Disarmed and De-Armed

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Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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Birds chirped in the distance. It was unclear how long Lorenzo had been lying there, but he had just now become aware of the noise. Wind tugged at his hair and clothes, and the smell of sea air reached his nostrils. He was outdoors. Yet, he could feel smoothly cut stone beneath him. Slowly, he opened his eyes, and let out a groan as the bright sunlight hit them. Taking a few minutes for his eyes to adjust, he pushed himself up. An act that was easier said than done. He still was not entirely used to doing things one-handed. Blinking feebly, he looked around. It seemed as though he were sitting on a porch, outside of a large house. Except, the roof of the house was falling in on itself, and the walls had long vines creeping up the sides. No one had lived here in years.

Lorenzo got to his feet, and stumbled a bit, trying to gather his bearings. Again, his recently lost arm proved to be more of a nuisance than he would have expected, as he was now imbalanced, and found himself stumbling over to one side in his light-headedness. He righted himself and gave a raspy cough. Where was he? Now that he was standing, he could see a tall lighthouse nearby, standing over the ruined home. And closer than that was a wide field of wildflowers. Which was odd, Lorenzo thought, you’d expect that the salt in the ocean air would prevent proper plant growth; it’s rare to see flowers flourish so near the ocean. But WHICH ocean? The broken down house in the middle of nowhere, with no other signs of civilization anywhere to be found, certainly wasn’t giving him any clues. There was no way around it, he had no idea where he was.

Worse still, he had no idea HOW he had gotten there. The last thing he remembered was… he scratched his head sheepishly. The last thing he remembered was being in a situation exactly like this one. He had fought alongside Crimson and M, and some automaton, beneath the city of Bevelle. At the end of the battle, he followed M and Crimson through a portal of some kind. When he awoke, he was in a forest somewhere. He remembered being lost and confused. He was in shock, at the time. The battle beneath Bevelle was when he had lost his arm, and in the days immediately following it, he could not seem to grasp the situation (he had also lost Miraculous, his spear, and weapon of choice, but that seemed to be of less importance). And… that was the last thing Lorenzo remembered. How had he gotten out of that forest? How had he gotten here? It felt as though a large chunk of memory was just wiped from his mind. He got the impression that some time had definitely passed, though. For one thing, his mind was clear.

No longer was he in shock about his injuries, which, if his memories were to be trusted, happened less than 24 hours previously. So, clearly time had passed, long enough for his mind to adjust to the injury, at least. But how much time? And why couldn’t he remember any of it? He closed his eyes. A blue haze greeted him in the darkness. Lorenzo had previously gained the ability to sense beings of high magical power whenever he closed his eyes; the problem was that he himself was one of those beings. So, whenever he closed his eyes, his own eyelids would seem to glow. He could still see other magical beings through the haze, but even so, this constant pale blue light was maddening at times. For one thing, it made it next to impossible to fall asleep at night, which certainly couldn’t be good for his mental health... But right now, in this moment, the light within his own eyes was actually comforting, more than anything else. It was a reminder that, even though he was both disarmed and de-armed, he still had power. He was not helpless… He would find a way out of here. If only he knew where “here” was.

OoC Note:

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Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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This place out in the middle of nowhere seemed to be for the moment Lorenzo's prison. Some infernal or divine force had placed him here out of sight and mind of all those in Gaia, yet this place had a twinge of destiny about it. The build of the ruined structure seemed to emanate an odd aura...almost as if it was calling to him. The scent of a sorceress to the bloodhound, thus far Lorenzo had began to uncover many things about his god some good....some bad.

Primarily odd was Hyne's connection to the Jenova entity, the part of his quest that had led him to seek out the scientist known as M who had seemingly once researched the sorceress phenomenon before moving his research onto the dark plague known as the Solomon's Blight. Yet that avenue had taken him nowhere....or had it? M was a particularly secretive person and if what Lorenzo witnessed at the battle for Zarnarkand [see Solomon's Key Revelations] then he was also rather influential, one of those individuals who could make people disappear.

Perhaps Lorenzo had gotten what he had sought....Perhaps he had encountered M following Bevelle and that very encounter had gone sour. Then again there was his missing arm to consider, though the injury was thankfully less debilitating for someone of his power than a normal human. At this point though it would probably be back to his quest regardless of where he was or how he got there. Between blinks Lorenzo would manage to see faint traces of the same time of aura that represented a Sorceress, it was weak though but there were two separate trials....identifying two sorceresses of varying power. As was said the trail was weak, which meant all there was to do now was investigate....the sorceresses were unlikely to be still around.

Event: Back on Track?
Lorenzo has awakened in a place he doesn't recognize, though has now conveniently stumbled across the trail of two sorceresses that may have been around this ruin. You may investigate for clues as to the identity of one of the Sorceresses (Edea) and find them in the forms of letters/photographs lying around the abandoned building.

Posts : 75

Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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Eyes still closed, Lorenzo moved his eyes. He was looking around. Why? He wasn’t quite sure. It was just as though something in him told him to. It was like that odd feeling, similar to the feeling of being watched, but not quite. It was more like a feeling that something was there that he was missing. Sure enough, as he turned his head away from the house itself, and down the stone-brick path, he saw foggy shapes, more vibrant than the usual blue haze of his eyelids, but far too faint to be an actual person. More like… residue, almost. Footsteps. At least, he thought they were footsteps. He followed them a few feet, and then, they ended in what appeared to be two long shapes, and two smaller spots. Lorenzo stopped and stood there, “looking” at the spot with his closed eyes. What was this? After about a full minute of silent contemplation, Lorenzo slowly lowered himself onto his hand and knees. Sure enough, his lower legs fell nearly perfectly into the longer shapes, and his hand fell just slightly off from one of the smaller spots, and he felt certain that if he still had his other hand, it would have also fallen into the other spot. Lorenzo’s body obviously wasn’t the same size as the Sorceress who had left these marks, so it didn’t line up perfectly, but it was close enough that Lorenzo was fairly certain what had happened. For some reason or another, a Sorceress fell to her knees here. And… that was it. The trail ended there. Did she die? But that would mean... Lorenzo turned over, so that he was in a sitting position, and opened his eyes. He sat and rummaged through his pack a bit, pulling out a book. Flipping through it, he skimmed passage after passage. Yes, there it was. A Sorceress cannot die unless she successfully passes on her powers to another. So, where was the second Sorceress, then?

