Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

[Tassadar]

Spoiler

Shikowares Stats: HP = 46, PP = 34, EP = 64

Shikoware had begun to think that coming to this place in particular had not been a very good idea. She stood on the edge of a thin rickety bridge that spanned across a fast-moving river, one that looked like it could barely hold her weight if she were to try and cross it. She had come to this town, "Artmirst," she believed it was called, on the word of a man she'd met at a tavern as she traveled this strange kingdom, attempting to learn its language and customs so as to refine the poetry she wrote about what she saw on her travels. The man that she had spoken to about this town had looking over her in a way that she hadn't liked one bit, but when she'd confronted him about it, he had apologized profusely, and after learning of why she was traveling Badaria, he had told her of a town where a great poet lived. He had given her directions from where she had been, and told her to look for the signs that read Artmirst. A small sign to the right of the poorly built bridge read just that, she was sure, despite the fact that the scrawled writing was slightly difficult to read.

What she could see of the town across the bridge seemed to be deserted, though it was starting to grow late in the day. Perhaps the people here retired early, or were at some kind of festival? It was certainly possible, Shikoware thought, especially because of the plumes of smoke that she could see in the distance.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

(I'm using asian naming conventions, so her personal name is Akatsuki for future referance, Tsuki for short. Also <> represents her speaking her native language, mainly for introspective or colourful moments)

Akatsuki glanced at the rickety bridge. <Couldn't they afford a little maintainence every now and then?> She sighed. <Still, it's getting dark, I'll need to find a place to rest.>

Putting the book she had been writing in back in her pack and making sure all of her belongings were secured to keep them from falling into the water, Akatsuki tested the bridge, preparing to cross it if it seemed like it would hold her weight.

<I do hope a festival is taking place, it would be an ideal place for some new works.> She thought back on the poems she had written en route to Artmirst. The environment had been much of the same for a good amount of the journey and the challenge of adapting her art to another language had produced fairly mediocre poems, the opposite of what she was hoping for. <A nice vibrant festival would be just thing thing.> She muttered to herself as she began to cross the sad bridge.

Quick running river
Lonely and abandoned,
A meal you won't get

Despite the hurried nature of it, the poem brought a smile to Tsuki's face. <Things are looking up.>

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 46, PP = 34, EP = 64

(Okay.)

The bridge rocked beneath her feet as she crossed it, but Tsuki kept her balance with ease despite the mild wind that blew over the river and sent the bridge swaying. When she reached the other side, no one came to challenge her, which marked her as odd considering that she hadn't yet managed to enter even villages less than a hundredth the size of Artmirst without being challenged by some militia or another. A paranoid and fearful country, this was, to the poets thoughts. It struck her as odd that, even if it were some kind of festival, that no one would be left to watch the roads into town. Or perhaps they had only left this lesser road unguarded?

Then, movement out of the corner of her eye caught Tsukis attention, and the poet turned to see what it might be. She finds herself looking directly at one of the Fey, a massive and powerful troll, a sight rarely seen even in the sacred groves of her homeland. Though, of all of the High Immortals she'd seen over the years, Akatsuki had never met any of them that were as haggard or bloody as the creature before her. Even towering several feet above her and built of solid heavy muscle, Tsuki could tell that the creature was in dire straights, as his chest was covered in cuts and burns. Bruises marked its face as well, and it stopped cold as it spotted her, apparently having not seen her as it went for the bridge she'd just crossed, though she couldn't imagine the rickety old thing behind her bearing the trolls weight. "What are you doing here, human? Are you another pillager, come to claw through the bones of your kin for trinkets until the demons find you and take you like all the rest?"

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Tsuki took an involuntairy step back when she noticed the troll, though a noble creature, its sheer size was still intimidating. She did however, refrain from drawing either of her blades. This creature obviously didn't have hostile intent, and she listened to what it said, though it was speaking a language she still hadn't grasped the full intricacies of.

