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Post by Head Chancellor Nikola Vunnz on Dec 16, 2012 14:07:53 GMT -6
Head Chancellor Nikola Vunnz sighed. This day was boring. As much of an honor as it was to be the Head Chancellor of the entirety of the Fox species and the leader of Parliament, he missed the ancient days where he and his family would go out and simply fly airskiffs for the pure joy of it. The days when he could go out without a full entourage of security following him around like a rain cloud.
Yes, he was important. Yes, he was privy to many secrets. Yes, his job had its highlights. But today it was a bore- nothing interesting, simply another meeting, with his fellow parliament members droning on. He sometimes wondered if they, too, felt like they should all just take a day off.
He knew there was one member who thought such things with frequency- Head Biologist and Head Sorceress Khai Thorne. But she was absent today, off on a trip in her airskiff the Erudite, undoubtedly as part of one of her new experiments.
Whether it involved magic, bioferrous fusing, or both, Nikola couldn’t tell. But one thing was for sure- Chancellor Thorne was off having far more fun than any of them here. She was young and reckless sometimes, but even the conservative Nikola couldn’t deny the fact that she was the life of the party when it came to the Parliament.
One of his aides came in, looking rather distressed. “What now?” His voice didn’t betray his boredom, the Head Chancellor looked just as spritely and commanding as ever. He knew he did, it was a trick he’d practiced for the entirety of his life.
“Head Chancellor, there’s a strange arcane disturbance in a valley nearby.” The aide handed him a report, showing several lines of complicated symbols. Over half the words had over ten letters. Below was a printed out diagram from some arcane monitor, showing a whirlpool-like something. Vunnz looked it over. Indeed, he recognized many of the characteristic signs of the arcanological version of an Einstein-Rosen bridge.
His eyes popped as he looked at the central vortex of magical energy. “Meeting adjourned. We have a portal to deal with.”
~~
“Sir, is it really necessary to oversee the defense preparations yourself?” the captain of his guard babbled on. “I’m certain your assistants can handle it.”
“Nay! Those simpletons won’t be able to keep this situation properly under control. Besides, it will help the foxes to see their leader overseeing this directly.”
“But sir-“
The grey fox whirled to face his guard. “We have not had a defense emergency in a decade. This cannot fail.” He turned away and continued striding forward, his step lightened ever so slightly.
“Yes, sir.”
Vunnz smirked. The good thing about being Head Chancellor was that you always won debates.
“Sir, this way, please.”
“I remember the way to the bridge room well enough, thank you.” Nikola didn’t care if he was being curt. This was an emergency. Engaging his telepathic monocle, the piece of technology slid neatly into place over his eye from where it had been on top of his head moments before. The thing flickered to life, recognizing his eye in a matter of moments, and pulling up diagrams of whatever this portal was at his mental request.
Stepping into the bridge room, Vunnz immediately sensed the tension in the air. Foxes moved around this way and that, ordering around other foxes who plugged away at machines and controls.
The Head Chancellor sighed, but it was a happy sigh this time. “Get the dome open,” he called out, and immediately everyone froze and turned around to watch him stride confidently up to the central control station. “I want full visibility. Foxes, we have an emergency. And the Nexus will be prepared!”
“Yes sir!” came the reply, and the foxes returned to their work with renewed vigor. Vunnz turned to the controls and quickly plugged in his credentials, adoring the feel of machinery beneath his paws, instead of the dusty parchment of proposal after proposal.
His paws instinctively maneuvered through the menus of the screen. Powered by arcane magic, it recognized his presence and automatically set itself to his personal preferences. Tapping on the screen, the Head Chancellor soon directed for the erection of an arcane deterrence shield around the whole of the Nexus and another layer around the central core of the bridge room and arcane generator.
Just as he finished doing that, the dome began to grind open. The moving pieces of the floor sparked to life, and gears started turning, splitting the floor beneath him in half to let the central control unit pass through so that he was at the forefront, the other consoles now behind him with a bridge leading back to the other central chambers.
Winds whipped around him, and far below the foxes of the city stopped their work to glance up and see their Head Chancellor standing at the helm.
A cheer went up through the city. Nikola smiled. “Never, since it was first built three dozen years ago, has the Nexus been stormed. Many a time it has been assaulted, but never once has it fallen. And it never shall- not today, not ever while we still defend it!” His voice boomed out, amplified through a system of communicators throughout the city. “So to your posts! Show whatever comes through that portal that nothing can challenge the supremacy of the foxes!”
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Post by Sanguinus D'Marcus on Dec 16, 2012 14:08:43 GMT -6
The boom of drums echoed through the hollow metal of the Bastion, melding perfectly with the sound of marching paws. The rumbling undercurrent of the tank city’s movement across the plain added a bass beat as it ground its way over whatever stood in its path. As the legions neared the marshaling area in the center of the tank city, their chant slowly turned from the distant murmur of war into the terrifying dictum of “Sem-per. San-guis. Sem-per. San-guis.”
“Forever blood,” D’Marcus growled, his voice low and threatening. His lips curved up into a smile, displaying the massive yellowing fangs that were arrayed in his mouth.
“Grunts! Finish up with my armor. The legions approach.”
“Sir yes sir!” came the unanimous reply as his armor was buckled on with increased velocity. No one wanted to see an angry Templar Primus.
As the last piece of spiked crimson metal was on, the grunts scattered, knowing full well what his next move would be. Sanguinus snarled and shook himself, then let out a bellow that reverberated through the chamber.
The armor was ferocious- covering most of him, but still more for show. It was made up of a black metal with bright red covering most of it. Spikes jutted out, also made of the black metal.
