Sorcery! Quest

[Jiven]

I guess there isn't much hesitation...

 

[Vindictus]

I guess there isn't much hesitation...

Click to shrink...

[/is sad his write in gets no love]

Fire has it's time and place, but this guy is going to EXPECT threats of fire and burning.

He will not expect agressive awkwardness, and this will leave him off guard- Which, I'll note, lets us use fire BETTER should we deem it necessary.

 

[nick012000]

[X] Cry like a little girl and tell the strange man your story.
-->[X] "I, I just wanted to have friends! It's not my fault I'm genetically predisposed to being evil!"

 

[ward201]

Sure why not changing to

Proposal: BIG OLD CROCODILE TEARS

 

[Jack Trade]

[X] "Where is Purple? If you have hurt her I will force feed you your own flaming testicles."

 

[iamnuff]

[X]"Who are you? Where am I?"

asking about purple is good, making threats is bad.



also, magic circle?

since when could batman do that?


I guess our little "throw fire at him" trick had him call in Dr strange or something? hence the translation spell? unless he's just straight up speaking infernal or something.

(do we speak anything other than "common"?)

actually, how would batman know that we aren't just a meta? we look human, right?


I don't really see batman jumping to the "its magic" conclusion that quickly.


unless he was following us for a lot longer than we thought.

 

[Disminded]

also, magic circle?

since when could batman do that?

Click to shrink...

Who says it's Batman?

(do we speak anything other than "common"?)

Click to shrink...

You speak Infernal and Abyssal, which are really just dialects of the same language. Call it Hellspeak for simplicity's sake. All Evil outsiders can speak it as it's woven into their very natures.

actually, how would batman know that we aren't just a meta? we look human, right?


I don't really see batman jumping to the "its magic" conclusion that quickly.


unless he was following us for a lot longer than we thought.

Click to shrink...

It's almost like he's encountered magic before and has learned to recognize it. Weird.

 

[Pipeman]

[X]"Who are you? Where am I?"

 

[iamnuff]

Who says it's Batman?

You speak Infernal and Abyssal, which are really just dialects of the same language. Call it Hellspeak for simplicity's sake. All Evil outsiders can speak it as it's woven into their very natures.

It's almost like he's encountered magic before and has learned to recognize it. Weird.

Click to shrink...

like i said, it might be strange, or some other magic user.

also, thats why i was wondering what we speak, I assume strange would spill infernal, simply because why the fuck not? in this context, "common" might actually be the lesser known tongue.


also, all he saw us do was throw fire, considering the world batman lives in, and the parts of that world that he interacts with, his first thought is going to be "pyrokinetic meta-human" not "demon wizard"

magic is actually pretty rare in DC, compared to mutant/mutate/aliens, at any rate.

 

[Silversun17]

Bats might have taken us to the watch tower for containment and one of the magic users noticed our aura.

 

[Pipeman]

like i said, it might be strange, or some other magic user.

also, thats why i was wondering what we speak, I assume strange would spill infernal, simply because why the fuck not? in this context, "common" might actually be the lesser known tongue.


also, all he saw us do was throw fire, considering the world batman lives in, and the parts of that world that he interacts with, his first thought is going to be "pyrokinetic meta-human" not "demon wizard"

magic is actually pretty rare in DC, compared to mutant/mutate/aliens, at any rate.

Click to shrink...

...
That's not Strange, it's Jason Blood.
I mean, I didn't recognize him myself, because I only have very cursory knowledge of DC, but doing a google image search really shouldn't be that hard.

Aside from that, considering that Batman is the goddamn Batman and we are literally emitting an aura of evil, it's not that hard for him to either recognize that we are demonic or at least drag us off to an expert if he doesn't.

 

[Disminded]

First thing's first.​

"Where is Purple?" you demand in infernal. "If you have hurt her I will force feed you your own flaming testicles."

Well, that's a loose translation. It's amazing how good infernal is at describing suffering, and your threat of castration also carries hints of the smell of burned flesh, the despair he will feel knowing he will never have children, and the possibility that he will choke on his own flaming manhood as well as your solemn oath that you will save him from this fate, if only so he can live and suffer.

Infernal's nifty like that.

Despite your magnificent threat he seems amused and… faintly approving.

"Ah, I suspect you refer to Ms. Brown," he says, chuckling.