"I do not meen you harm." She responded when the fey finished, in her best Badarian. "I am searching to learn from a poet that lives in town. Is the town being attacked?" The troll used a word that Tsuki was a little confused about. Demon could meen several things, even an insult, but he surely couldn't be referring to the <akuma>. Everyone knew it was impossible for them to enter our world.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 46, PP = 34, EP = 64

The trolls jaw dropped at Tsukis reply, though the creatures strange features were unreadable to her. It simply stares at her, dumbfounded, for a full minute, and the poet begins to think that perhaps she'd said something to insult the Fey, which meant she would likely be in for a fight, until it threw back its head and started laughing deeply. The troll very nearly collapsed, and leaned forward, placing a massive hand on her shoulder before she can stop it, as it doubles over from its mirth. Eventually, the troll straightens, and replies, to her surprise, in her own tongue; <There are no poets here, human. Never have been, as far as I know, but there are none now for certain. The akuma invade our plane once more, and the gate into their realm stands in the Northern section of this city. All that lived here before they came are either dead or taken as slaves. The only members of your own kind that remain are the scavengers that came after, and many of them have been taken by the demons as well.>

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Tsuki watched the troll, unsure of it's motives. As she was about to take a step back, the troll erupted into laughter. She could feel her face burning red, but as the troll began to address her in her own language, her embarrisment quickly faded.

When the troll finished explaining to Tsuki, she was quiet for some time, considering what to do. <So... the situation is pretty bad then.> She mused, half to herself, then looked up to the troll and addressed him fully. <My initial reason for coming here seems to have been in vain. Still, there may be some culture left worth preserving. And there may be some people still resisting the akuma. Even if it is as you say, I still have a journey to make. I can't turn back.> She looked at the troll's wounds. <I take it you've seen battle. Do you have any suggestions for evading the akuma?>

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 46, PP = 34, EP = 64

The troll shakes its massive, ugly head at her question, and replies; <The only way you're going to evade the akuma is by turning around and going back the way you came. Even then, you'd probably end up fighting some of the beasts or plants the demons have corrupted. If you must press on, avoid the deeper sections of town where the humans keep their machines. You'll know it by the many, large, square buildings.>

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

(Terribly sorry for the lack of posting. Had an extended period of blah. I'm not sure I'm still over it fully, but I am at least enough to return to posting.)

Tsuki looked towards the town as the troll spoke. <I'll do that. Thank you, I've taken precious time from you and I wish you luck on escaping these lands.> She turns towards the town but stopped to offer a poem before heading off.

<Strength of the ages
Hides the ancestral wisdom,
Always be it so.>

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 46, PP = 34, EP = 64

(Don't worry about it. I seem to have too little free time of late to give this game the attention it deserves.)

<Good luck, human. You're going to need. Perhaps I'll see you again, but perhaps we should both hope not. For, if I do, it will either be in the next life..... Or as I pull you from the hands of the akuma.> The troll replies, and then moves past her onto the bridge, heading for the woods. As she surveys the town around her, Tsuki believes that she may be in a part of the place that had once hosted festivals, as the area around her was mostly full of small stalls that looked like they could easily be taken apart. The idea was reinforced as several of them had collapsed, though she couldn't tell if it had been from natural occurrences of from combat that had taken place here. Rotting foodstuffs were in many of the stalls, the smell having not reached her yet thanks to the direction of the winds. The dirt path that made up the walkways of this part of the town ran straight South along the river, which might lead her to the main road of Badaria that she knew ran through this place and to the South of her, North-East, also along the river and where she knew the large structures that the Badarians used to construct and hold their wares were located, and directly East, which led toward the center of town.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Tsuki watched the retreating back of the troll until he stepped off the bridge before turning back to the way ahead of her. <It would be a bad idea to linger, taking the main road would likly be the fastest way through.> Deciding this, Tsuki started following the river south, though she loosened Barbarian in case it was needed.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 46, PP = 34, EP = 64, Grappled

Perception: Failure.
To-hit: Automatic Success.