Lorenzo closed his eyes once more, looking at the ground around him. Tucking the book under his stub of an arm, he crawled one-handed down the cracked brick path, his eyes scouring the ground as he inched along it. Yes, there! Another trail. This one was a lot fainter than the last one, which explained why he hadn’t seen it sooner. A less powerful Sorceress? But, unlike the last trail, this one continued up the path and (Lorenzo could only assume, as his eyes were still closed) into the house. He opened his eyes, slid the book back into his pack, and approached the house. The door was hanging off of its hinges, and as Lorenzo pushed it, it swung open with a loud creak. Inside was a room. A line of beds were against the left wall. They seemed to have old and moldy mattresses as a faint odor was coming from them, and termites seemed to have eaten away most of the end table that stood between the beds. On the far side of the room, directly across from Lorenzo, was a table, or desk. Just above the desk was a window, and next to that, a doorway out to the beach. There was another doorway along the wall to the right, which lacked a door, and seemed to lead to a room nearly identical to this one, lined with even more beds. Except that a good portion of the roof had caved in on that other bedroom, so that the far half of the room was covered in rubble. There was a third door (not counting the one he had come in from), in the far left corner, on the other side of the beds, but Lorenzo could not see through it from this angle. He took a few steps into the place, looking around cautiously. What sort of place would have so many twin beds lined up like this? He walked into the center of this room, and turned to face the entrance. He closed his eyes, thinking he’d just follow the trail to help him navigate the house.

This plan was immediately thrown out the window, however, when Lorenzo realized that the trail criss-crossed and zig-zagged, and spiraled all around him. The Sorceress clearly wasn’t just passing through; she lived here. And as such, her Sorceress residue was everywhere in this place. But, this actually was a good thing. Meant it was much more likely he would find clues as to where she went. Opening his eyes, he thought this room was as good a place as any to start his search. He felt as though draws would be the best place to begin, and so he approached the end table between the beds, roughly pulling open the drawer. Inside was a hodgepodge of garbage. Bottlecaps, a piggy bank that seemed to be empty, some triple triad trading cards that had their image faded off over the years, a button, and a piece of yellowing paper that seemed to have a crude crayon drawing on it of a couple of stick figures. Barely readable in the corner were the words “Sis and Me”. Nothing of value. Lorenzo continued down to the next drawer, and the one after that, only to find more random goodies. None of the items were of any interest, though it did give Lorenzo a clearer idea of what kind of place this used to be. These drawers seemed to belong to four little boys, all with starkly different personalities. And Lorenzo expected that if he went into the other bedroom, and searched the drawers there, he would find things belonging to little girls. This place had to be a boarding school… well, maybe not a boarding school. It was too small for that, no room to hold classes. An orphanage, then. It was the only explanation.

Lorenzo approached a table far end of the room, having searched everywhere else in this room. There was what appeared to be the remains of a chair piled beneath the table. Lorenzo tried to picture the place while it was still functioning; the children could go out and play, and the proprietor of this place could sit here comfortably, and keep an eye on the children through the window. The proprietor must have sat here a lot, as on the table was a picture frame. But the glass of the frame was cracked and cloudy, making it impossible to clearly see the picture within. Lorenzo gave an audible sigh; he already knew he was going to have a rough time with this. He placed the frame face-down on the table, and, holding it in place with the rest of his fingers, poked at the clasps of the frame with his index finger, attempting to open it. A task that would take literally four seconds for a fully capable person was next to impossible for someone with one arm. After about a minute of fumbling, Lorenzo hiked a leg up onto the table and stepped on the frame, holding it in place with his foot, allowing him to use all of his fingers, but even then it was slow going. Eventually, he got frustrated, and decided to take the easier way out. He threw the picture frame against the ground, and then picked out the broken glass so that he could see the picture beneath. It took a while, and he may have cut himself once or twice in the process, but it was certainly easier than doing it the conventional way.

The photograph was a black and white image of a young man and woman, their arms wrapped around each other. Clearly a couple. Lorenzo looked around at the ruined room, and couldn’t help but wonder, just when was this photo taken? Pulling the photo roughly out from the front of the frame, he flipped it over. “My Knight”. Followed by a heart. So, it was titled, but not dated? What kind of idiot doesn’t date their photographs? Frustrated, Lorenzo crumpled the photo up in his hand, and was about to toss it over his shoulder when he stopped himself. Wait a second. My knight? He had spent so long searching the place that he had almost forgotten what it was he was searching for. He pressed the photo down on the table, trying to smooth it out again one-handedly. He looked at the faces of the happy couple in the photo. Could this be what he was looking for? The Sorceress? And the Sorceress’ Knight? Perhaps… now, if only he could find something that told him who exactly these people were...

Admin Posts : 229

Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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Previous research would come back to Lorenzo as he stared upon the image of the man and woman. The Sorceress and her Knight, Lorenzo had learned the legend of the first sorceress, how the power drove her mad...and her husband..the first knight who had first protected her put her down when things had gone too far. The purpose of the knight, not to protect the sorceress....but to destroy her when her power inevitably took her sanity. In the world of Gaia there were limited numbers of sorceresses, and for Lorenzo who had knowledge of these individuals....well this photo wasn't that old. And yet this woman seemed to match no sorceress he had even seen before....