Brown? What the fuck? Why would they call Purple brown? It just didn't make sense. You push aside the inane thought and concentrate on something important. "What have you done with her?" you say, lacing your voice with venom and the threat of slow dismemberment.

"She's received medical treatment (literally: "healed so that she may suffer more"). I believe she's managed to talk her way into a sidekick (literally: "favored warrior thrall") position with a local heroine. I'll inform her you've asked about her. It is admirable (literally: "reminiscent of the great enemy") that you are concerned for her; however, you should be more concerned with your own welfare."

You regard him blankly. "Are you threatening me?" you ask after a moment, reaching for your hellfire.

"No," he said, as calm as ever. "Merely stating facts. You are quite obviously hellspawn. In the last 24-hours you have managed to kill five people, commit grand-theft auto (literally: "steal the iron chariot of your betters") and assault two police officers (literally: "those who enforce the lord's rule"). If you aren't careful, you could be sent to prison for this."

You ponder protesting the unfairness of that, how the clowns you killed were obviously evil, how Purple had stolen the chariot, not you, how you had no way of knowing the officers were watchmen. You don't. Life isn't fair. You've known that all along. "What are my options?" you ask.

"Prison," the man says bluntly. "I'd bind your powers and then you'd be shipped off to Arkham."

He pauses there, as if waiting for a reaction. You stare back at him, expressionless.

"You could agree to attend a school of magi to learn responsibility in controlling your powers. The Sorcerer's Academy at Atlantis, the Temple of Hecate on Themyscira and the White School would be excellent choices."

"Or, you could follow your friend's (literally: "One who is neither victim nor tormentor") lead and become a sidekick to an established league affiliated hero."

"Like you?" you say with a derisive snort.

"Like me," he nods. "There are others, of course. Kent Nelson is an accomplished sorcerer and current host to a Lord of Order. Zatara, the magician, is also quite accomplished and an expert at blending in with the mundane world. He also has a daughter about your age, I believe.

"Finally, you could join a subordinate superhero team the League is forming with some of their wards. The league would be able to keep an eye on you while you'd be allowed some freedom and the chance to interact with your peers."

"Those are your options. I'll give you some time to think about it."

With that he walks out, leaving you in a bare stone cell to contemplate your thoughts.

Decision?
[X] Prison. All the choices are prisons of a sort. Might as well take the honest one.

[X] Back to School.
- [X] Socerer's Academy at Atlantis
- [X] Temple of Hecate at Themyscira
- [X] the White School

[X] Become a Hero's Apprentice
- [X] Jason Blood. At least you know you can talk to him.
- [X] Kent Nelson. You're not sure what a Lord of Order is, but it sounds powerful.
- [X] Zatara. He can help you blend in. Plus, daughter = new friend!

[X] Join the team. New friends everywhere!

[X] You want to stay near Purple!

[X] Fuck this. You're out of here.
- Blast the circle with spells.
- Just walk out.

[X] Write-in.

Note: You actually earned some good will with the threat. Shows some loyalty and that you're not the average hellspawn.

Sorry this is late. RL, y'know?

 

[Pipeman]

I think I'll wait for people with actual in depth knowledge of the setting to comment on the different options.
Even aside from the fact that whatever information I might be able to scratch up on my own is likely going to be rather spotty, I don't really have the necessary enthusiasm to go on a wiki walk for this right now.

 

[Jiven]

No worry, thanks for the update!

I am unsure. This:
[X] Join the team. New friends everywhere!
or this:
[X] You want to stay near Purple!

 

[Silversun17]

[x] "I'll take the team being formed. also for your information I've already graduated from a magical academy, just not one from this world."
[x] "what are we going to do about language? I dislike using infernal for day to day communication. Also can i visit purple first?"

I think I'll wait for people with actual in depth knowledge of the setting to comment on the different options.
Even aside from the fact that whatever information I might be able to scratch up on my own is likely going to be rather spotty, I don't really have the necessary enthusiasm to go on a wiki walk for this right now.

Click to shrink...

the team is likely Young Justice.

 

[ShadowAngelBeta]

[X] SilverSun

DC is a good place to both learn how to control our powers, because we need to be non-lethal with them, and a good palce to come into them in general, because of just how f-ing powerful some things are here.

Also we need to learn more spells.

