordinance. Approaching as the man sealed the deal with the captain, April extended a hand, offering a confident smile. "You flying with us? My name's April Cooper, I'm the pilot. You're more'n welcome aboard as far as I'm concerned, but, uh..." She leaned in slightly and offered a mischievous grin, tapping him on the chest with two fingers. "When I say hold onto something? Hold onto something."

She turned and saw Chang'e, the companion, also speaking to the captain. "Oh, hey Dajie. You got another date? Want me to drive?"