There was a second trail here of course, and if this indeed was the second sorceress of Gaia...it meant that the only other one could be the very sorceress that Lorenzo already knew about. The Sorceress Blue. Had she come to this place in search of others that shared her gift? Or was Blue simply looking to eliminate the competition? Regardless this meant that Lorenzo at least had a rough idea of where he would be able to go in order to kill two birds with one stone. Galbadia. First and foremost though he needed to find a way out of here, wherever HERE of course actually was. Luckily for him there was a disgarded map of Gaia nearby where he found the photo, a drawn circle with connecting points that seemed to represent both his current location, and nearby docking points.

It seemed that boats occasionally came to this section of Gaia on fishing trips...all he needed to do now was follow the map and find one of these fishermen...

Posts : 75

Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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Lorenzo stood in thought for a long moment. This woman, and this man, were both strangers to him. Originally, when Hyne originally hid his powers within the women of the world, there were thousands of Sorceresses. But, as the millennia wore on, there were fewer and fewer. But, a Sorceress could not be truly defeated, not to Lorenzo’s knowledge anyway. Whenever a Sorceress dies, her power is transferred to another young woman, and the power lives on. So, M’s conclusion that Hyne’s power works similarly to Jenova Cells, and that they are willing themselves to come back together, seemed almost obvious in light of these facts. The only explanation for the decline in Sorceresses was that dying Sorceresses were passing their powers on to still-living Sorceresses, rather than creating new Sorceresses. Today, there only existed two, to Lorenzo’s knowledge, though this image clearly shows the identity of a third. But wait… Lorenzo closed his eyes and turned, “looking” back the way he came. The brighter patch of energy on the ground could still be seen in the distance… if this photo was on a new Sorceress, one who Lorenzo did not know, then who was that?

He had already concluded, from exampling the patch of energy of this first trail, that the Sorceress who left it had fallen. Died. The second Sorceress, the one in the photo, was clearly the person who had inherited the first one’s power. Although, what he now knew of the Jenova theory suggested that this second woman was already a Sorceress before the first woman came along to give her powers. The shear amount of Sorceress Residue in this house seemed to support that idea. But the question still remained, who was this first Sorceress? Could this be yet another Sorceress that Lorenzo did not know about? Making four total Sorceresses in this world? It was certainly a possibility… but a farfetched one. No, more likely it was one of the Sorceresses Lorenzo already knew of. Either Adel, or Blue.

Now, Adel’s fate was a story that any Estharian citizen would know back to front, but was actually a pretty well-kept secret from the world at large. Seventeen years ago, Adel was ruler of Esthar. She was a cruel dictator who used the Estharian people to go on a war of conquest to take over the entire world, starting with the neighboring militaristic nation of Galbadia. It was sort of important world news at the time. At roughly the same time, she had also launched a crusade against her own citizens in an effort to find a young girl to inherit her Sorceress powers. Lorenzo’s sister was one of the girls kidnapped by Adel for this purpose, and his parents died trying to fight back. Needless to say, Lorenzo had a personal bone to pick with this particular Sorceress. She wasn’t always so evil, however. And, after reading the journal of the first Sorceress’ Knight, Lorenzo understood the burden that her power must have put on her sanity. Of course, that didn’t stop the people from rebelling against the heartless witch. The current president of Esthar, wise man that he is, led the rebellion, and eventually tricked Adel into stepping into a stasis field. Once she was frozen in her carbonite-like prison, she was launched into space, where she orbits to this very day, frozen and powerless. Fearing retaliation for Adel’s actions, the new president of Esthar closed its borders, and placed a powerful force field and hologram field around the entire country. To the rest of the world it would appear as though, not only did Adel vanish from the face of the world, but the entire country did as well. No one outside of Esthar knew what truly happened to Adel, and with a few obvious exceptions, no one has entered or exited the country ever since.

Meanwhile, Blue was a Sorceress who used her powers rather politically, oddly enough. She was appointed as ambassador between the highly militaristic country of Galbadia and the rest of the world. Adel might have gone on a war of conquest against Galbadia, but Galbadia had in-turn gone on a war of conquest against the rest of the world. It had taken over all of Timber and Dollet and every other nation that it shared a continent with, before the war settled down. The appointment of Blue to the role of ambassador was merely the first step in launching war with the other countries of the world. They started with Midgar. Outside of Esthar, Midgar was the most technologically advanced country, and by far the largest threat to Galbadia’s plans. It had seemed as though Galbadia had made a massive mistake, however, ad Midgar simply dominated them in every battle. That was, until the Sorceress Blue made her move, murdering the president of Galbadia, and taking on the role of fierce dictator herself, ruling the country with an iron fist. Or, more of an iron fist than it was already being ruled with, anyway. That marked a turn-around point for the Midgar-Galbadia war, and, though Galbadia’s forces were still no match for Midgar, they did manage a powerful defense, and were no longer losing battles. It was then, however, that Dollet, a country previously taken over by Galbadia, chose to fight for its independence. Blue responded by obliterating the entire country. The exact details of how she managed this are a mystery to Lorenzo, but he knew better than to underestimate a Sorceress. Galbadia and Midgar were now under a tentative peace agreement, though it was a well-known fact that both sides are simply biding their time. The world still lived in fear of Blue.