Tsuki travels along the river unbothered, her more powerful weapon at the ready, for almost half an hour. As she travels, she notices that the quality of the buildings is starting to increase significantly. Where before there had been nothing but small rickety shacks and stalls made of wood, now some of the houses were sturdy enough to genuinely call them houses. It was as she was examining the most pleasant of the buildings that she'd seen so far, one built entirely of strange red stones with what looked like hardened gray sand in between them and having a second floor, that Tsuki was pushed to the ground. Before she could turn and drawn her weapon or attempt any kind of resistance, she felt clawed hands pulling at her wrists, trying to yank her hands back behind her. A creature was on top of, its gray skin just barely visible from where she was, on her knees with her face down in the dirt. She could still move, however, and so long as she could move, she could fight. As it grappled with her, it said something in a vile, sibilant, guttural language that she'd never heard before.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Tsuki admired the red colouration of the houses. Even though the buildings had few curved surfaces, the bright colours gave them a beauty of their own. <They look like leaves falling in the autumn.> Tsuki commented, contemplating a poem.

"Ghu!" Tsuki's concentration was disrupted rather rudely as something pushed her down. Tsuki pushed her poem to the back of her mind and focused on getting free. Bucking and twisting, Tsuki fought to get free of her assailant. She had some training in grapples, but her true skill in combat lay in her swordplay. Tsuki knew if she could just get free, she'd have the upper hand.

(Escape grapple)

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 41/46, PP = 34, EP = 64

Grapple: Tsuki wins.

Tsuki quickly manages to twist out of the demons grasp, the vile creature proving to be no stronger than she was. As she pushes herself to her feet, she spots two more of the gray-skinned manlike demons fanning out around her. Practically as one, they rush toward her, baring their claws.

To-Hit: Hit.
To-Hit: Miss.
To-Hit: Miss.
Damage: 7 + 10 - 12 = 5 damage. Armor at 37 TP.

Despite their combined attack, Tsuki only takes one hit, and it is mostly negated by her armor. What does get through leaves only a few shallow cuts on her abdomen and a few scrapes on her armor.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Tsuki rolled away from the creature and got to her feet, quickly moving into a high ready stance, her ancestral blade crossed in front of her body, tip towards the ground. Noting the other two demons, Tsuki allowed herself a smile. She had fought against four skilled warriors before and came out victorious, this should be fairly simple. A part in her mind reminded her that she was in her prime when she fought that battle, but she ignored it.

The high cross stance was a beginner's stance, but Akatsuki liked it for it's versatility, and against multiple foes it offered the best combination of defense, speed and freedom of attack. The one drawback of the stance was that it left her right side open, but whenever she took this stance, Tsuki always planned for it. Focusing on the other two demons, Tsuki knew she could afford to take the hit from the third one, trusting in her armor to keep her safe.

Blocking two of the creatures' attacks with one stroke of her weapon, the demons' synchronicity working against them, Tsuki spun into her attack as she felt the third's claws. Using the momentum from the blocking strike, Tsuki brought Barbarian up above her head and turned away from the one that struck her, stepping backwards and to its side. Her back momentarily to the creature, Tsuki smiled as she contemplated her attack. The technique was called the Falling Moon Strike, an attack that was an attack and an evade at the same time, it was considered a difficult technique to master, requiring precise footwork to shift one's balance correctly. Normally executed from a low stance as it requires one to build momentum, Tsuki used the force from blocking the two attacks to propel her into the spinning motion of the attack from a high stance.

Finishing the attack, Tsuki completed the spin, bringing the heavy blade arcing down at the demon's back. Without considering whether her attack had actually landed, Tsuki spun into a croutch, inverting the blade and kneeling beneith the sword, tip resting on the ground again, the blade forming an arc over her head.

(Whew, lots of flowery words to say she's making a defensive attack. -2 to attack for +4 to dodge, so that should be +40 attack and 43 defense. Also, am I correct in assuming that we don't update the characters to DG 2.0 yet? I noticed the Strong of... traits got a boost.)

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 34/46, PP = 34, EP = 64

(Yeah, no upgrades to 2.0 until later unless you really want to do it now. Keep the 1.0 sheet where I can see it though.)

To-hit: Miss.
To-hit: Miss.
To-hit: Hit.
Damage: 9 + 10 - 12 = 7 damage. Armor at 33 TP.

