The Last Battle (open)

[GrandpaG]

With the aid of some time spent resting and the strength regained from his morning meal, GrandpaG opened a gateway just large enough to fit through.  It opened into the one place that he thought might still have some resemblance to peace and solitude...Rhuidean...or at least nearby on the surrounding slopes...he didn't want his gateway to surprise or slice through some poor unsuspecting Aiel.

 

A rush of extremely hot air exploded through the newly formed hole and gave the old geezer a bit of a jolt.

 

"Whew."

 

"That's hotter than...well, I don't know what...but it's hot!"  :o

 

He almost reconsidered stepping through.  One quick glance behind him acted as a prod.  Pulling his gleeman's cloak up around his head for protection from the blazing sun that he knew would greet him, he timidly stepped through the gateway...into utter chaos.

 

To his right stretched the newly formed Lake Rhuidean, all peaceful and calm with a slight haze hinting at evaporation...nothing like the mist that had covered the entire area when he had visited here a few years back.  To his left was a vast area covered by Aiel tents that almost disappeared if you didn't know what to look for.  And in front of him, trollocs.  Hundreds of thousands of trollocs.  And fades.  And dreadlords.  Some bat-like creatures soared overhead, gracefully dodging the lightning bolts cast toward them by Wise Ones from below.  Aiel were fighting darkfriends.  Everywhere that there were forces of the Shadow, Aiel spears danced.

 

Most disturbing to GrandpaG was the sight of Aiel fighting other Aiel.  This had happened in the past...quite often, in fact.  But, here?  So near to Rhuidean?  With so much water available?  With shadow-runners available to spear?  It just did not make sense.  Unless...

 

"Aiel Darkfriends!!!"

 

:o

 

He wanted to dig a hole through the rock beneath his feet to hide from the truth that his eyes were showing him.  How could it be?  These were the proudest, most trustworthy people he had ever met!  A little odd, perhaps, but he would NEVER have thought it possible for there to be so many darkfriends among the Aiel.  Thousands of them!!!  And that was just in this particular group...how many MORE could there be scattered about the wetlands?  This was just too overwhelming to swallow.  Without hesitation, he turned and stepped back through the gateway.

 

Hastily, GrandpaG let the gateway close.  He had no desire for further excitement today.  He released the source and collapsed.  Without realizing what he was doing, he sliced a chunk off from some nearby trolloc and began chewing nervously.  He felt his sanity wavering.  All of this was just too much.  He hung his head and began to sob silently.  It helped.  Some.

 

Not knowing or caring how long he had had his head buried, he heard a sound behind him and in one smooth motion dropped his snack and produced a knife in each hand concealed beneath his hanging sleeves.  He turned and crouched behind the stump that he had been leaning against.  Peering around the stump, he spied a man in a black coat escorting four women with the ageless faces of Aes Sedai.

 

"He must be a Warder.", he whispered to himself.  Putting his knives back into storage, he slowly rose raising his arms over his head with palms displayed.  "I walk in the Light.  Welcome, Aes Sedai."

[Blackhoof]

The last of the Trollocs and Fades entered the Waygate as Pherno, Lupin and two other Dreadlords finalised there plans. "The Shadowspawn will distract them, and with you two countering as much of their weaves as possible, me and Pherno will close in for the kill. Sound fair?" Lupin said to the two female Dreadlords that were aiding them. Pherno came back from supervising the Shadowspawn, "So my fellow Darkfriends, are we ready to stopthis teamwork trend?" They all nodded. "Well, then, lets go, lets get on with this show!"  They all entered the Ways after the Shadowspawn.

 

The Ways were no longer dark and rotten, now that the Dragon Reborn had cleansed them with the help of a large Circle of Aes Sedai and Asha'man, now they were well-lit, with grass and moss covering the walk ways and trees and bushes on the islands. Machin Shin was gone as well. It all made Pherno want to throw up, it was all so, so, alive. Death was predictable, it was stable, but life, life was... not. It wasn't like fire, fire was as predictable as possible, although many disagreed. Fire worked in strictly natural ways; it burnt whatever it touched, and it spread. Nothing unpredictable about it.

 

Despite his discomfort, Pherno decided to start singing as he followed the Shadowspawn and other Dreadlords to the first island.

 

The Ways, the Ways, were traveling in the Ways,

The Ways, the Ways, we'll be here for days and days,

In-in all the Ways, no matter what you says,

Were in the Wayyyyy-aayyyy-ayyyy-ays,

In-the-Ways!

[Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai]

"He'll be back.  I'm sure of it!"  Nesyer was saying, her voice tight.

 

"But what can we do?  He's sure to bring more dreadlords that even with a full circle, we won't be able to combat."  Eshara said.  "We should just flee."

 

"And leave this town,"  Nenen said, her hair flying in the wind.  "To the mercy of the Shadowspawn?  Let's just grab a few Angreal from the White Tower and be done with it."  Her eyes twinkled.  "I'll be back.  Bear with me."  And with a gesture, she took advantage of using Wilemi and Nesyer's strengths to create a gateway, having linked with them earlier.