So, obviously, if Adel had escaped her orbiting prison, that would be pretty big news. And, if the ruler of Galbadia, Blue, had vanished from her home, and wound up dead here, that would also be pretty big news. But there was something that still bothered Lorenzo. He looked at the building around him, old and falling apart. No one had lived here for at least ten years. Probably closer to twenty. If that other Sorceress truly was either Adel or Blue, than Lorenzo had to ask himself…. Just how long was he asleep? Of course, his muscles hadn’t atrophied any… even his arm-stub was just as fit as it had always been. Which implied that mere days had passed since his injury. Not decades. There was something not quite right about this entire situation. There, on the table near where he found the photograph, was a map of Gaia. Weird… did the world always look like that? He must be imagining things; no matter how long he was asleep, or how many memories he was missing, there was no way the entire face of the planet could just change like that… right? As he stood there, staring at the map, a memory came back to him. Something that the demon general Belzera had said during the battle against the Solomon’s Key. That alternate worlds exist, and that the Key was a remnant from the old Gaia. Could this be a different Gaia all together? Lorenzo almost immediately dismissed that idea, however. Belzera was Blue’s Knight, and that made him the enemy. And Lorenzo didn’t exactly make a habit out of believing things his enemies tell him…

Still, the idea of an alternate reality made about as much sense as the idea that he had simply lost the last ten years’ worth of memories, and also somehow hadn’t seemed to age a day during that time. Either way, something was wrong, and he needed to get to civilization, to find out what. Somewhere where he could get news, and possibly internet, to confirm the state of the world. According to the map, he was about fifty miles south of the Centra Crater (not to be confused with the Northern Crater in Cetra). The Centra Crater was a segment of ocean that used to be the continent of Centra, before the last naturally occurring Lunar Cry destroyed it a few centuries ago. Now it was a sunken civilization, and the ruins acted a bit like a man-made coral reef, where sea life thrived. So, naturally, the place was now an excellent fishing spot. It was also a good hiding spot for refugee and pirate ships, because of the many tall rocks that jutted out of the crater, but Lorenzo mainly focused on the positive. He was also pretty sure a few docks had been built around there as well, to allow fishing and merchant vessels to trade goods with one another. If he went there, he might be able to flag down a ship to get him out of here. It sure beat walking into Esthar, anyway, which was the nearest actual civilization, and several hundred miles northeast. And, with all of the defenses around his home country, simply walking into Esthar wasn’t actually an option anyway. At least, not from here. So, the Centra Crater it was. He slid the map of Gaia and the photograph of the Sorceress and her Knight into his pack, and set off. North, across the green fields towards the rocky wasteland on the other side. As he began his journey, which he expected would take a few days, he began to miss his spear; it served as an excellent walking stick during long hikes. He’d have to get a replacement weapon sooner or later.

items obtained:

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Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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[Good Post Reward:]
+300EXP
+200gil

If this was a journey that had to be undertaken by any other person then it would likely be a suicide mission. A trek across a country that he didn't understand, to a place he wasn't sure existed....without any supplies. There was of course the threat of monsters...though for some reason whilst walking the eyes of creatures could be felt upon him....though they stayed away. Crippled as Lorenzo was...there still seemed to be an odd feeling of arcane danger around him, one that at least sufficiently held the small fry at bay.

Each silent day would be accompanied by an equally silent night, eventually Lorenzo would reach a place that would be mere hours from the location of the dock...but he had a choice to make. Right now he was in the shadow of a tower...or at least it looked somewhatlike a tower. If Lorenzo closed his eyes the there would be an aura of strong magic around the tower baiting him in. There seemed to be dark clouds closing in from the west...meaning that Lorenzo only really had the time for one journey. If he was going to go to the docks then he would have to go now before they left.

If he chose to go into the tower an eplore the mystery...then he would ned to spend the night in there to avoid the storm.....

[Choice Event:

Investigate the structure
Go to the docks

Posts : 75

Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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And so Lorenzo set off. Occasionally he’d check the map, but in general, it was a long, boring, quiet, hard walk. No equipment, no supplies, no weapon. Just the clothes on his pack, the few books and artifacts he had collected on his journey, and his own power. And his thoughts. Now, he couldn’t help but feel as though the current situation he was in had SOMETHING to do with The Blight. This sort of vague confusion was a feeling he often had when dealing with the secret organizations, the secret laboratories, the secret wars, and the secret monstrous mutation that had been slowly taking over the world… in secret. It was one of the most unusual feelings he had ever had. A combination of strange superiority and importance, at knowing things that the average citizen would never even dream of, but at the same time, a feeling of helplessness, at knowing next to nothing when compared to the actual members of these secretive groups. It was actually an exhilarating feeling, an acknowledgement of all of his power, research, and knowledge… and a reminder that it’s just the tip of the iceberg.

In fact, most of what he knew about the secret organizations, he had gathered from listening to the conversations of others in passing. Belzera telling the ratman about Tzigone and the Remnants, though aside from the name, Lorenzo knew nothing of this group. The Union of Gaia, similar to the Remnants and Tzigone, it was a group that Lorenzo knew very little about; it was just a name he had heard… Then there was M-Labs. He had the most information about this group. Belzera mentioned them in passing when they fought the Solomon’s Key, and shortly after, the group actually appeared, fighting alongside them against the Blight and claiming the mangled body of the Key. After that, he found himself in Midgar on another adventure, only to be waylaid by another Blight attack. There, Iblis spoke about M-Labs, briefly. Representatives from M-Labs also appeared in Bevelle when the Blight attacked there. He and Crimson, an M-Labs marksman, fought against a recreation of The Key. At one point during the battle, Lorenzo sacrificed his arm in a portal of power to have a wish granted; his wish, to have M himself appear to answer his questions. This wish backfired, apparently, or so it would seem, as M and Crimson vanished after the battle, and Lorenzo woke up here. Perhaps he did have all of his questions answered after all? It was completely believable that someone in M’s position would have the ability to take away memories. But, he’d get no answers by simply thinking about it. There was simply no evidence, one way or the other, to support that idea. He should focus on things he could figure out; such as where in blazes he was.