 

[Liam-don]

I was very tempted to vote for Themyscira so we could troll Amazons and then I remembered that we've just had our head explode after a fairly innocuous choice.
Also, we've just left a magic academy. Might as well try something else.

 

[Disminded]

I was very tempted to vote for Themyscira so we could troll Amazons and then I remembered that we've just had our head explode after a fairly innocuous choice.
Also, we've just left a magic academy. Might as well try something else.

Click to shrink...

A demonspawn setting foot on an island blessed by three goddesses which also happens to be situated over the gates of hell? What's the worst that could happen?

 

[Moronis]

[X] Join the team. New friends everywhere!
-[X] Ask if it's possible to maybe get a teacher in whatever language is spoken here. Can't keep screaming in the tongues of horrific nightmare beings all about the torture and maiming forever after all.

 

[iamnuff]

[X] You want to stay near Purple!


we just made a new friend, (yay! bonds of blood) lets not ditch her just yet.


especially considering she's the only person we know in this world, and she owes us big, so we might be able to trust her, if only a little.


also, what a cunt.
so, stranger who knows nothing of the world shows up, rescues a hero (sidekick) from a ambush, provides life saving medical care (slapping her awake totally counts!) and defends herself (mildly dazes) from two armed strangers (we had no way of knowing they were cops.) and somehow we could go to prison for that?


considering how much collateral damage hero-battles must cause, that they never have to answer for, and how much other stuff gets overlooked if you are a dimensional traveller who knows nothing of earth, frankly, I suspect the only reason we got read the riot act is because we are half demon.

seriously, even starfire did more damage than us when she landed.

naturally we have no way of knowing that they are usually so lenient, and it would probably be better for us to take the deal anyway, but wow.


also, A: Arkham isn't a prison, it a mental institution, and B: Blackgate (the actual prison) is almost as bad as arkham, locking a young girl in there without any magic to defend herself is fucking monstrous, even if we do have demonic constitution.

we would probably have a 50/50 chance of having to kill someone just to survive within the first fucking day.

whether Jason is bluffing about that, or he's a huge fucking cunt, and can apparently completely ignore things like our need for a "fair trial" or (more likely) "not actually a citizen, or even fucking human for that matter"

so yeah, either, a bluff, or Jason Blood is a huge racist.

 

[Disminded]

also, A: Arkham isn't a prison, it a mental institution, and B: Blackgate (the actual prison) is almost as bad as arkham, locking a young girl in there without any magic to defend herself is fucking monstrous, even if we do have demonic constitution.

we would probably have a 50/50 chance of having to kill someone just to survive within the first fucking day.

whether Jason is bluffing about that, or he's a huge fucking cunt, and can apparently completely ignore things like our need for a "fair trial" or (more likely) "not actually a citizen, or even fucking human for that matter"

so yeah, either, a bluff, or Jason Blood is a huge racist.

Click to shrink...

Ah, my bad on the Arkham thing.

As for Jason... oddly enough, he's one of the few people who can utterly ignore your aura. That said, he's not overly fond of demons, for obvious reasons... Whether he's bluffing about imprisonment... *Shrugs*

If you were his apprentice he'd probably warm up to you in time. Or kill you. One of those.

Updating.

 

[Disminded]

Go Team​

When your jailor comes back in, you have an answer for him.

"I'll join the team," you mumble in infernal, spearing him with a smoldering glare that bounces off his calm mien. It's not that you truly objected to joining a team. You didn't. It just meant more friends. You were less appreciative, however, of the fact that you were forced at knife point to do so…

He regards you a moment, then nods. "Very well."

And with that, he casually steps forward and mars the lines of the summoning circle with the toe of his odd footwear. The blue glow dissipates.

"Come along," he says and heads out the door, turning his back on you. You quash the urge to slam a flaming orb through his skull and follow behind him.

Only now do you notice that someone, at some point had dressed the wound in your side. You suppose someone without a demonic constitution would have noticed the latter immediately, but the pain had barely registered with you before it was tended to. The slight lessening of it now much less so.

You also find that you are in a strange, baggy gray clothing rather than your admittedly stained robes and all your belongings are missing, including your life's savings…

As if reading your mind, the man comments. "Your belongings are being examined. You will get them back shortly. The ones that aren't stolen anyway."