“The true picture of a Templar Primus.” He laughed, deep and guttural.
“You look fearsome, sir. Should I call for the heralds to sound?”
“Yes.” The dire wolf stalked forward while his assistant scurried off to tell the horns to sound.
As one, the many horns trumpeted his arrival, sounding like a thousand wolves howling. The legions quieted, and then took up the cry of, “Sanguis! Sanguis! Sanguis!”
Templar Primus Sanguinus D’Marcus strutted out onto the balcony that he would address his troops from. At his appearance, the wolves began to howl, cheering. The horns added their blast, and the deafening sound throbbed through the air in eerie harmony.
A feral grin spread across his face, and the dire wolf drew breath, his lungs swelling with air as he lifted his head. Exhale, and his voice shone out loud and clear even through the other wolves’, rising over them in a song of conquest, a song of war, a song of blood and fangs.
The wolf war cry died down as he lowered his head, signaling silence. The legions stood in rigid attention, each wolf waiting to hear his words.
D’Marcus was about to speak when he noticed the Nexus, those flea-filled foxes’ capital, soaring overhead. His eyes narrowed- it was in battle formation, a sight not even he had seen. Their guns were out- and ready to blaze, he knew instinctively. But they weren’t pointed towards the Bastion… they were pointed towards something else. The Templar redirected his attention, and noticed something massive and blue swirling in a mountain valley.
As he watched, the portal exploded open, sending a freezing wind rippling through the fur of the wolves. Out crawled one massive beast and a swarm of littler ones, each composed of… ice?
The big beast roared, a sound that reached even their ears, and began to shoot at the Nexus… and an ice chunk hurled towards the Bastion of Howls and its escort.
An even bigger grin covered his face, his yellow eyes glinting in anticipation of the upcoming bloodshed.
“Well, boys,” he snarled. “It looks as if you don’t get to hear me speak. But you get something even better.”
The Templar was never one to extend something, but sometimes you needed to draw out a declaration of battle. “That beast, whatever it is, just attacked us. I don’t care if this is some fox trickery. I do know that aggression towards us means an attack is going to come, no matter what.”
He stepped forward to the very edge of the bannister-less balcony, his eyes now nearly on fire. “And an attack means war.”
The wolves lifted their heads in another howling cheer, and the Templar Primus joined in. This time, they all lowered their heads as one. “Semper! Sanguis! Semper! Sanguis!”
Sanguinus laughed, his voice still amplified through the same series of communication devices that the Head Chancellor’s had been. “Forever blood! Forth, my legions! Fear no darkness, fear no light, and above all…”
The legions shouted the last phrase of the cry. “Fear no fight!”
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Post by The Whisperer on Dec 16, 2012 14:09:32 GMT -6
Even from the sea, the cries of the wolves were audible. The Whisperer shook his head. “Tsk, tsk,” he hissed. They were so loud, so bumbling, so obvious. Every move of theirs could be anticipated.
But their final cry of “Fear no fight!” worried the Whisperer. Even though his pride reviled admitting it, the wolves were a definite threat, and they did have the largest force currently.
Then the boom of cannons rolled across to the Whisperer’s position on a cliff overlooking the sea. He whirled around to face the sound.
On the massive plain behind him, the Bastion of Howls rolled along. Its escort was scattering out into a battle position. The Nexus, blazing in full glory with cannons a’firing, was also in battle formation. “Beautiful,” he whispered. But then the feline realized that they weren’t destroying each other… they were destroying something else.
A hiss slithered from his throat. The felines couldn’t withstand the onslaught of both the foxes and the wolves. Any sort of alliance, no matter how temporary, could evolve into something… more. And that might spell danger for his cats.
Calling up one of his attaches on his com, the Whisperer thought for a moment before commanding, “Send out a land team. If there is a fight, the felines must be there too.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Also send out my personal squadron.”
“Yes, sir.”
Then the Whisperer sat down and waited.
~~
Not long afterwards, the battalion of Landstrikers and his personal guard arrived. While the Landstrikers charged onward to the fight, where they would lend the assistance of their high-damage explosives (mostly Molotov cocktails) and sabotage expertise (sabotage against who, the Whisperer never exactly stated), his personal entourage made its way towards him.
“We’re here, sir, as you requested.”
“Good,” he purred. “We’re going to make sure that those two don’t form some sort of alliance and figure out where that portal came from, and what it’s doing.”
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Khai Thorne
Parliament
Head Sorceress[M:0]
Played by { o p a l }
Posts: 33
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Post by Khai Thorne on Dec 16, 2012 14:11:08 GMT -6
Khai Thorne was in good spirits.
The Erudite streaked through the air, the banners of her family, her college, the Commonwealth, and her personal coat of arms flying in full colors behind it. Her scarf whipped around her neck, as if happy to be in the breeze. The air was thinner up here, but that didn’t really bother her. A lifetime of flying had taken away the lightheaded effect.
She stood on the very prow of her ship, staring down at the plains below them. Khai wasn’t afraid of falling- her bronze tentacles had a few tricks to help with that. Behind her, the crew bustled about. Each member was one of her hand-picked prodigies, brilliant foxes whose work had impressed her. Most were extremely young- Khai’s life was one of adventure, and sometimes older foxes didn’t take to that so well. But she was well-loved by the new generation, who viewed her as the next Head Chancellor. She wasn’t too certain if she wanted to take up that mantle.
“Sister,” came her brother’s voice. Well, it was technically not his voice, as he was suspended in a coma as the central intelligence unit of the ship, but it was telepathy.