 

As she tied off the gateway and disappeared through it, the rest sat down the wait.  Nesyer Healed the rest of their tiredness, and Eshara Healed Nesyer of hers.  And when Nenen came back through the gateway holding five jems, she closed it.  "Here.  I got this from Elayne.  She gave me these five jems."  She tossed the Topaz to Wilemi, the Garnet to Eshara, the Emerald to Seyneru, the Diamond to Nesyer, and kept the Beryl for herself.  "They are Angreal."  she said simply.

 

They sat down, and waited for the incoming attack.

[GrandpaG]

Moving cautiously but confidently from behind his tree trunk, GrandpaG approached the Aes Sedai group.  The Warder stepped between the women and him in true Warder fashion with grace and obvious determination that no harm would befall any of the women until the Warder had taken his last breath.  GrandpaG stopped short and gave a gleeman's salute, bowing deeply with a flourish of his patch covered cloak.

 

"It is an honor to be in your presence, Aes Sedai.  I am GrandpaG, a humble gleeman."

 

The Warder had metal insignia fastened to the collars of his black coat.  One appeared to be a sword.  The other was some sort of twisting lizard with long claws.  He had heard of these during his travels.

 

"You are an Ashaman?"

 

The Warder nodded.

 

"I thought you were a Warder...sorry."

 

The Ashaman nodded again.

 

"May I speak with the Aes Sedai?  I have grave news."

 

The Aes Sedai glanced at one another ever so briefly in their mysterious way.  The Ashaman whispered, "he can channel".

 

After a moment, one of them spoke.  She did not appear to be the eldest, though it was hard to tell how old she was.

 

"What is your news, gleeman."

 

GrandpaG grimaced.  It was hard to predict just how this group would react.  He swallowed hard, then let the words go in haste.

 

"There is a HUGE battle taking place at Rhuidean this very instant.  I just returned from there.  Hundreds of thousands of shadow troops of all manner.  And...perhaps worst of all...Aiel...(gulp)...darkfriends!!!"

[Blackhoof]

Suddenly a nearby hill opened up and hundreds of Trollocs and Fades poured out of the hidden Waygate. Pherno, Lupin and the two female Dreadlords followed them, spotting a group of Aes Sedai and an Asha'man. There were five, like Pherno had said, but there was an oldish man there, as well. Oh, well Lupin thought as he readied his Necromancy Weaves, knowing that soon there would be a lot of dead Trollocs to raise. Pherno pulled out his sword angreal, which began glowing with a black light, and the two female Dreadlords linked, ready to slice as many of the Aes Sedais' weaves as possible. It begins Lupin thought as Pherno held out his hands, shooting a barrage of Arrows of Fire at the group of lightfools.

 

OOC: Just so you know, I';m giving you permission to kill the two nameless female Dreadlords in Pherno and Lupins company, but dont kill them too quickly, please, give them a good run.

[Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai]

Wilemi gaped at the old man's news after Eshara had question the gleeman.  But before they could react, suddenly a gateway appeared, and hundreds more Trollocs and Fades were vomited out of it, like a flood.  With a hiss, Wilemi immediately wove Air and Fire...

 

And a weave sliced it apart.  Glancing to one side, she saw two dreadladies linked together in a circle, flows emanating from them.  Looking at Eshara and Seyneru, they nodded and went to deal with the Dreadladies.  "Stay behind us."  Wilemi warned the gleeman.  Then, turning to the army of Trollocs, she spotted two dreadlords mingling with the Trollocs.  "Oh dear.  We have more company."  She muttered to Nenen and Nesyer.  They followed her gaze, and saw arrows of Fire that blasted towards them, whistling through the air, overtaking the charging trollocs.  Drawing on her Angreal, Wilemi wove an incredibly strong shield that shattered the attack with contemptuous ease.  Tying off the weave, she struck back, the sky billowed and churned as the clouds boiled and hissed.  A wind, unlike anything that had ever been seen before on this plain, roared down around the hill and hurled the Trollocs back.  Lightning roared and blazed down from the sky then, hurling bodies everywhere.  Most were simply seared, simply charred lumps, then vapourizing, with the strength of Wilemi's weave.

 

Then, there was violent channeling to her left, and Wilemi felt Nenen channeling large amounts of Earth, her face narrowed in pure concentration.  The ground opened up into a ravine, and half the remaining trollocs fell in, never to be seen again on the face of this earth.  The rest of the trollocs puased, their eyes fearful, as Wilemi channeled and eliminated the rest of the trollocs with a burst of pure flame and fire.

 

A boom nearby made Wilemi head whip around.  Eshara and Seyneru were lying face down on the ground, the dreadladies walking towards them, weaving several very nasty weaves.

 

There was a shriek of "NO!" on her right, and Nesyer ran forward, her black hair flying in the wind.