You see, by this point, he had reached an area roughly two hours journey from the northern shore, and the shadow of tall structure was cast down upon him. Dark thick clouds seemed to be moving in from the west. A storm was coming. Now, Lorenzo could definitely make it to the tower before the storm, as it was only a few thousand yards away. He could also probably make it to the shore before the storm. And, even if he couldn’t, there was nothing stopping him from simply continuing his march through the rain anyway. However, there was still a major concern that troubled him; who’s to say there’d even be a ship there when he got there? True, the Centra Crater was a common fishing spot, or at least it was when he left home, he wasn’t sure if that was still the case in this unknown world, be it the future, or an alternate reality. Either way, there was no guarantee that it was as popular in this world, or that it was fishing season. He could be sitting there for a few hours waiting to see a passing ship, or days, or weeks, or longer. And he still had no food or fresh water, or supplies of any kind. Perhaps heading towards a structure, no matter how ancient it looked, might be beneficial. The deciding factor hit him when the clouds parted momentarily to shine bright sunlight into his eyes, forcing him to close them. As his eyes closed, he saw a faint glow from the tower. There was something magical inside. And that was all Lorenzo needed to know. Veering off course, he now made a bee-line to the distant tower. Hopefully there was food inside, but even if there wasn’t, he was now certain that there was SOMETHING there that he could use…

Spoiler:

[/quote]

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Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
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The moment that Lorenzo stepped over the border of the ruins, he would hear a voice call out to him. "....I am Odin....". The voice clearly had little to hide, identifying itself as the powerful summoning creature of the same name. " To those who doth vanquish me....I shall grant my august powers...". A raven would fly overhead up to the top of the tower....that seemed to be the source of this towers magical aura. Lorenzo would then feel a terrible burning sensation on the back of his (remaining) hand, a mark had burned itself into the flesh....it was a.....timer. Now this was a new one, even as he sat staring at it the timer which had started its count at 20:00 was moving down to 19:59 and lower.

It would seem that the GF had granted him a time limit from which to climb the tower. Well....it couldn't be that hard could it?....well then again no summoning creature ever did just give up its powers with the snap of a finger. Except maybe the aeons, then again the summoners were pretty much signing themselves up for death with them so maybe it was an even trade.

Active Event: Odin's Test
Lorenzo has arrived at the Centra Ruins, once there he was contacted by the summoning Odin who will grant him his powers should he be able to climb the tower and defeat him. Odin has however placed a timer on this, and will test Lorenzo's intellect as well as power as proof of his worth. To do this he will face several challenges before being allowed to proceed, each one answer he provides to the challenge will represent 5 minutes on the clock ( This is only done to include the time it takes him to get from challenge to challenge). Once at the top of the tower he will face Odin in battle....

Challenge #1
Once arriving at the challenge (assuming of course Lorenzo didn't just turn around and leave deciding he didn't want Odin) Lorenzo will find in front of him 3 Totems on a table. There are runes in front of the totem that Lorenzo will be able to read with his eyes closed (apparently his magic vision translates magic text too). It states the following " When the end has come, who would you have fight with you against Odin?". By the looks of it Lorenzo would have to pick a totem, though it was seemingly a question of choice, there was a vague riddle to this, one that would require knowledge of the summoning and the correct choice of totem.

CHOOSE A TOTEM

A large fierce looking wolf
A snake eating its own tail
A jester eating an apple

[/quote]

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Current Event:Odin's Test
BGM:

As Lorenzo approached the structure, a voice reached his ears. “I am Odin… to those who doth vanquish me… I shall grant my august powers.” Numbers appeared on the back of his one hand as the words echoed away… And with that, Lorenzo knew exactly where he was. The Centra Ruins. Centra was once a vibrant continent with a vast civilization, the most advanced of its time, possibly of all time. It was they who built the Garden facilities, before they were re-purposed into the military academies they are now. The Centrans more or less ruled the world. This was hundreds upon hundreds of years ago, however, and now very little record of them remains. It’s hard to say if these rulers were benevolent or not. And ultimately, it doesn’t matter. Several hundred years ago, disaster struck, in the form of the Lunar Cry, destroying the civilization, and obliterating the majority of the continent. The crater, the ocean that Lorenzo was marching to, that was all that remained of the once great people. That crater… and this… a structure on the far outskirts of the main Centran population, just barely spared from the Lunar Cry’s destruction. Scholars are not quite sure what purpose this structure served, and all that is known about it is that the great summon Odin resides in the ruins. Shortly after the death of the Centran race, people from nearby Esthar came in and salvaged whatever technology remained of the people. It is because of this that Esthar is by far the most advanced country in the world today. Unfortunately, that meant little to nothing of worth was left in this ruin, aside from Odin himself. Even so, there were many who would kill for the powers of Odin.

And so, Lorenzo continued towards the structure. There was no door, not on the ground level, but there did seem to be a set of crumbling stone stairs that spiraled up around the outside of the building, implying an entrance along a higher wall. At the base of these stairs, however, was a podium of some kind. Three figures stood atop the podium, like dolls on display, and etched into the podium was a writing he could not read. He had no idea what this etching was even written in, let alone what it said, though if he had to guess, he’d say ancient Centran. Except that didn’t seem quite right… it was generally believed that Odin had moved into the ruins at some point after the last naturally occurring Lunar Cry. After the fall of the Centrans. Assuming this etching had something to do with him (and judging from the magical energy coming off of the thing, it certainly did), there was no way it could have been written in Centran. It made no difference, though. Either way, Lorenzo couldn’t read it… yet when he looked at it, he felt a tug at his mind, like a feeling of familiarity, not with the language itself, but with the aura it seemed to give off. It was written magically. Somehow. Closing his eyes to pinpoint this strange feeling, the meaning of the etching just came flowing into his mind. “When the end has come, who would you have fight with you against Odin.” Opening his eyes, he took a closer look at the figures on the pedestal. Two of them were animals, the third a man. A large wolf, a snake biting its own tail, and a jester eating an apple. This was an obvious riddle. A trick. But what was the right answer? Lorenzo thought for a moment about the figures. They must symbolize something…

Now, the apple is a common religious symbol, typically representing forbidden knowledge. Knowing this, however, did not help Lorenzo interpret the meaning of the figure at all, as he somehow doubted that the clown was meant to be religious. Perhaps it implied that this clown knew rare magic? It didn’t seem likely, though. The second figure, though, the snake devouring itself, was a symbol that Lorenzo not only recognized, but knew rather well. It was common in magical lore. It was a symbol for recreation. Rebirth and immortality. It was not a living creature, however, just a symbol. However, there was a summon that was commonly associated with this concept, and Lorenzo had even seen the symbol used to describe the summon itself. Phoenix. So that figure he understood exactly. And with this understanding came insight on the other two as well; they were meant to be other summons.