Dammit. That meant you'd have to find more of those delightful little cylinders that made your face go all tingly. Life is unfair…

You climb a set of stairs, open a door and suddenly you're out of the dungeon and in a rather well appointed library. You blink as you regard the rows and rows of books with titles in foreign languages. You can read a few of the nastier ones, of course, the ones written in some form of Hellspeak. The rest are mysteries to you. Behind you, the door smoothly wings shut, revealing another bookshelf loaded with weighty tomes.

"You are staying here for the next month, after which you will be introduced to your new teammates. Don't try to leave the house. You won't like what happens. You can use the kitchen or the library. Otherwise I expect you to stay in your bedroom. Are we clear?"

You glare at him. What did you do to deserve this treatment… besides the whole murder, robbery and arson thing? Finally you nod. He seems satisfied and directs you to your bedroom, a Spartan affair with a surprisingly comfortable bed. It takes you a while to figure out the automated chamber pot, but beyond that you settle in nicely.

You have a month to prepare. What do you do? (Pick 4)

[X] Learn the local lingo. You're sure you can pester your jailor for some lessons.
[X] You know that some demons can speak all the tongues of man. Maybe you have the same ability?
[X] Research this new world. Knowledge is power, after all.
[X] Arrange to visit Purple.
[X] Arrange to visit one of your future teammates.
[X] Practice your magic.
[X] Get to know your jailor. There's something familiar about him.
[X] Plot to escape (How?)
[X] Try to increase your resistance to Hellfire.
[X] Pester your Jailor to teach you some magic.
[X]Figure out how to infuse your spells with more hellfire.
[X] Plot to murder your jailor (How?)
[X] Bully your jailor into taking you shopping. You need clothes, dammit.
[X] Your showing against the gargoyle was pathetic. Work to better your aim and dodging abilities.
[X] … You can't forget the Broken Road. Its pattern is stamped into your very being. Meditate upon it and try to discern its true nature.
[X] Try to develop a new spell. (What?)
[X] … Arcane tomes written in demonic are usually fairly interesting. Look into those.
[X] Write in.

NOTE: Some of these options work better together than others. Some of these also require rolls on random tables, and that didn't end well last time.

And no, this isn't my best work. I think I'm hitting the doldrums of my will to write quests. I shall endeavor to persevere through them.

 

[Silversun17]

[X] Learn the local lingo. You're sure you can pester your jailor for some lessons.
[X] Arrange to visit Purple.
[X] Practice your magic.
[X] Create a non-lethal mass restraint spell. get our host's help (use the argument that if we could cast a spell like this the events that got purple hurt would have ended better for everyone if he is apprehensive.)

 

[Vindictus]

[X] You know that some demons can speak all the tongues of man. Maybe you have the same ability?
[X] Research this new world. Knowledge is power, after all.
[X] Your showing against the gargoyle was pathetic. Work to better your aim and dodging abilities.
[X] … You can't forget the Broken Road. Its pattern is stamped into your very being. Meditate upon it and try to discern its true nature.

 

[iamnuff]

[X] Learn the local lingo. You're sure you can pester your jailor for some lessons.
[X] Arrange to visit Purple.
[X] Practice your magic.
[X] Create a non-lethal mass restraint spell. get our host's help (use the argument that if we could cast a spell like this the events that got purple hurt would have ended better for everyone if he is apprehensive.)

 

[Jiven]

[X] Learn the local lingo. You're sure you can pester your jailor for some lessons.
[X] Research this new world. Knowledge is power, after all.
[X] Arrange to visit Purple.

Classic stuff...

[X] … You can't forget the Broken Road. Its pattern is stamped into your very being. Meditate upon it and try to discern its true nature.

WE MUST LEARN THE PATTERN!

 

[Pipeman]

[X] You know that some demons can speak all the tongues of man. Maybe you have the same ability?
[X] Research this new world. Knowledge is power, after all.
[X] Your showing against the gargoyle was pathetic. Work to better your aim and dodging abilities.
[X] … You can't forget the Broken Road. Its pattern is stamped into your very being. Meditate upon it and try to discern its true nature.

 

[Disminded]

High is good. Low not so much.

[blockquote]Rolled 1d100 : 49, total 49[/blockquote]

Update in progress.