 

---

 

Nesyer had been struck dumb the moment that Eshara and Seyneru were caught off guard and sent flying through the air as though struck by a wall.  She ran forward, her eyes wild and unseeing, as she felt Saidar drain out of Eshara.  Seyneru tried to stand up, but fell, even as the dreadladies advanced upon them.  Nesyer gritted her teeth and met them head on, her weaves of Spirit slashing the dreadladies' weave.  They grunted and Nesyer took the opportunity, and channeled more flows of Spirit, drawing on the full strength of her Angreal, and spinning several more weaves in the process.

 

They struggled back and forth as Saidar made burning halos around them, the light blazing forth in fierce waves, swirling and churning around them.  Flows were made and cut, and Nesyer's Angreal strength was match perfectly with the skill and dexterity and precision that the circle gifted the dreadladies.  Nesyer's black hair flew in the gale that Wilemi had summoned, touching her and yet not touching her, for it reserved its fury for the dreadlords and the trollocs.  Waves of weaves surged back and forth, colliding in burst of light and coloured steam, surrounding the vicinity with a general haze of light and colour, especially when lightning blazed across the dark sky.

 

Nesyer's face was grim and cold, her brown eyes were like stone as she stared over at the dreadlady who was leading the circle, whose face was contorted into a perpetual snarl of frustration of Nesyer refused to yield.  Her pale face was even whiter than usual with strain and worry about Eshara and Seyneru.

 

Then suddenly, there was a rumble and a roll of earth.  Looking to her right, she saw that Seyneru was back on his feet, his arm outstretched, despite his bleeding head, his face blank and stony.  The dreadladies did not even have time to do anything before the earth opened up and swallowed them whole, before closing in on them.  Seyneru collapsed on the ground again, exhausted.

 

Nesyer looked at Seyneru and Eshara, and ran towards them, weaving complex Healing weaves that she had learnt from Sumeko and Nynaeve.  Seyneru stirred and awoke, and Eshara moaned as the Healing sank into her and was finished.  With a sigh of relief, Nesyer turned her attention back to the pair of dreadlords, whom Nenen and Wilemi were now walking forward, about to do battle with.

[GrandpaG]

FEAR!!!

 

Pure, unadulterated, undeniable.

 

In all of his life GrandpaG had NEVER felt fear like this.  And that was really saying a lot since he had just secretly celebrated his two hundred and ninety second name day not too long ago.  He kept his age secret because it was directly tied to his use of the One Power for so many, many years.  He still often wondered why he had not gone insane like the other male channelers seemed to.  He also wondered if there were others like himself and this Mazrim Taim fellow who appeared to be somehow naturally immune.

 

One of the Aes Sedai had told him to hide behind them.  He had no problem at all complying.  If he had strength enough to channel he would channel a hole and crawl into it.  He considered digging one with his fingers but then he remembered that he had just paid an ENORMOUS amount of money to have his nails done so he decided against that idea.  Instead, he simply tried to make his body become one with the ground beneath him.  He exhaled as much as he could.  He imagined himself being crushed by a huge boulder.  Using his hands on the back of his head, he forced his face into the dirt until he could barely breathe and tried to block the sound from his ears by pressing his wrists tightly against them.

 

"You are what you eat.", came his mother voice to his imagination.  She had been dead for a couple of centuries now, but her words rang clear as a bell in his memory.  He missed her.  After all this time.  Especially now.  He could use a mother's bosom to comfort him.  He felt his tummy rumble.

 

"Must be that burnt trolloc didn't agree with me.", he thought.  Another familiar rumble warned him that one of his infamous butt bombs was about to blossom.  He sincerely hoped that none of the fighters were near enough to notice.  He resumed his ostrich imitation and let it loose.

[Blackhoof]

Pherno watched in horror as the two Dreadladies were swallowed by earth, never to be seen again. Lupin lashed out with his Weaves and dozens of dead Trollocs lurched to their feet. Lupin used weaves of Air to throw more bodies at the group, unsettling and confusing them. Pherno drew deeply from his Angreal and pure fire swirled around him. Suddenly fire burst from his hands and feet and Pherno rocketed up into the air, leaving everyone stunned. From his perch high in the air, he threw a combination of all his most powerful weaves, spears, Arrows, Firegates, Deathgates, massive fireballs and bolts of incandescent heat at the group. The earth underneath them turned to glass under the onslaught, and Pherno smiled in triumph as he saw that they were about to be consumed in his mighty inferno. 

[Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai]

"Watch out."  Nenen shrieked, as several bodies were somehow restoring themselves.  "The dreadlords are somehow reviving the Trollocs who haven't been ripped into bits!"  She yelled at Wilemi, who gasped.  Nesyer came over in a run, followed closely by Eshara and Seyneru.  "We need to do something more drastic to the Trollocs, or they will be revived the instant they are killed."  Nenen said, more calmly, as the trollocs came.  "We need to make their bodies disappear."