Or at least, that was the conclusion Lorenzo had made. Though, looking at them, he had no idea what they could possibly be. He had read extensively on all of the different summon creatures of the world as part of his magical research, but he simply couldn’t piece together the other two figures. Perhaps the large wolf could be Fenrir, the wind-wolf, but for some reason Lorenzo felt as though that would be far too literal a symbol; a wolf represented by a wolf. And he had absolutely no idea what the man eating the apple could be. As he stood there, the idea that this could be an alternate world crept into his mind once more. If it were a new Gaia, they could possibly have entirely different summon creatures, for all he knew. He didn’t have time to concern himself with that now, though. He closed his eyes and looked over the etching again. “When the end has come, who would you have fight with you against Odin”. Hold on a moment… perhaps he didn’t need to know what the other two meant. “When the end has come…”? Lorenzo had read about ALL the summons of the world, including Odin. Odin was notorious for his incredible power to kill virtually any opponent with a single strike. Meanwhile, Phoenix raised the dead. And with the phrase “when the end has come” in the riddle, the answer seemed to fall right into place for Lorenzo. He grabbed the figure of the snake and began to jog up the stairs, partially because of the time limit that now etched itself upon his hand, but also because the clouds were growing darker with each passing second and he really didn’t want to be outdoors when the rain began.

Spoiler:

Admin Posts : 229

Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
BGM:

Active Event: Odin's Test
Lorenzo has arrived at the Centra Ruins, once there he was contacted by the summoning Odin who will grant him his powers should he be able to climb the tower and defeat him. Odin has however placed a timer on this, and will test Lorenzo's intellect as well as power as proof of his worth. To do this he will face several challenges before being allowed to proceed, each one answer he provides to the challenge will represent 5 minutes on the clock ( This is only done to include the time it takes him to get from challenge to challenge). Once at the top of the tower he will face Odin in battle....

Challenge #2
The first challenge cleared Lorenzo now had a clear path to the second, the second would be reached after climbing some more stairs and crossing a bridge towards a second part of the tower. The room he would be met with would have three mirrors on the opposite wall. Runes were again inscribed above these mirrors. " Our bodies are but images, our souls are infinite". Another rune was inscribed upon each mirror. Infinite. The mirrors appeared as if they were able to be moved.....

[Solve the puzzle]

Posts : 75

Current Event:Odin's Test
BGM:

Up the stairs, Lorenzo went, snake totem in hand. Keeping close to the wall, he dashed up the stairs, four at a time, following the gently curve of the tower. After climbing about a hundred feet up, he reached a bridge. There were no railings, or pathway of any kind. In fact, if it weren’t for the stairs leading up directly to it, Lorenzo would have assumed it was merely a decorative archway. But, with the stairs behind him, and an open doorway waiting for him on the other side, it was safe to assume that this was indeed intended for people to cross. As carefully and as quickly as he could, he made his way across the passing, to the open door on the other side. Inside, he found himself in a round room, shaped a bit like a semicircle. The far wall was flat and facing him, the wall behind him, however, curved inwards. He was inside the tower, now, rather than walking along its outer wall. Along the flat wall in front of him stood three tall mirrors, and above them was an engraving. Closing his eyes again, knowing that this riddle likely worked similarly to the last one, he “looked” at the etching, and received the translation. “Our bodies are but images, but our souls are infinite…”

Well, assuming the “our” in this case meant the mirrors themselves, the answer to this riddle would be rather easy. By placing two mirrors, facing each other, you create what is called a mirror tunnel, where one mirror is reflected into the other mirror, and that mirror is reflected in the other, and back and forth endlessly. But wait… what about the third mirror? He reached to scratch his chin, forgetting that the snake totem was still in his hand. Looking down at it at the realization, he thought for a moment. The snake, wrapped around itself in a circle, so it could bite its own tail… Yes, a circle, that’d certainly do the trick. He would take the three mirrors, and point them all at each other, in a circle, or a triangle, so that each individual mirror would reflect the other two. If they were close enough together, it would have the same effects as a regular mirror tunnel would, reflecting endlessly.

So, as it turned out, the answer to this particular riddle was a real simple one, taking only a few seconds’ thought. However, what took a lot longer was arranging the mirrors into the proper positions, with only one hand. Slipping the snake totem into his pocket, he tugged and kicked at the mirrors, turning them with his hand, and pushing them with his foot. He had to be careful, as not to break them, but at the same time fast, as the timer on the back of his hand continued to tick down. But, with the answer so obvious to him, it was really a menial task, and it allowed his mind to wander. As he was pushing the last mirror into position, a thought came to him. Immortality was the answer to the first riddle, and the second riddle had to do with infinity… was there a pattern emerging here? With only two riddles completed, it was hard to be sure. Lorenzo was sure there’d be more challenges further ahead, though, and with his three-pointed mirror tunnel completed, he was ready to find out if his pattern was correct or not…

Admin Posts : 229

Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
BGM:

Active Event: Odin's Test
Lorenzo has arrived at the Centra Ruins, once there he was contacted by the summoning Odin who will grant him his powers should he be able to climb the tower and defeat him. Odin has however placed a timer on this, and will test Lorenzo's intellect as well as power as proof of his worth. To do this he will face several challenges before being allowed to proceed, each one answer he provides to the challenge will represent 5 minutes on the clock ( This is only done to include the time it takes him to get from challenge to challenge). Once at the top of the tower he will face Odin in battle....