 

[Disminded]

Walking​

It takes you around two weeks to get the language down, two weeks of sleepless night spent memorizing and rememorizing, pacing in your room as you chanted words and their variations over and over again, staring at flash cards and sounding out consonants and vowels, pouring over ever more complicated texts as you drive yourself to the limits, holding simple conversations with yourself in the mirror.

You talk with your jailor, whose name, as it turns out, is Jason Blood. Your conversations start as purely infernal, graduating later to a strange mixture of the two languages. Near the end of the second week, you can hold an entire conversation in somewhat stilted but still recognizable English. You quiz him on this strange new world, and he answers, while occasionally correcting your grammar.

You don't limit yourself to talking to him, not since you learned how to use this wonderful new device, the telephone. You don't know anyone's number, of course, but by tapping random numbers you can usually find someone to talk to (though you quickly learn that calling at certain hours leads to short, unhelpful conversations that usually revolve around expletives you've long since memorized). You manage several conversations as your skills improve, though for some strange reason most of them begin with the other person asking what you are wearing…

Between conversations you burn through books, newspapers and magazines at an astounding rate, trying to learn everything you can about this new world. Eventually you come to the conclusion that a) the population is composed of sex-crazed deviants, and b) you'll probably get along fine here…
One thing does bother you: The Broken Road. When you're pacing late at night you can feel it stirring, urging you to do… something. You're not entirely sure what. When you sleep, you dream of it, burning like a distant, alien sun over your dreamscape…

On the fourth week, you settle down and begin meditating on the pattern, seeking some insight into its purpose…

You get nothing. Sure, you can remember, every crack and curve, every beautiful flaw in its otherwise immaculate design. It just… sits there. In your mind. Doing nothing.

You're not a quitter. You sit there for three days, doing nothing but thinking, trying to wait it out. Blood looks in on you're a few times, but seems largely content that you are not bothering him. On the fourth day you get up and begin pacing, the image of the Broken Road still at the forefront of your mind.

… And you feel something shift around you. It's subtle and you can't quite quantify what it means but… It was real. Excitement builds and you keep the pattern in the forefront of your mind as you take a deep breath, setting one foot in front of the other paying close attention to your surroundings.
For some reason, you think of Purple and the urge to visit her rises in you.

Step.

Pictures vanish from the wall and the wallpaper becomes aged and pealed.

Step.

It's bitterly cold. Your breath mists on the air.

Step.

Warmer now, but the floorboards are now naked under the light of bare, flickering bulbs.

Step.

The lights go out.

Step.

You're in a different place, a house you think, though it seems abandoned. Light filters in from an adjoining room, giving just enough illumination to see by. And in that dim light you can see…

Horror.

Suspended from the ceiling by chains is Purple, her costume a shredded, bloody ruin, her face naked and pale, as she stirs, mumbling incoherently. The floorboards beneath her are stained with her blood...

You hear, in another part of the house, someone moving around…

Actions?
[X] You have to get Purple to safety. Get her free and WALK away (Destination?).
[X] No… this new power is too uncertain. Get her out through more mundane routes (How?).
[X] Purple will be safe when whoever did this is dead. Lower her to the floor and then go find him. (Tactics?)
[X] He hurt Purple. RIP HIS GODDAMNED HEART OUT AND EAT IT.
[X] You know how to work a phone and you know Blood's number. Call him.
[X] Write-in.



NOTE:
Gained: Language: English
Gained: Knowledge: Local (DC Verse) – You have cursory knowledge of this strange land of masked heroes, though not as much as someone raised here. You can identify common phenomena.
Gained: Occult Skill: Shadow-walking (Lesser)

I'll add those to the character sheet at some point.
Also note that the first roll was only for activating Shadow-walking. Now that it's an actual skill, you can use it with much less drastic consequences for bad rolls. Unless you roll a one.

I mentioned some of the options worked better together than others? If you'd built up a relationship with Blood, you could have convinced him to let you see Purple. If you asked for the shopping trip, you could have slipped away. Learning English and studying the modern world without contemplating the Broken Road would have resulted in a phone call, but pretty much anything combined with the Broken Road leads to you trying to walk to her.

And it's been a while since I've read the series. Pardon if my description of walking is off.

 

[Jack Trade]

[X] He hurt Purple. RIP HIS GODDAMNED HEART OUT AND EAT IT.