 

"That's easily arranged."  Wilemi replied.  Nenen looked at her warily as Wilemi raised her arms to the sky.  The winds came sweeping down again, and lightning crackled and blazed across the sky.  Suddenly, with the sweep of her arm, Wilemi gestured, and the lightning blasted down from the sky, the clouds above churning and raging with the winds that howled across the plain.  It came and went, striking the trollocs and wiping them off from the face of the earth.  All of them that had been resurrected, blasted into oblivion.  There were no bodies left on the scene.

 

Nenen watched all this in admiration for Wilemi's skilled weaving, and turned back to the two dreadlords.  Then she gasped.

 

The dreadlord, the first one, the mad one who sung, had blasted himself into the sky with a weave of fire that propelled him and kept him up in the sky.  Then suddenly, fire swirled around him and all manner of fire weaves came spinning towards them.  Arrows, Spears of Fire came whistling through the air.  Massive fireballs, waves of heat that approached rapidly.  Instantly they slid into a link, with Wilemi leading the circle.

 

Nenen felt Wilemi draw on all the strength of the circle, and felt the rush of power surge through them.  The Angreal that each of them had blazed, shining brightly.  Each of them were coated with a different light.  Wilemi was surrounded by a golden glow not unlike the halo of Saidar around her.  Nenen was bathed in blue light, while Eshara red, Seyneru green, and Nesyer a pure white light.  They shone multicoloured in the scene a variety of colours that gave hope to all who saw them that the Light could and would triumph against the oncoming blackness.

 

As the flames approached, Nenen felt the earth not far from where they stood become glass.  Wilemi was weaving Saidar, and a shield appeared.  So strong that all the weaves simply shattered off it again.  Not really surprising, since they were five, and angreal augmented to boot, while he was only one, even if he had an Angreal, which Nenen suspected he had.  Even the Dragon Reborn had not been able to throw around such weaves so easily.

 

The amount of power that Wilemi was wielding frightened Nenen, even as she desired to channel it for a while.  But she willingly let Wilemi handle it, for her skill among the Aes Sedai was legendary, able to match the Forsaken, if she had enough strength anyway.

 

Then Wilemi struck back, and Nenen could only gape at what happened.  There were simply so many weaves flying from her she would not have believed it had she not seen it.  Lightning stormed down from the sky, as fire shot from Wilemi's hands.  Tornadoes roared and spun around the dreadlord, and winds shrieked at him as he hovered on his perch in the sky.  The fire took the shapes of arrows, spears, bars, balls.  Rain roared down and attempted to quench the fire as water roared up from a nearby river, swirling and churning as it rose higher and higher into the air.  Wilemi's eyes were alight, glowing with fire and light, her face contorted with strain, and Nenen knew that she was throwing everything into the fight against the dreadlord.

[GrandpaG]

GrandpaG gained enough courage to timidly raise his eyes enough to take a peak at what was happening around him.  His ball of methane gas exploded far overhead as it was hit by an arrow of fire.  The explosion was nothing compared to all of the other explosions in the area.  With all of that noise, he had expected to see a devastated landscape.  However, other than the immediate area where he and the Aes Sedai were and the area around the dreadlords, the rest of the plain still looked relatively untouched.  Except for a few spots where the earth looked as if it had opened up enough to swallow a small army.  And a few hundred acres of burned grass and saplings.  And some disintegrated oak trees.  Nothing as bad as he had thought it would be, though.

 

The fighting factions appeared to be near stalemate.  The dreadlords must have sent their trollocs off to some other battle for they were all gone.  The dreadladies must have escorted them.  The dreadlords themselves appeared strained but confident.  The forces of the Light shone in bright colors, glowing like a morning mist.  Their faces were taunt, their eyes were tight, their clothes were wet with sweat.  They did not look ready to falter, but they did not appear to be on the verge of victory, either.  Both sides were sending their best without serious affect.

 

GrandpaG had had enough battle to last him for a VERY long time.  He missed the hours of peace he had enjoyed sitting beside the fires of the Wagons of the Tuatha'an.  Perhaps he really WAS a Tinker at heart?

 

Something had to be done about Rhuidean.  That ancient infant of a city just HAD to survive this conflict.  But what could one gleeman do when he couldn't even muster enough strength for a small gateway?  In frustration, he put his hands back over his head to wait.  And ponder.  And rest.

[Blackhoof]

OOC: Is it just me, or does anyone else notice that GrandpaG appears to be for comic relief?  :)

 

IC:

Pherno roared in rage as he saw his fire attacks smash against an invisible shield. The lightfools were glowing in multicoloured lights, except for the cowardly one that was huddled behing the other group. They must have angreal! Pherno thought to himself in consternation. Well, duh The voice in his head answered. Suddenly winds, tornadoes and lightnings swirled around him, and bars, balls, arrows, and spears of fire lanced towards him from the outstretched hands of one of the Aes Sedai, and a massive column of water twirled towards him from the river.