Challenge #3
The counter at this point was getting closer and closer to the end mark. This was hopefully going to be the final puzzle for Lorenzo before he met with Odin in person. Thee was a portrait of the summoning in front of Lorenzo now, the majestic warrior god atop his six legged steed holding his powerful sword. The runes this time were painted on the picture. " Totem in hand you face me, but what weapon will claim you victory?". There were several rusted weapons lying around the room, this was another game of minds.....which weapon would be most effective against Odin?

The Sword
The Morning Star
The Spear
The axe

[Solve the puzzle]

Posts : 75

Current Event:Odin's Test
BGM:

Lorenzo walked on, through the deserted ruin. It was a very linear path, which raised some questions regarding ancient Centran architecture, but he didn’t really care. After several full minutes of walking down a doorless corridor, he eventually reached another room. This seemed to be like a grand foyer of some kind, judging from the shape of the room, and the fact that looking over the room was a large portrait of Odin himself. This just added to the oddities regarding the structure, however. Whoever heard of putting a foyer on the third floor? In the center of the room stood a low table, and on the table four objects, caked in rust. It took a moment for Lorenzo to even recognize the objects as weapons, they were so old and worn down. At the base of the portrait of Odin, there was another set of runes. Under any normal circumstances, Lorenzo would assume it was a caption; Odin’s name, the date the painting was made, maybe even the name of the artist, that sort of thing. But, after coming this far already, he knew better. This was yet another riddle. Knowing the drill by this time, he closed his eyes and mentally received the meaning of the runes. “Totem in hand you face me, but what weapon will bring you victory?”

He just had to pick and choose? He looked closer at the weapons. A sword, a spear, a mace or morning star, and an axe. Well, that certainly ruined his theory about each riddle having to do with infinity. Either way, if he were to take the question literally, he’d have to go with either the spear or the sword. He was trained and experienced with a spear, and he also felt like it was easier to direct his magic through a spear, than any other weapon… after all, a spear was essentially an extra-pointy staff. But, at the same time, there was simply no denying it; a spear was without a doubt, a two-handed weapon. The sword was the only weapon on the table that he felt he could utilize fully with his injury. But, he had no experience with a sword, and wasn’t confident that he’d be able to properly do battle with it. It really didn’t matter, however, as the question wasn’t meant to be taken literally. It was another riddle. And he seriously doubted the designer of this place took Lorenzo’s amputation into consideration when making up these riddles. Of course, there must be an answer somewhere. Lorenzo looked up at the painting.

Odin, in all of his glory, dark yellow-ish skin, a horned helm, atop a large six-legged horse, and with a massive curved blade held aloft. The legendary Zantetsuken looked as though it could reduce a brick wall to rubble with a single swing. Could that be a clue? Was he supposed to choose the sturdiest weapon, because anything less would be cut through like butter? But that didn’t make sense; a morning star and an axe were both considered to be rather difficult to break, and the riddle could only have one answer. Looking over the painting once more, he tried absorbing every detail. He felt as though this riddle had to do with specific battle strategies, which was not something Lorenzo knew much of. True, he was a rather accomplished witch hunter, but he was also somewhat specialized against witches, and was hardly what you’d call an expert warlord. Outside of smiting magical enemies and the occasional Blighted monster, he was just a regular guy. Staring blankly at the canvas, he thought that Odin, atop his horse, was a rather large figure indeed. Could that be the answer? He’d have to pick a weapon that would provide him the extra reach he needed to get to Odin atop his stallion? That would imply that the spear was the correct answer. But, what if the answer to the riddle WAS to be taken literally, and he would have to fight with a spear? Lorenzo tried to weigh the loss of effectiveness in using a two handed weapon single handedly versus the loss of effectiveness in using a weapon he was not at all accustomed to. He tried visualizing himself wielding the spear. He did know a handful of moves he could use one-handed, which was more than he could say about the morning star or axe. In imagining the weapon, his eyes fell on the back of his hand. That much time had passed already? He really didn’t have time to second guess himself, then. He grabbed the rusted spear, and ran onwards, a nagging feeling tugging at his mind as he was unsure he had made the right choice.

Admin Posts : 229

Current Event:Disarmed and De-Armed
BGM:

As the counter hit 0 Lorenzo would hear the call of a horse, he would reach the top of the tower just in time, seeing Odin appear before him astride the horse sword in hand. He would rush towards Lorenzo and he would feel the blade as it cut through him straight in two. Death was claiming Lorenzo....and then...the Totem began to light up. Wounds reversed themselves healing Lorenzo and staying death's hand. Odin would turn and make another round to attack Lorenzo once more only to find himself surrounded by three mirrors, from each mirror an identical Odin ran out and struck the original riding back into the mirrors before they shattered into glass around him.

Odin,weakened but not out would rush to Lorenzo again in a final attempt to end Hyne's Harbinger, but the spear, almost with a life of its own rose up in his hands and struck Odin in the chest. Odin would be felled, take off his horse and would disappear into hundreds of pyreflies that would begin to swarm around the tower. Once again, the voice of Odin filled the mind of Loenzo. " You have proved to me your strength of mind, now I shall grant thee my power". The pyreflies would converge on Lorenzo surrounding both him and the spear in his hands, filling him with the power of the summoning. A tingling feeling would begin in Lorenzo's severed limb as a metal gauntlet formed as a sort of phantom replacement. The same energy seemed to flow from the gauntlet to the spear, transforming the rusted Spear into a true weapon of power.

[Lorenzo Obtained:

Gungnir ( Level 3 Weapon, +200Atk, +100Mag)
Weapon Effect: Odin Summoning

Note:

So long as Lorenzo wields Gungnir he has a chance of summoning the dreaded summoning Odin. At the beginning of a battle Lorenzo will make a dice roll to determine whether or not Odin is summoned, if he is then it will cause instant death against the entire enemy party.