.
“Yes, brother?” she murmured. She could communicate telepathically, but didn’t feel like it right now.
“It has come to my attention that the Nexus is currently in battle formation.”
Khai raised an eyebrow, reaching one of her bioferrously fused tentacles around to adjust her monocle. Once it was properly situated over her left eye, she opened the binocular function. With a whir, it elongated to form a monocular. Glancing at the Nexus on the horizon, she realized it was in full battle regalia- pendants flying, cannons blazing.
“Well, let’s hurry then, shall we.”
Her brother complied. He loved to serve in any way possible- she couldn’t decide if it was joy at being the first sentient ship or thankfulness for his life, even as strange as it was now.
Returning to the task at hand, Khai glanced at the angles of the cannons, then traced their the trajectory of their projectiles down to the ground. A massive icy blue portal swirled in a mountain valley, spitting out creatures of ice.
“Arcane anomaly, looks like,” she muttered. “Get our communications up, please.”
“Of course.”
Khai strode down from her position on the very tip of the ship and trotted into the console booth, which was still at the helm. She shouted some instructions to her crew, then turned to her consoles as her brother began bringing up communication lines between the Nexus and her ship. Easily slipping past the security network, the fennec got ready to override the PA system that the Head Chancellor was currently using. As he finished his speech, she glanced down at the Bastion of Howls beneath them. Wolves and their tanks streamed out of its intimidating iron gates, howling battle cries. Meanwhile, a small platoon of feline Landstriders charged across the plains.
“Well, well, well,” she whispered. “Who arm wrestled them into all working together?”
“We will have to inquire about that to the Head Chancellor when we return to the Nexus.”
“Indeed.” She glanced up. They were nearing the capital city of the foxes, coming up from behind it, where few would be watching right now. “Hit the thrusters, brother.”
She sensed her brother’s mental grin as the Erudite accelerated above normal speeds for an airskiff. He’d made the modifications himself after becoming part of the ship. The fennec fox braced herself for the stiff gales, as it was a bit of a danger that she might get blown off.
The Head Sorceress pressed the final buttons to hack the PA system, clocked up her charm to level 11, and spoke into the microphone. “Miss me, Nexus?” Her voice was rich, filled with wry humor, and ever so slightly seductive. Khai knew that many a young male fox looked upon her with affection (and perhaps a little more), and on occasion she found it enjoyable to tease that demographic. Besides, her antics gave foxes something to talk about in their spare time, even if none of them were truly authentic.
Then the Erudite blazed past, and the cheers of the foxes reached her ears. “I, for one, certainly don’t mind showing off,” her brother’s voice rang in her mind.
“Ready?”
“Ready.”
The twin fennec foxes combined their Dark Air magic, and the clouds whirled above, lightning directed through careful control to the lightning rods on the deck of the Erudite. Khai levitated above the ship as her brother swung it around to beneath her, floating at the level of the top of the lightning rods and pointing her paws and tentacles down at the ice creatures below.
The Head Sorceress steeled herself for the incoming rush of energy. Her brother would do the directing, she simply had to become the conduit.
Easier said than done.
“Three…”
“Two…”
“One!”
At first only sparks came, jumping up to her tail as she raised her altitude so that she was about ten feet above the highest lightning rod- high enough so that stray sparks wouldn’t hit any crew members, but low enough so that she was still within the arcane shield provided by the ship, which her brother was directly supplying with more energy during this risky move.
Then the first bolt came, then another, collecting around her and making her fur slowly stand up as she contained the energy from rushing out while the last volts jumped to her. Then, inhaling deeply, she directed it all downward at the approaching ice army.
Khai yowled with the effort of not disintegrating, but the move had been correctly pulled off. She released her levitation spell, her brother catching her on a cushion of his own levitation spell and lowering her to the deck of the ship. Meanwhile, sparks leaped around in a beautiful dance of lightning- though perhaps not most deadly application, it was enough to intimidate any reasonable army into an organized withdrawal.
“Alright, no more of that,” she panted. “Someone get me some pain meds!”
The fennec knew that her flashy show would rally all three races, and that was the purpose of it. The foxes, wolves, and felines all had to work together to make sure this worked out alright. Each had their own strengths and weaknesses, but working together, they would overcome whatever this new threat was. The world was theirs- at least it was for now. But this new evil was challenging that, openly and powerfully. If the three couldn’t work together… well, Khai preferred not to dwell on that.
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Post by Hakima Thorne on Dec 16, 2012 17:59:23 GMT -6
Hakima couldn't help but be impressed by the way the Nexus adjusted itself into a more battle-worthy formation. She'd heard that it was capable of such movements, but the young fox had never before seen them with her own eyes. It seemed likely that events of note were going to take place today. And, in years to come, she would be able to look back and say that she'd witnessed this day. The thought filled her with some excitement.
As Vunnz's speech carried to them over the heads of the foxes below, Hakima toyed with her cufflinks and looked around. Although she had nothing against the Head Chancellor personally, she was a little cynical about these types of speeches, which she supposed would still be spoken if the Nexus were in flames and half the citizens running around on fire. To either side of Hakima, other members of the College who had assembled on the balcony shifted and muttered amongst themselves. A professor looked at her and smiled.
"It looks like we're going to have to postpone that tutorial."
"It seems that way," replied Hakima.
"And you can have an extension on your essay."
She grinned back at him. "Professor Flannigan, do you think it would be possible for me to write an article on this for my next report?"
"I expect everyone will be doing that."
"Oh. Okay."