 

Almost exhausted from his weaving, Pherno pulled as much of the Power that he could handle with the angreal, he cocooned himself wth fire, and the attacks of the lightfool Aes Sedai either evaporated or were deflected by his cocoon. Shedding his fiery cocoon to the astonishment of the lightfools, he laughed in triumph. "You thought you could kill me with a few weavings, this 'aint over 'till the rhyming Dreadlord sings!" Pherno cried as he did a bit of a mid-air jig.

 

Finishing his jolly dance, Pherno decided to try something different. Holding out his hands, palms-upwards, he weaved Earth and Fire and slowly raised his arms simultaneously. The ground in front of the lightfool group cracked and heaved, fire coming up through the cracks. Pushing his hands forward, the cracks spread towards the lightfool group, and the ground under them began crumbling, fire reaching up towards them.

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

 

Lupin watched in annoyance as the smart lightfools disintegrated the Trollocs bodies, preventing him from raising them. Lupin considered his advantages, ad was glad that they hadn't seemed to notice him, focusing all their  power on Pherno. Lupin wasn't very strong in the power, but he was very skilled. Lupin then noticed, for the first time, the man cowering behind the lightfools. Using bushes and trees for cover, Lupin crept behind the lightfools and up to the cowering man. This close, Lupin could tell that he could channel. Weaving water, air and spirit, Lupin snared the mind of the man in a web of Compulson. "Well, cowering channeler, I have you in a subtle, yet strong weave of compulsion, what do you say o that?" Lupin said smugly.

 

OOC: I hope you dont mind GrandpaG,  :-\ that i am compelling your character. If you do, i will undo it gladly, but if you dont, i give you permission to control your players actions in a rather unrealistic way, under the pretense of me compelling you to do it. Dont worry, this is a rather weak compulsion, it wont leave any permanent damage.

[GrandpaG]

Without knowing why, GrandpaG suddenly had the urge to juggle.  And the strength.  He knew that if he tried to channel that he would find a shield of spirit waiting for him.  He couldn't really sense it but he knew for certain that it was there.  So, he would have to perform the old fashioned way without the aid of Saidin.

 

Slowly rising and imagining the flame that his mentor had taught him so many, many years ago, the aged gleeman assumed his famous stance and the face of a seasoned performer.  In his heightened state of concentration, the worries he had felt earlier about the nearby battle simply left his consciousness.  All of that was outside the Void.

 

Without allowing the audience to see where they came from, he easily began to make balls appear.  Just a few to begin with.  One red.  One blue.  One yellow.  This brought back memories of a visit to Wolfkin many moons ago.  The pups loved chasing and chewing his balls.  And he loved playing catch with them and letting them lick his face with their puppy breath.  But, that was then and this is now.  Still not knowing why, he knew that he just HAD to entertain the troops...NOW!!!

 

Slowly, one at a time, he added more balls to his ever higher-climbing loop.  One silver.  One gold.  One copper.  Higher.  Faster.  Figure eight.  More difficult.  He just HAD to do MORE!!!  A bowling pin.  A torch.  Wait for the half-way point.  Another torch.  Light the first aflame.  Wait.  Light the second.  Add a striped ball.  Send it spinning to make the stripes wobble.  MORE!!!  HIGHER!!!  FASTER!!!  Razor sharp throwing knives!!!  Running out of objects to add!!!

 

"I MUST DO MORE!!!"

 

"MORE!!!"

 

 

OOC: Yup.  ;D

[Blackhoof]

Lupin cackled as he made the man juggle more and more, until he gleeman was panting with exhaustion. Suddenly Lupin made the man abruptly stop juggling, and the balls, knives and other miscellaneous objects fell around him, the knives narrowly missing him.

 

The man looked confused, as if he didn't know that he was being compelled. He would find out soon enough. "Now, channeling gleeman, I will give you this small angreal that I have so you can channel. It is not strong, nowhere near as strong as Phernos' black sword, but it will be enough." The man took the angreal and embraced the source. "Now, my slave, this is what I want you to do...."

 

OOC: GrandpaG, I trust that you can think of a suitably evil thing that I would make your guy do.... Mwa ha ha ha!  :D  8)

[GrandpaG]

GrandpaG stared at the little fat man statue that had magically appeared in his palm.  The Void held steady.  He gently, cautiously, almost timidly reached toward the distant glow that he recognized as Saidin fully expecting to find a rock-hard shield awaiting him.  To his surprise and glee, there WAS no shield!  Hungrily...greedily...he reached through the angreal and pulled in as much Saidin as he could.  It was oh so very much nicer since it had been cleansed by the Dragon Reborn.  It was still like trying to hang onto the tail of a galloping mustang, but the sweetness far outshone the pain of being dragged.