The first part of Tsukies plan proceeds perfectly, her sword technique keeping the first two demons at bay, and her body out of the reach of their claws. The other demon that flanked her managed to do a little damage to her as its claws sunk in past her armor, leaving long tears in it, but it held together, and the pain wasn't anything she couldn't tune out. The demon was clearly unprepared for her to suddenly wind up behind him, his back exposed, while he was between her and his two companions.

To-hit: Hit.
Damage: 12 + 16 = 28 damage.

Tsukies blade arced downward and sliced into the demons collar before he could turn around. In a panic, he threw himself forward, avoiding a lethal strike, but her blade still found its mark, and sent the demon tumbling forward with the force of her attack. The other two demons advanced cautiously toward the now crouching warrior, having seen what she was capable of, as they walked around their injured ally who was just starting to regain his senses, much less his feet.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

As the two other demons approached slowly, Tsuki clicked her tongue in annoyance, she had expected them to charge in mindlessly, a tactic her current stance was prepared for. Even to a trained eye, Tsuki's weight was resting on her outstretched leg which would provide leverage for an attack, the real use for most crouch stances. If one wanted to stay away from an opponent's attacks, staying mobile is important so crouching generally produces a bad defensive position, but being able to spring out of the crouch provides extra momentum, making them good stances to attack from.

Tsuki, however, was resting her weight on her back foot, carefully tensing her muscles to make the opposite appear true. With her weight on her rear leg, Tsuki changed the stance into a trap. If an opponent attacked her, expecting her to move forward with an attack, she could pivot away and bring a powerful counterattack to bear. The demons wern't taking the bait however, so Tsuki had to change her plan.

Seeing the demon she had struck getting to its feet, Tsuki decided to finish it off. Her blow had been nearly perfect, so the fact that the demon was still strugling ment that she couldn't dispatch these creatures in single strikes. Tsuki relaxed her supporting leg, falling into a roll that brought her up near the wounded demon. She brought Barbarian up as she stood in an upward strike to the demon, hoping to finish it off, and pulled into a middle stance, her sword held parallel to the ground.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 34/46, PP = 34, EP = 64

The two demons remain just out of reach, apparently waiting for their companion to enter the fray once more before attacking her, and Tsuki knew she must take the fight to them if she didn't want to get overrun.

To-Hit: Hit.
Damage: 10 + 16 = 26 damage.

Tsukies roll into their midst sends the other two demons rushing away, trying to avoid an attack from the agile warrior. Barbarian comes down on the struggling demon just as he was trying to rise, cleaving his head in half, causing him to fall limply to the ground, and proving that the demons can, in fact, be killed. The two demons attack, one from each direction just as she is yanking her blade free from the demons skull.

To-hit: Miss.
To-hit: Miss.

Tsuki easily steps away from the akumas attack, and the demons both stumble and roll, just barely missing one another, and leaving both of them with their backs to her, a few feet to either side and slightly ahead of her.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

(A shame I can only attack one of them... Also, current creativity level = blarg)

Tsuki jabbed lightly at one of the demons before slashing at it with the tip of her sword, using the momentum of the slash to hop to the side, keeping the demon she wasn't attacking on the other side of her target.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Spoiler

Akatsukies Stats: HP = 34/46, PP = 34, EP = 64, Grappled

(I completely understand that. It's hard to keep making good posts when it's essentially just: attack, dodge, attack, ect.)

To-Hit: Hit.
Damage: 9 + 16 = 25 damage.

A swing of Barbarian tears through the flesh of one of her demonic foes, and it recoils away from her, intent on avoiding further strikes. Meanwhile, the other one rushes toward her, attempting to tackle her to the ground.

To-hit: Hit.

The demon bowls her over before she can take a swing at it with her blade, and Tsuki ends up flat on her back, the demon on top of her with its body between her legs, her arms out to the side. In this position, her weapons would be useless, so she'd have to try and push the demon off of her, or perhaps try her powers against it, though that might attract more enemies.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Wrong Place for Poets (maikochan)

Tsuki brought her sword up as the other demon began to lunge at her, but was unable to bring it down quickly enough. With an "Oof," Tsuki landed on her back. Feeling the demon's clawed arms still around her legs, she kicked out, trying to dislodge her foe.

(escape grapple)