Disappointed, Hakima turned and joined the throng of foxes who were slowly making their way back down the steps and into the main building. What was the point of everyone writing about the same topic? It was going to be an interesting day, to be sure; but one can only read about the same event so many times. Otherwise it gets boring, just like history class.
Hakima found her way back to her room, where her roommate was quickly gathering some things from her drawer. A look of excitement passed between them, before she swept out of the room and Hakima was left alone beside her bed, thinking.
The young corsac sat down, picked up her notebook, and examined her day's writings. By rights, she should finish this draft by evening so that she could begin the second copy the following day. Hakima wasn't going to delude herself- outside of this room, there wasn't much she could do to make herself useful. Better that she stay here and work on achieving respectable qualifications than run off and get in the way elsewhere. But curiousity got the better of her and, after maybe half an hour; Hakima gave a frustrated snort, put down her quill, and stood up.
She changed into a more appropriate black frock coat (the blue one was probably just a little too cheerful for the situation), and donned the least flamboyant hat she could find. Having done this, Hakima hurried to the door and stepped outside, making sure that it locked behind her.
The corridor was almost empty, save for one of the cleaners. He looked up as Hakima approached.
"Has curiousity got the better of you, miss Thorne?"
"I suppose so," she replied, as she passed. "But how could it not?"
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Amelie
Youngling
Image found via the internet
Posts: 19
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Post by Amelie on Dec 18, 2012 18:29:47 GMT -6
Procella- or Amelie, she reminded herself- had managed to avoid the crowds by slinking to the rearmost end of the city. It seemed the majority of foxes were caught up in these events, whatever they might be. For her part, she was alarmed by the sudden armament of the Nexus, but not enough to take up arms against whoever these attackers were. Apparently, they were coming through some sort of portal thing. That in itself was a curiousity, but the youngling wolf sternly told herself to stay where she was.
Amelie cast a quick smile at a passing fox, who nodded curtly in return. Apparently it wasn't only the shadier individuals who were avoiding the main center of the city. That was good news for her, she reflected; and allowed herself a moment to relax at this new-found knowledge.
Something caught her eye, and Amelie turned her head unhurriedly to find her gaze resting upon another of those posters. This one had become somewhat tatty, but the information was still mostly readable. As she scanned the requirements for the umpteenth time, Amelie found herself yet again going through possible approaches and deceits in her head. True, she had no real qualifications, but perhaps...and it was always good to have a little money, after all. She could only get away with stealing so much. It would be so perfect if she could become Khai's secretary or personal assistant, if only for a short time. Through Procella took issue with some of the Chancellor's actions Amelie, as she was constantly reminding herself, did not.
A movement overhead made her gasp and involuntarily duck, her hand rapping against the familiar weight of Stabbity where he rested against her leg. An airskiff shot overhead, the winds created by its passage buffeting her even from this distance and making her robe flap about her form. She thought, perhaps, that it was going to crash; and steeled herself for the inevitable explosion even as the ship hurtled past high above. But, instead, the airskiff veered away. Amelie relaxed again and blinked, squinting at the unfamiliar vessel.
Someone was levitating just above it. Amelie couldn't tell for certain who it was, but she had her suspicions. And, yes, there they were now- the infamous tentacles. It had to be Khai Thorne. What luck! Or, perhaps, a lack thereof. If they were in the air, how was Amelie supposed to approach? And that must be the Erudite...
Suddenly, bolts of lightning were coming in and collecting about the fox Chancellor's form. Amelie watched, transfixed by this display of power. What was Khai going to do? Was she going to electrocute somebody? Nearby, three other foxes had halted their activities to watch the display. Khai blinked, looked at the nearest one (whose coin-purse dangled so tantalisingly from his waist), and then saw him stiffen. Quick as a flash, she was looking up at the airskiff once more.
The figure hovering above its deck had disappeared now. Somewhere in the lower distance, lightning bolts flickered blindingly. Was that all? Quite unimpressed, Amelie turned away, pulling her robe more tightly about her form. Then an idea occurred to her, and her gaze flicked once more towards the Erudite.
Perhaps they were going to land! With a sudden yelp, Amelie cast a pretend look of fright at one of the nearby foxes. When he blinked, puzzled, and the other foxes looked from him to her in equal confusion; Amelie took off at a run. Skirting buildings (and a potential pickpocket lurking at the entrance to an alley), she made her way towards the more crowded areas of the Nexus. If the ship was going to land, she wanted to be there. Surly it had to refuel sometime, right? Especially if it was heading off to a conflict. Perhaps it was time to meet this Khai Thorne in person, and make her an offer.
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Averra Ren
Youngling
[M:150]
Bird Nerd (Played by AverraLikesRamen)
Posts: 41
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Post by Averra Ren on Dec 21, 2012 15:24:08 GMT -6
Averra inclined her head slightly, listening to the hummingbird that had alighted on her shoulders. Its chittering was welcome relief from the monotonous sounds of clicking mechanisms. Straightening her ears, the corsac cheerfully informed her companions, ''Well, it appears that the Nexus is in battle formation! Perfect timing, really. I was planning a little vacation there! Yes, I realize the irony of that, us being in the preferred vacation spot. No matter. Let's go.'' With that, she turned and rapidly packed away her scant belongings, indicating to her companions to do the same.
Averra flicked her ears, pleased. Her recent upgrades to the Hawk, as she liked to call her airskiff, had left the craft incredibly responsive to the lightest touch of her paws. Keeping her gaze on the ever-closer shape of the Nexus, the captain called to her companions, ''Let's pull up a bit behind the Erudite. We may be freelancers but I still remember the days when we lived among the snobs of the Nexus!'' Pawing at a few controls, Averra opened a line to the Erudite. ''Hail, Head Sorceress Thorne! This is Averra Ren, captain of the Hawk, former student of the College of Valliss. Might I inquire as to the current situation?"