 

For a brief instant, he felt as if he should form a gateway and head back to Rhuidean to help the Wise Ones.  As soon as that thought formed, it dissipated...evaporated...vanished...as if it had not really ever existed.  In it's place was an urge even greater than before to entertain the battlers who were now showing signs of fatigue.  He reached into a secret pocket and removed a black rubber glove.  Instead of putting it onto his hand, he put the opening to his lips and blew.  And blew.  And blew.

 

The glove inflated like a balloon.  Soon each finger and thumb were the size of a hot dog.  Then a polish sausage.  When it appeared that the giant hand was just about to burst, he stopped blowing and released the trapped air while holding the band stretched wide forming a small crack for the air to escape.

 

PPPPPFFFFFAAAAARRRRTTTTTZZZZ!!!

 

GrandpaG grinned as the sound lessened then stopped.  ;D

 

He considered refilling the glove with some of his own private stock of butt bomb gas then releasing it toward the grinning devil >:D dreadlord who was watching so intently, but instead he stirred and slowly raised his head.  It took several seconds for the ale to leave his senses enough for him to realize where he was.  The wooden table had an empty cup sitting on it.  His fifth, he thought.

 

 

KELSEY'S!!!

 

 

:)

:'(

::)

:-\

 

Was this a dream?  How did he go from doing his expanding glove act to sitting in his booth?  The booth was gone.  Blown to smithereens.  Or had he just dreamed it all?  Maybe Rhuidean was still OK?  He pinched himself to see if it hurt.  It did.  He tried to shake his head and found that to be a not-so-good idea.  Finally, he accepted the fact that he had been in some kind of drunken dream...or, rather, a drunken nightmare!  He looked down toward the floor.  There was no evidence of the ale that he had left there in the dream.  To top it all off, his favorite waitress came into view and gave him one of her best smiles.

:)

 

"If I'm dreaming," he told her, "don't wake me up...I want to stay right here with you...alive!!!"

 

She smiled again, this time knowingly.  "I almost woke you when you were groaning and trying to juggle your empty cup and yelling 'MORE' at the top of your lungs, but I thought you needed a little rest.  Are you ready to call it a night, Gramps?"

 

The old carp did his best to smile back sweetly.  "You bet I am, sweetie."  She helped him out of his booth and gently guided him toward the stairway.  She claimed to enjoy tucking him in.  Said it reminded her of her grandpa.  He surely enjoyed her company.  And that smile.  "By the way...I never have asked your name, dear."

 

She smiled and answered, "Selene.".  >:D

[Blackhoof]

OOC: Ummm... so, if this was all a dream, or GrandpaG fell asleep and lanfear pulled him into TAR, were does this leave my character? And, just so you know, we should put our little Lupin v Gramps byplay on hold until Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai replies to Pherno's earthquake-type thing, because they have been standing on crumbling earth for a while while i compell you. ok?  ;)

[Blackhoof]

OOC: Sorry, i just read page 5.

 

Pherno Henzig-Dreadlord-Strength:51-Skill:16-Fire:36-Spirit:4-Water:8-Earth:23-Air:19

[Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai]

Your Strength can be no more than 38 and your skill no less than 22.  And with your skill at 16, you won't ever be able to react in time to Wilemi's defenses.  At strength 51, your stronger than ALL the forsaken and the Dragon Reborn to boot.  Isn't that just a bit on the high side?

[Blackhoof]

Ohhhh..... sorry, i didn't know how it worked. I thought it was like a 0 to 100 system or something. Ill redo it. But my guy is super strong, not that skilled, (his skill limit is really gateways and lots of fire stuff) Also, you should note that my guy is so weak in spirit and water, that while he can make a gateway (which requires spirit) he cannot make any pure spirit or water weaves. So no shielding, stilling, slicing, etc for him, he just shoots a lot of fire.

 

Pherno Henzig-Dreadlord-Strength:37-Skill:24-Fire:36-Spirit:7-Water:9-Earth:23-Air:19

 

That good? How strong is the DR on this chart? 38? 37? My guy is like Egwene standard, but i thought it neccesary to make him stronger so that he could realistically stand toe-to-toe with five linked channelers with angreal.... it would be no fun if my guy appeared, started singing, and got blown up, would it?

 

Lupin Malicar-Dreadlord-Strength:23-Skill:35-Fire:15-Spirit:28-Water:25-Air:26-Eatth:17

 

 

Is that legal?

[Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai]

Read http://whitetower.aliciawilkerson.com/?page_id=34

[GrandpaG]

:-[

 

Sorry.

 

:-[

 

 

I didn't realize this was an organized site.

 

Sorry.

 

P.S.

Even though this was a dream, there really could be Aiel darkfriends attacking the Aiel Light-friends at Rhuidean.  The Wise Ones could probably use all the help they can get.

 

To readdress one of my age-old posts over on the General WOT board, "how do darkfriends recognize each other?".  In this case, how do the Aiel know who they should or should not stab?  :-\

 

Anyway, sorry if my antics messed up your site.  :-[

 

Love,

Gramps

[Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai]

Its not MY site.  BTW, we can rp anyway we want, as long as it isn't too outrageous.  And I'm just using the DM OP system for simplicity.

