by Tarot on October 20th, 2009, 10:59 pm
Each tentacle seemed to be of little worth by itself; whatever the nature of such a Summoned creature, it obviously relied on quantity over quality. Trouble rarely visited alone, though, and the appendages had a way of swarming their targets from several angles. The Archwizard cast a quick glance at the hostile presence, but decided that his attention was best devoted to the task only he could complete. Besides, Ialari was seemingly trying to protect him. A surprising display of teamwork for someone who had displayed little sympathy for the idea until now.
Ripping a tentacle off was an easy enough task for the woman's muscular arms, and she tore apart quite a few of them, shedding some unpleasant green life fluid in the process. It got increasingly hard as the tentacles began wrapping around her wrists and arms, maybe not totally blind but able to sense movement to a degree. They could not tell the difference between wrists and necks, though, which played to Ialari's advantage... for the first twenty seconds. Then Lector Qiao lay his hands on the mass of tentacles trying to overwhelm her, and they began to rot upon his touch, making it possible for Ialari to free herself. There was a reason why he kept the whole world three steps away from him. "You are mildly surprising, muscle woman."
Meanwhile, Dranquay and Akuaysun were setting up their own plan. Mostly Dranquay. Floating as he materialized the absence of matter and opened a connection with the Void, the Akvatari could certainly use the Ethaefal's diversion tactics. A hoe flashed in the half-darkness, cutting off more of the tentacles. Some tried to wrap around the tool, but found it too thin to be interesting, and Akuaysun managed to pry it out of their grasp. Might want to consider a sword next time, though.
It all started from a tiny point in space, a hole in the fabric of reality. The world was hanging in the balance between Everything and Nothing, but sometimes the former - Ukalas - and the latter - Void - gained prominence in a local pocket of the universe. Dranquay nourished the nothing, making it grow steadily until it was a gaping wound in the universe. Cold and merciless... no, just nothing. A blackness that wasn't just black as in black paint... there were no words for real nothingness. And it wanted more.
The portal floated towards the door, consuming the first tentacles as it went. Akuaysun felt the cold pull for an instant, chilling his shoulder in passing. He could tell the abyss awaited on the other side. And extreme cold as well - as soon as the tip of a tentacle crossed the threshold, the rest of the stem would also go limp and change colors from the thermic shock. With the portal positioned in front of the door, the tentacled creature pulled away in a matter of seconds. Fear was tangible in the way the remaining appendages fled the doorway, only to disappear into the scroll from whence they came.
The portal ostensibly guarded the entrance from further attacks, though Dranquay would not be able to keep it alive much longer without strain. They were all in one piece, for the time being.
***
Javen soon disappeared from view... the golem had left him behind down the lonely corridors of the Citadel. The golem did not provide further answers, or react to the very correct statements that the gates were closed and the Supervisor inactive. It just rushed with graceful speed, turning corners without hesitation, though whether its choices were random or purposeful remained to be seen. Quite a few turns and twists later, its flight ground to a sudden halt, almost projecting Chaelnomyl's winged body away with sheer inertia. It still did not let go of her, though.
The place where the golem stopped seemed unremarkable at a first glance. Just the middle of yet another corridor - of course, the Akvatari could not begin to fathom where she even was. It would have been difficult to recognize these passages under normal circumstances, but in the darkness? A hopeless task without Drainira's assistance. However, as the golem began looking for something on the wall, it was clear it had a purpose of sorts. And it found exactly what it sought.
It was a small metal locker which, once opened, revealed a control panel - very similar to the one Zarik Mashaen was laboring on in the golem crafting room, though Chael could not have known that. There was some really sophisticated world magic at work here - levers and buttons connected with metallic wires and plugs and other interfaces. There was also a large glyph painted on the panel, and the golem placed its free hand right on it.
***
"Done," said Zarik Mashaen. He pulled the last level, and triggered power back into Drainira. The lights went back up.
But only for an instant. Then there was a foreboding glow on Mashaen's console, and darkness claimed the room once more.
***
A surge of energy filled the glyph and the golem jerked back, as if physically repelled. It was just an instant, the lights only lasted that long. Right then, it finally let go of Chaelnomyl's wrist as it staggered back, a thin spiral of smoke rising from the glyph.
The golem regained its footing, and did something strange. It started looking at its own hands in curiosity, clenching its fists ever so slowly and stretching them back open. Then, the golem smiled. It stepped forward and once again laid its right hand on the glyph. The lights returned, and this time they stuck. Drainira's familiar voice rang throughout the halls of Sahova.
"This is Supervisor Drainira speaking. Full system functionality has been restored. Many apologies for the downtime. Now, for a short service announcement..."
"I quit." The words resonated throughout the Citadel in the Supervisor's voice, but Chaelnomyl saw the golem play them on its lips in unison.
"Esteemed Sahovans, gentlemen from the mainland, we are at the culmination of a master plan that has been five centuries in the making. Five centuries of playing this hideously retarded personality, watching, manipulating and paving the way to get myself a real body. I gave myself a 79% probability of success, and I was correct. That is, more or less, the same probability of you gentlemen facing your demise on this fine day." Drainira casually glanced at Chaelnomyl and brushed her newfound raven hair aside. "You are the only one I need for the time being, Ms. Chaelnomyl."
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