Averra took the time to scan the scene below, which consisted of every army marching towards a large blue portal. ''Ugh, magic. I suck at that.'' The hummingbird, Swift, stayed at her shoulder, dipping her beak rapidly as hummingbirds do. The captain pulled her airskiff up a short distance below and behind the Erudite. Hopefully that position wouldn't aggravate the Sorceress. She had the height;Averra had been careful to be submissive in every move.
As she maneuvered the Hawk to stay in place in the turbulent winds, Averra considered the lines of icy things marching out of the portal. ''That doesn't look good. Fantine!'' she called, addressing her gray fox friend, who was the quartermaster. ''What's our status on weapons?'' Glancing up, the rather fluffy Fan poked at her console. ''Uh, not good. All we have are your claw extensions, some tail blades, and the wing blades you made for Swift and Deity. That being said, we do have our primary and secondary weapons arrays functioning.'' The latter bird, a peregrine falcon, was rummaging around a rack. Pulling off what looked like a pair of frames shaped like paws, he called in a reedy bird voice, ''Here's the claws! Strap em on, everyone.'' The hawk passed claws to Fan, glad that he had his own talons.
The captain of the Hawk left Swift at the helm, padding over to Deity for her claws. ''Thanks. Here, let's get your blades on.'' Snatching up a wing brace with blades attached, she slipped it onto her hawk friend, picking up a tiny version and taking it over to the hummingbird. ''Those wind buffers I installed seem to work!''she shouted. ''I'm barely feeling a breeze!'' Her words were promptly carried away by a heavy gust of wind. Cursing, Averra pulled up some streamlined shields of air, working the magic with quite some effort.
''I don't think I should try the wings in this wind,'' she murmered, half to herself. Glancing at the others and hoping they hadn't noticed the brief break in the wind buffers, she kept her eyes on the armies below, mentally calculating their numbers and comparing them to the icy figures. Careful to keep the Hawk clear of the sparks still jumping from Khai's airskiff, Averra flexed her now-reinforced claws, then left the helm again to find some tail blades. She didn't intend for her crew to go into battle, but with all the soldiers of the land gathered here on the plains, you never knew.
After slipping on her blades and checking on her companions, the freelancer backed up her wing anatomy files as an extra precaution, then checked on the status of her hail to the Erudite. The bar was at 45%. Cursing again, Av resisted the urge to slap at the console. The downside of fast hardware left a lot to be desired when it came to software transfer speeds, which included sending messages. Satisfying herself with a small flick at the screen, Averra transferred her gaze to the Nexus. She didn't regret changing her name and leaving her home of quite a few years, but a pang of nostalgia poked her as she watched the floating city. Mentally slapping away the feelings pricking her, the corsac watched the hail transfer bar impatiently.
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Khai Thorne
Parliament
Head Sorceress[M:0]
Played by { o p a l }
Posts: 33
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Post by Khai Thorne on Dec 21, 2012 23:37:25 GMT -6
Khai grinned at the swarming legions below, the Nexus's cannonfire hitting precisely where it was needed. Foxes never, ever, ever had friendly fire incidents. They were just too good.
Bleep. Bleep. Bleep. A light flashed at the screen. She was being hailed. The fennec quickly maneuvered through the menus with expert ease, muttering to herself about nuisances as she hacked into the signal and traced it back to its source. A few hundred meters behind them was another lean airskiff- freelance, from the fact that no banners hung from it. Thorne scoffed. Some freelancers could be so pretentious- couldn't they see that she was a little preoccupied?
Stuffing her personal com bud into her ear and hooking up the machine, the Head Sorceress bounded to the tip of the Erudite as her brother swung its backside around so that she faced the center of the battlefield.
Amidst static from the Sorceress's fierce winds, a message made itself clear. "Hail, Head Sorceress Thorne! This is Averra Ren, captain of the Hawk, former student of the College of Valliss. Might I inquire as to the current situation?"
Khai snickered, even though it was an entirely unfunny situation. Reaching over with a tentacle, she pressed the transmit button, and spoke into the receptor. "I don't mean to alarm you," she began, "but I think that we're having a bit of a skirmish here." The tentacle withdrew, and as the Erudite continued to swing around, Khai grinned and saluted the Hawk with one of her tentacles. Then the bronze apparatuses began to transform, the smooth rings of metal shifting around and her mental command. The scarf around her neck slowly unfurled itself as the mechanical wings nimbly worked their way around, and soon the fennec was standing there with a pair of bat-like wings flared above her back for balance, analyzing everything below her through her monocular.
"Brother, inform the Head Chancellor that I would suggest concentrating fire on the center of the line. The wolves seem to have a considerable presence there and we might be able to split them long enough to drop in a team of scientists."
The Sorceress ducked out of the way as a stray icicle flew a few feet above her head. "Those troublesome monsters," she muttered. Raising her voice to be heard over the wind, she called to her crew, "Where is that arcetic ionic arcanological transmuter when I need it? Don't tell me it broke down!"
No response.
She looked back at her crew. They were all conspiciously focused on their work. "It broke down," she sighed. "Brother-"
"Already on it." A small winged mechanical fox darted across the deck, scuttling up to a strange machine and beginning to re-sodder wires.