[GrandpaG]

OOC: thanks.

 

With bones that ached and a throbbing forehead, GrandpaG begrudgingly arose from his pallet and headed toward the chamber pot in the far corner of the room that he had shared with two other "Kelsey's patrons" who had indulged in at least one too many drinks.  A gray light was all that he had available to hit his mark without making a mess.  He stretched his aching joints for some physical relief as he relieved the pressure off from his bladder.  "I'm never doing that again.", he vowed for what must have been the hundredth time this year.

 

Even though the sun was definitely hidden by wild clouds, a small trickle of light made rays of gray through the cracks between the boards of the window shutters.  Making his way to the window, he unlatched the shutters and pushed them open.  His head jerked back reflexively at the instant hurt of the gray light meeting his eyes.  To be sure that he was not just having another dream, he pinched himself.  That hurt, too.

 

In the old days, the morning air at Kelsey's had always been crisp and clean despite an ever present scent of the nearby salt water.  This far south, mornings were always the most comfortable part of the day.  By noon it would be hot.  Not any more.  With the seemingly permanent overcast sky, the air seemed heavy with moisture and carried a smell of rot.  It reminded him of the borderlands near the Blight.  The Dark One's touch now reached all corners of the world.  Even Kelsey's.

 

The sound of horse hoofs on the street below drew his attention.  Even in this dim light he could make out the forms of five riders.  It looked like a man leading four women.  Recognition formed slowly in his mind then struck home like a sledge hammer on a huge bell.  To himself he gasped silently aloud, "the Aes Sedai and the Ashaman!!!"  :o  He laid his hand on the window sill and hit it hard with his other fist.  It hurt.  He wasn't dreaming again.  :o

 

Had that dream been some kind of Deja Vu warning?  Was Kelsey's going to be levelled?  Was Rhuidean really under attack?  Had he some how dreamed himself into TR in the flesh to meet these people and to eat burnt trolloc?  The taste reappeared in his memory...it was not nearly as satisfying now as it had been then.  Too many questions and not enough answers.

 

The pounding in his head told him that he could not escape by gateway.  Anyway.  He was tired.  Tired of running.  Tired of hiding.  Tired of acting like a Tinker.  He wasn't a Tinker...he was a gleeman...and a pretty darned good one, at that.  It is the duty of the gleeman to provide hope when there is none and happiness in the midst of gloom.  That is what he must do now.  Gathering all of the strength and courage that he could muster, he headed downstairs to ask the five strangers if they would have breakfast with him.  As he headed for the door, he slipped his hand into a hidden pocket to check for his favorite knife.  It was there.  So was something else.  He pulled the foreign object out to see what it might be.

 

:o

A small figurine of a bald fat man sitting Indian-style.

:o

[Arani Lepenque Aes Sedai]

Seyneru watched as Wilemi combated the dreadlord, who somehow managed to smash aside her weavings with a cocoon of fire.  Tapping Wilemi on the shoulder, he moved forwards as Wilemi let control of the link flow into him.  Power welled up in him, almost swamping him.  But there was no time to let the sense of awe overwhelm him, for the dreadlord was striking back, with a vengeance.  His weariness shrugged off by adrenaline and the power that was coursing through him, he wove, not as dexteriously as Wilemi had done, but with a knowledge of how to combat the weavings that the dreadlord was making.

 

Drawing upon the full power of the circle, Seyneru slammed down a reverse weave of Earth and Fire.  The grounds held still, and the fires that were blasting up died and did not rise again.  Then Seyneru struck back.

 

Weavings of Spirit, Earth and Fire flowed from him as he wove.  The air around him warped and twisted with power that streamed forth from his hands.  All the metal within a mile radius was pulled towards him, dancing around the circle of five.  Suddenly, he threw them all at the dreadlord.  Even fire could not change the fact that the metal was porous.  And even if the metal vapourized, Seyneru would still be able to close it around the dreadlord.  The metal was unblockable.

[Blackhoof]

OOC: Thanks for the link! I had no idea that people had organised stuff like that, although i should have expected it.  :) I am not going throught all THAT to get Phernos stats, so i'll just tell you (sorry if i repeat mysdelf); Pherno is way above average in power strength, (a 7 or 8 on a scale of ten, ten being Rand and the forsaken) but has lower that average skill. He is massively strong in fire, but lacking in all other powers, especially water and spirit, (he is so weak in water and spirit that he cant form any pure weaves of those powers, but he can add them in small amounts to other weaves, (so he can weaves gateways, for instance) He has been mad for ages, and always either sings or talks in rhyme. He has invented several of his own weaves, all fire related, and nearly killed hiself a few times doing so.