Posts : 75

Current Event:Odin's Test
BGM:

Up more stairs, spear in hand, covered in rust and falling apart. The timer was approaching zero with every step, and Lorenzo realized that even if he made it to his destination, he wouldn’t have time to face Odin in a battle. But, by the same token, he didn’t have time to flee the ruins either. He was beyond the point of no return, his only option was to keep pushing forward and hope for the best. As he reached the roof of the tower, he came face to face with Odin himself. Like most summons, he towered over Lorenzo, his yellow-ish skin gleaming in the dim light of the overcast sky as rain fell around them, the wind whipping at Lorenzo’s coat.

It was very ominous, a showdown in the middle of a storm. Lorenzo stood, staring down the massive man atop his massive horse, trying in vain to catch his breath, noticing from the corner of his eye that he had just seconds left. Odin, facing him, tensed up, and the very moment the timer hit zero, he pounced. Before Lorenzo could react, he felt the cold blade slide through him. It wasn’t painful. Like a razorblade, it was too sharp to cause any real pain, but unlike a razorblade, it left far more than a little nick. He could feel… well, he could feel the lack of feeling, as his spine was severed as though it were a thread. He could feel nothing at all, and his vision blurred, and he knew he was seconds from death.

He wasn’t afraid, however. The Great Hyne had saved him from death a number of times before, and Lorenzo also found that his own magical energies allowed him to prolong his life, even in the direst of circumstances. It wouldn’t have to come to that, however, as the totem in Lorenzo’s pocket began to glow at that moment. A light spread from within Lorenzo’s clothing, outward, until it encompassed his entire body. Sensation began to return to him, and by the time the light had faded, he was whole once more, and completely unharmed… that is to say, aside from the missing arm he had from the start. Odin was not finished with him, of course. And, as Lorenzo got to his feet once more, he saw Odin’s horse rearing up for a second charge. Lorenzo braced himself, knowing that the totem likely would not do any good this time around. As Odin charged, however, three mirrors rose from the roof beneath them, surrounding Odin. Lorenzo could not see what was going on within the mirrors, but he heard a series of tangs that sounded a lot like clashing blades. Then, the mirrors shattered, and Odin’s massive horse stepped forward, his rider still atop it. The two seemed to be rather beaten up now, however, as though severely injured by whatever had happened within the triple mirror-tunnel.

Lorenzo was slightly confused. Wasn’t Odin the one who devised the riddles? Surely he wouldn’t have created a riddle that would damage him in such a way… Lorenzo didn’t have time to contemplate it, however, as his mind was snapped back to reality when Odin made a third run at him. A bit late to react, however. Fortunately, the old, presumably useless, rusty spear seemed to act on its own, flying upward, yanking on Lorenzo’s arm in the process. As Odin approached, the spear rammed right into the giant’s chest. Now, the spear was too rusted and dull to pierce paper, let alone flesh, but much to Lorenzo’s surprise, the shaft was still sturdy enough not to snap under the stress as Odin and his horse galloped full-speed into it. The blow knocked Odin clean off the horse, and the force of the unexpected blow pushed Lorenzo back onto his rump as well. The horse, however, kept on galloping forward, right past Lorenzo, and towards the edge of the tower, where it leapt off, and exploded into a thousand pyreflies. Odin himself exploding at the exact same time. These pyreflies circled the tower a few times, and Odin’s voice once again reached Lorenzo’s mind. “You have proved to me your strength of mind, now I shall grant thee my power” Lorenzo, who was expecting a battle, was relieved to hear that it was over. That the riddles alone ensured his victory. What was an even more pleasant surprise, however, was what happened next. As the pyreflies converged on Lorenzo’s position, circling him a few times, before flying directly into him.

A bright light met his eyes, and when he could finally see again, he saw that the old rod he was carrying had transformed, becoming a gleaming, majestic, and indeed intimidating-looking spear. Far more impressive than the rusty old stick he had just a moment ago. What was more, however, was that his missing left arm was… well, he couldn’t say it was returned to him. It wasn’t. But it would seem that Odin saw fit to supply him with a prosthetic. It was a spiritual limb, or at least, that was the best way Lorenzo could describe it. A limb that was not truly there, an empty gauntlet reaching all the way past where his elbow would be, that he could move with the power of his mind, in the same way that he would move a real arm. Testing it out, he held the gauntlet in front of him, allowing the rain to fall onto it. Then, he pressed the hand to the hard wet rooftop. He felt nothing whatsoever. But, after doing a few finger exercises, he soon learned that this new arm was just as dexterous as his natural arm was, if not moreso. It would have looked odd to anyone else who happened to see some man standing in the rain tapping his each of his fingers to his thumb in succession while wearing this gothic metal gauntlet.

Deciding he had best get out of the rain, before the storm started in full force, he returned back down the stairs, walking along the linear path throughout the tower, all the way down until he reached the foyer with the large portrait of Odin. The chamber where he faced the third challenge. The other three rusted weapons remained laying on the table. It was probably just the large portrait, but for some reason or the other, this room felt like it was the coziest of all the rooms he had seen. It was also near the center of the tower, meaning it’d be relatively safe, if this storm turned out to be a hurricane. In short, this would be the best place to set up camp and wait out the storm. Pulling out a sleeping bag from his pack, and being eternally grateful that he no longer had to go through the process single-handedly, he set up a little sleeping pallet underneath a torch sconce. Though it was mid-afternoon, the dark clouds made it seem like it was late evening, and the run up the long flights of stairs had worn Lorenzo down. And, since he wasn’t really able to leave anyway, he felt like now would be a good time for a little nap… He would be setting off for the shore again, after the storm had passed.

[Thread End]

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