"Thorne. We need your expertise. I'm sending up a messenger vehicle with the copies of whatever diagrams we have."Vunnz's voice crackled through the personal com unit. He paused for a moment, and she could hear muffled sounds of communication, presumably with an aide."Damnit, Khai, would you stay in one spot long enough for them to launch!"
The Sorceress chuckled, using her paw this time to press the transmit button. "On it, Vunnz." She quickly dropped the paw and mentally prodded her brother. The ship stopped moving, jerking itself to a halt quickly enough to cause the Chancellor to take a tumble into the air- but she caught herself quickly with her wings and soared back up to level with the airskiff.
Viewing the battlefield, she once again pressed the transmit button, but this time to Averra. "Do you see that central area that the wolves are pressing? Fire your guns there. Make sure not to hit anyone on our side. We're going to try a divide and conquer." Vunnz's voice rang in her ear, telling her more of their plans, but Khai did not disclose them to the freelancer. She as not in the mood for placing trust in someone she did not know.
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Averra Ren
Youngling
[M:150]
Bird Nerd (Played by AverraLikesRamen)
Posts: 41
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Post by Averra Ren on Dec 22, 2012 0:35:58 GMT -6
Averra tipped her head, taking in all of Thorne's words, smirking slightly. Twisting her head around, the captain called to Deity, ''Get some armor and sight-enhancers and fly a quick recon! Try for a hundred feet above us. The enhancers should magnify everything 1400x.'' Her coffee colored eyes scanning the scene below, she added, ''Don't die! That would be very unfortunate, for you and us.'' Gauging the trajectory and accuracy of the icicles flying everywhere, she was pretty sure her falcon friend would be safe, but warnings hadn't killed anyone that she knew.
The captain watched Khai's wings unfold with admiration bordering on envy swirling on her. Then the corsac shook her head irritably. This was no time for fantasies about building wings. Besides, bioferrous fusing was way out of her league. Returning the sorceress's salute with her free paw, Av adjusted the Hawk so that it wouldn't be tossed around by the Erudite's movements, then turned to face her crew. ''Headsets, everyone! The wind is building and my buffers are getting battered!'' Slipping a mike and ear bud over her head, she passed a tiny version to the hummingbird and tossed a pair to Fantine.
Knocking an icicle out of the air with a gust of wind, Averra spat into her mike, ''Deity! What's your status?''
''Captain, it looks like the Erudite is concentrating fire on the central line covered by the wolves.''
Averra blinked against the wind, her pale eyes watering as she peered at a diagram Deity had sent her. The console screen had fogged up again. Cursing, she swabbed at it with her rather fluffy paws. ''Acknowledged. Recon at our level for five minutes, report, then fly back to the Hawk.'' Just then, Fan's voice broke through: ''Captain! We've sustained damage to our starboard wind buffers!'' Av poked her head out and examined the shields. Sure enough, shards of icicles were embedded in it, and some parts were torn. ''Gah, they were useless anyway. Swift, activate our titanium shields! The hull was battered, and it'll need patching.'' The hummingbird chittered rapidly, then stabbed at a button and went to reinforce the metal.
''How's our weapons array?'' the corsac managed to shout into her mike. Her gray fox friend pressed a few buttons on her console, then called back, ''Intact! Should I prime the missiles?'' Averra nodded then turned back to the helm, her eyes widening in brief alarm as the Erudite stopped short, barely missing the Hawk's wings. Quickly maneuvering her controls, she adjusted their position and wove a shield of air around her airskiff. It would hold off a few icicles, but the rest was up to her new titanium reinforced hulls.
Deity's reedy shriek sounded in her ear, ruffling the soft fur. ''Captain, the wave of ice monsters isn't stopping. Our forces are holding them off, but I don't know how long it will last considering the amount of creatures leaving the portal.'' Averra grunted briefly. She hated ice, but personal preferences about the temperature weren't going to get in the way of a battle. ''Return to the Hawk, Deity!'' The captain was being curt, she knew, but her friend was flying at a level where the icicles could reach. ''Now, if it please your Majesty!'' Her console beeped once as it registered the falcon's landing.
The screen beeped once more, but in a different tone. A hail. Slapping at her headset, she listened to the message, blocking out the wind with one paw. ''Do you see that central area that the wolves are pressing? Fire your guns there. Make sure not to hit anyone on our side. We're going to try a divide and conquer." The Head Sorceress's voice crackled through. ''Acknowledged! Lock missiles!'' Averra tapped her paws impatiently as the transfer bar slowly filled up. ''Fantine, lock primary weapons array on the center line pressed by the wolves! Program it to hit only the ice creatures! Secondary array, fire missiles every five seconds, make sure to bit the big ones!'' All this was barked out in a rush.
''Fire!''
The captain watched as the waves of ice-seeking bullets sailed towards the monsters. The incendiary powder inside should give them something to think about as they melted. Next, the missiles were launched, targeting the larger beasts. Dimly, the chatter of her companions filtered through Av's headset. Something about a little creature... A more urgent shriek from her console make her glance down sharply. Pulling up a diagram of the airskiff, it zoomed in to the area of the hull left of the primary weapons arrays. Something small and blue was crawling along the hull. Sighing, Averra assumed it was an icicle that had hit the airskiff and morphed into a monster. Bother. ''Captain! Ice creature on ship! Our guns can't reach it and the thing looks like it's going to damage our weapons!'' Fantine's voice finally broke through.