 

Lupin is the opposite, weak in the power, but very skilled, strong in water, spirit and air and weak in fire and earth, he is good at compulsion, healing, and other weaves that enter the mind or body of his victims. He invented necromany, where others have failed, and can control dozens of zombies at once.

 

I hope thats all right with you.  :)

 

IN: Grinding his teeth in frustration as he saw his earthquake attack suppressed, Pherno thought to himself. Will nothing stop them? I have an immensely powerful angreal, advanced strength in the power, countless weaves of devastation at my command, and they still resist me! Cant they just die? Pherno realised that this group wouldn't. A chill went down his spine as he realised that in all his years of burning and killing for the Great Lord, Pherno had finally met someone that he couldn't bully, threaten or kill using brute force. Trickery would be needed, deception, cunning, all things that Pherno had in abundance. But would it be enough? Should he just cut his loses and leave to recuperate from this exhausting venture?

 

He had no time to think about it, as suddenly jagged shards of metal were flying towards him from all directions, thousands and thousands of tiny shards. Despite being exhausted from prolonged usage of the power, Pherno lashed out franticaly with weaves of fire, disintegrating fragment after fragment, but there were too many, and Pherno could only divide his weaves so many ways at once. just before the shards hit him, Pherno opened a gateway underneath him, facing upwards, released his fiery propellor weaves and dropped through the gateway to safety.

[GrandpaG]

Almost stumbling over a red scarf that was lying at the top of the stairs, GrandpaG made his way down to the common room.  He expected a rough morning.  The thought of facing the people from his dream almost chased him back up the stairs.  He couldn't help a small sigh of relief when he glanced around the common room and didn't see any of them there.

 

A couple of earlier risers were sitting in their booths trying to force down some nourishment.  Early morning at Kelsey's was a time for quiet.  The waitresses had learned long ago to go about their business in a non-intrusive manner..."bring the gruel and go"...that was the tradition here.  That's how it had always been.

 

Choosing a booth where he could see the main door easily, GrandpaG settled in.  His buns had no more than met the board bench before a steaming cup of tea with two dips of honey and a pinch of brandy appeared within easy reach.  The morning crew knew what he preferred.  Something in the back of his mind made him think of Seanchan kaf...the thought went away as soon as his hand touched the mug of tea.

 

Not far behind the tea was his usual plate of fried sliced potatoes with two large eggs, "sunny side up", heaped on top.  And a side of toast and bacon.  The tomato juice would be brought later to wash it all down.  Along with a packet of headache herbs.  Yes, the help at Kelsey's knew him well.  And he loved them all like family.

 

Family.  How long had it been since he had seen any of his real family?  Were they still alive?  Had the small village of Darrin's Dell been overlooked and spared from the Last Battle's ravages?  Or was it like the small villages of the Two Rivers that had early on been totally flattened and burned?  He probably could Travel there from here easily enough.  But what if the Last Battle really was somehow following him around as if he were ta'varen or something?  No.  The way things ended the last time that he was home, he was better off just staying away.  They probably wouldn't be pleased to see him anyway.  But, he did miss them.  So, he thought happy thoughts about home as he slowly consumed his morning medicine meal.

 

As he drank the tomato-juice-and-herbs cocktail, he realized that nobody had entered the front door.  Cautiously, as discretely as possible, he glanced around the room to see if he might have missed someone coming in while he was eating.  He saw the same customers and waitresses as before.  Had he been seeing things that weren't really there from the upstairs window?  Had they decided to ride on?  He reached into his pocket and made sure that he hadn't imagined the little fat man...it was still there.

 

Between the tea, the taters-n-eggs, and the medicinal drink, his headache seemed to be almost gone.  He assumed the Void with no problem.  Saidin shone brightly in the distance.  So far away, yet right there within reach.  Calling to him.  Daring him to grab hold.  So clean and pure.  So delicious.  So dangerous.  Alluring.  Threatening.  So close.  So far away.  He longed to grasp it and let it consume him in it's unworldly pleasure, but he knew that he had not yet settled up with the owner of Kelsey's for his bar tab and room-and-board.  Reluctantly, he let go of the Void.  :(

 

With his affairs in order and his traveling pack over his shoulder, GrandpaG stepped out onto the front porch.  He still almost expected to find the band of Aes Sedai and their Ashaman friend.  Part of him expected to find everything in town except for Kelsey's in a state of ruin.  He found neither.  Just the gloom of a gray sky with the faint odor of rotten potato peels mixed into the heavy moisture of early morning air.  Even the sea was not there to the eye or the nose.  It was time to move on.  There was a feeling of evil growing here.  He had to get away.  Someplace hot and dry.  Rhuidean.

 

Just short of trotting, he hurried through the alley to the back of Kelsey's near the stable.  Glancing quickly around to be sure that nobody would see, he opened a gateway and felt an immediate rush of hot, dry air.  With an apprehensive smile on his face, he leaped through the gateway and let it slam shut behind him.  He never did notice his favorite waitress toying with her red scarf while watching him through the back window of Kelsey's.