Snapping to attention, Averra took in the situation then snapped to Swift, ''Take an ice-seeking grenade! The water activated incendiary ones, then up our shields in the weapons array sector!'' The little bird dipped her beak rapidly, then slid into an anti-gravity harness and attached the aforementioned grenade. The corsac and her crew watched with bated breath as the tiny avian popped out of one of the ship exits. Closing her eyes, the captain swirled an air shield around her friend as she tossed the bomb and harness onto the ice monster. The hull had an extra sheet of titanium covering it, and Av watched as the creature disintegrated, screeching as it did. Her air shield carried Swift away from the small blast and into then safety of the Hawk.
Opening a line to the Erudite, she spat into her mike, ''Weapons fired. Central line split.'' Shaking out her fur, she directed a smile and sigh of relief to her crew. No one was hurt. Except the monsters that had dared to invade their home.
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Post by Hakima Thorne on Dec 22, 2012 1:18:40 GMT -6
Hakima sat atop the roof of the college with three of her friends, watching Khai Thorne's Erudite and an unknown ship maneuver above the battlefield. Someone had cleaned the roof during the holidays, and as a result her clothes would escape relatively undamaged. Thank goodness for that, because Hakima felt certain that there was no better place from which to watch the proceedings- at least; none aboard the Nexus. It would have been a shame if she'd had to settle for a less agreeable position.
Icicles and cannon fire rent the air, the latter pushing like a wave against the corsac's eardrums with each burst. She gripped a roof tile with excitement and watched as those ice creatures were blasted into shards under the force of the cannonballs. It might not have been Hakima's favourite place on Anathema, but there was no doubt that the Nexus was the place to be during an attack. It was practically indestructible, Hakima felt; and she was therefore more than content to stay and watch with pride as the great foxes kept back those ridiculous....things.
Below, a small fox darted around the edge of the building and slowed down as she entered the throng of foxes milling about the area.
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Amelie
Youngling
Image found via the internet
Posts: 19
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Post by Amelie on Dec 22, 2012 1:35:16 GMT -6
The youngling paused, her gaze wandering about as though she was searching for something in the skies above. Then her head jerked to face the edge of the Nexus, her body quickly following as she caught a glimpse of an airskiff in the sky a little way out.
Amelie moved as close as she was able, narrowing her eyes against the wind which buffeted her as the foxes' capital moved. The blasts from the cannons kept her on edge, her heart thudding despite her attempts to calm it. After a few moments she snorted, and made to move back towards the center. It wouldn't do her any good to remain so close to the conflict- the Erudite would land eventually, and she would be waiting with her persona and her story ready.
As she turned, her gaze met that of an older fox with almost pure white fur. She smiled at Amelie, and the smaller creature almost unconsciously returned the gesture.
"Are you looking for someone, my dear?" the Arctic inquired.
Oh, no. Please leave me alone.
"I'm not, but thanks for asking." Amelie said, doing her best to convey casual thankfulness.
"Have you lost something?"
Only my patience. "No, I'm fine. Thank you very much though."
The older fox smiled again, with what was probably false warmth. "Well, you just make sure you keep safe. Anything could happen today, and we don't want our younglings to get all distressed or frightened."
Oh, you condescending fleabag! "Thank you, miss."
As the white fox moved away, Amelie shifted her course and made for an opening at the far edge of the central plaza. After a few steps, she turned again. No, the Erudite was still just as inaccessible. How long was this going to take?
No. Procella couldn't afford to be impatient. Amelie shouldn't be like that, if she wanted to get out of the gutter for a few months.
A gust of wind blew in from above, causing Amelie's cloak to flare out around her. She shivered, drew it more tightly about herself, and hurried to her destination. It would be best to just wait it out.
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Post by Ren Avery on Dec 22, 2012 14:15:58 GMT -6
It was a fairly calm day.
The tides had been mute. The skies retained a tedious shade of grey, making little effort to disrupt the ecosystem. Land was quite visible, yet the Barracuda made no attempt to reach it. They simply hovered atop the dismal sea, awaiting an unexpected turn of events.
The Captain resided in his quarters, glancing over a long fulfilled treasure map. He snorted, sweeping the withered paper away. He paced to and fro, rummaging through shelves, cabinents, and drawers of completed quests and forgotten journeys. With a sigh of defeat, Ren emerged from his quarters and padded towards Arland Ruin, his 1st Mate.
"Honestly, Arland. I didn't realize we had done everything," he grumbled. There was always some denounced treasure that lingered beneath the untamed seas. Still, it seems that they had searched for (if not acquired) every hidden treasure known to feline-kind. "Inform the crew that we are heading to Motley. They usually have something to do."
Ren shuffled towards the captain's wheel, gripping the knobs and gazing out yonder. It was then that the Nexus, gliding many miles above the ground, caught his attention. Its presence meant nothing, but its distinct battle formation stimulated his interest. "Arland," he called, his gaze still fixed on the Nexus.
"I've changed my mind. We're heading to shore. I don't intend to miss such a show."
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In no time at all, the Barracuda was a comfortable distance from the Sanguine Plains. Of course, by now, Ren recognized the massive portal surging below the Nexus. A swarm of wolves tagged along, attacking the monstrosities gushing from the portal. He was reluctant to join, until he noticed the familar feline facade crossing the plains.
"Alright, crew," he bellowed, his voice ringing throughout the Barracuda. "Looks as if we're all being sucked into this brawl. Our cannons cannot reach the target, so we'll be forced to fight on foot." He spun around to face his crew. Their expressions were of no surprise to him. "Pull yourselves together! Or would you prefer to sit on your asses for the rest of the day?" His words seemed to spur their inner selves, for they soon began to scurry about the deck, hoarding any and weapons they could get their paws on.
"Just don't break my ship," he added with a kick of amusement. Ren cast his hat aside, but not before unvieling his concealed daggers and burrying them in his strap. He returned to his quarters, found his pistol (through much digging), and waited.
As soon as his crew had stuffed as many weapons in every crevasse that they could, Ren lowered the rowboats. They all pilled in, and they oared to land. Once they arrived, Ren faced his crew. He didn't have a doubt in his heart that they'd all be playing poker and inhaling rum by sundown. With a smirk crossing his face, Ren said, "I'll see you all at dinner."
With that, the Captain dashed across the wasteland, ready to impale anything that skimmed his fur.
((This is not Secret modifying this post because she is bored. Secret is just amazing so... yeah. Bye.))
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Post by Queen Secret on Dec 22, 2012 15:08:03 GMT -6
(Ermahgerd I'm not going to survive this RP.
Sorry for the interruption)
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Arland
Feline
First mate onboard the Barracuda.
Posts: 15
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Post by Arland on Dec 22, 2012 18:03:42 GMT -6
As Ren rushed on ahead, Arland found himself (much to his chagrin) having to encourage the more unreluctant members of the crew.
"Are you felines or foxes?" he growled, prodding an especially uncertain ocelot with the butt of his pistol.
The ocelot glared. "Don't do that."
"I'm sorry?"
"It's a massive glowing portal. I'm entitled to be reluctant."
The snow leopard glared at him. "As I said before; are you a feline or a fox? Now get moving, before my foot is entitled to do some unfortunate damage to your face."
Muttering something about an abuse of power, the ocelot quickened his pace to catch up with the main bulk of the crew. Having confirmed that the felines were now acceptably motivated, and after tossing a few extra threats their way for good measure, Arland grinned and flung himself wholeheartedly across the plain and towards the group of felines currently engaged in conflict. A Landstriker battalion, by the look of things; and larger than any he'd seen before. Things had to be pretty serious, especially since they were so near to the Bastion of Howls and yet weren't attempting to tear them to pieces.
He felt a twinge of unease, but quickly suppressed the sensation. Yes, these creatures were unusual- unnatural, even. But they could be killed just like any other creature, and so what had he to fear? Best to get rid of them before the problem got worse, and then maybe turn his sights on the Bastion of Howls. Or else that saucy looking lynx in at the back of the group of landstrikers- that could be fun.
He stopped suddenly, lifting one paw to draw his pistol whilst using the other forepaw to check that there was already gunpowder in the device. There was but, due to time and resource constraints, he only had nine bullets for the stupid weapon anyway. It wouldn't be long before he had to resort to the cutlass, which he wasn't even certain would have much of an impact on these creatures. Arland ground his teeth, took aim, and fired. An ice creature exploded in shards of pale blue crystals, which momentarily halted the advance of four of its companions.
Arland cheered, already fumbling to insert another bullet into the device. Next time, he wanted to try and take out two at once. That seemed more of a challenge, and therefore much more exciting than taking out icebeasts one by one.
Oh, and it would mean that he could take out more of them with the limited ammunition he had on him. Although this really wasn't at the top of his list of reasons, at least it would sound good if anyone happened to ask.
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Post by Peter Thorne on Dec 23, 2012 21:15:12 GMT -6
Peter's paw pads slid and skidded across the slick metal floors of the Erudite while it changed direction constantly. The red tool box made horrid clattering noises as it dangled from his clenched jaws. The Corsac fox ran on all fours as quickly as possible to the arcetic ionic arcanological transmitter, which had barley failed once again, and in it's time of need.
Still not quite used to the Erudite Peter waited too long before he put on the brakes as he approached the arcetic ionic arcanological transmitter, so instead of stopping in front of the machine he slammed right into it, making a loud booming clatter and an instant headache.
Shaking off the embarrassment he quickly got back to work. Peter threw open the doors of the machine and frantically scanned the wires, gears and other pieces that could have gone haywire. Seeing a partially corroded wire, Peter reached for it to inspect it closer, but the wire moved out of his reach. Puzzled Peter reached for it again, and again, but the wire kept moving out of his grip as if it had a life of its own. But then the third and final swipe of Peter's paw brought success. But much to Peter's surprise the wire in his hand began to squirm around violently, the usual hum of the machine changed to an ire murmur as if it was speaking to him release me. Confused beyond belief Peter could only stare into the depths of of the machine. He had to fix it, he had to get it working again, for Khai. But before he could even pull the rebellious wire closer for investigation, the wire unplugged itself from one side and whipped the unplugged end over and into Peter's arm, giving him a sharp electric shock.
Reeling back with all of his hair standing on end and a slight burnt smell emerging from his skin, Peter couldn't fathom what had just happened. His determination coupled with his new found frustration urged him to continue the fight with the machine. The corsac mechanic lunged forward and began unbolting a few spark plugs and gears with vengeance, trying to find the cause of the malfunction before it was too late. But then a tight grip encircled his chest and ripped him away from the machine, throwing him against the back wall. Peter looked up to see a long mechanical tentacle with claws on the end pulling away from him and melding back into the side of the machine. The machine's hum then murmured Leave me alone, I've got this, naive mechanic. Then to Peter's amazement the bolts and spark plugs which he had just unbolted floated on their own accord and screwed themselves back in place along with a few other wires and gears being switched around and moved about with invisible paws. Soon the lights flicked from the malfunctioning-red to the functioning-well-green and the hum of the machine whirled into proper action.
Feeling a little rejected and unneeded now Peter let out a sigh and pushed himself up off the floor and after smoothing out his static fur he headed to the higher floors to see if he could help in the fight. He also made a mental note to ask his cousin Khai about the haunted machinery later.
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