Wing and Dagger (part 19)
Mr Zoat
Dedicated ragequitter
- Joined
- Dec 1, 2016
- Messages
- 16,231
- Likes received
- 832,611
22nd January
03:32 GMT
The universe slows.
The blast of scintillating orange energy flies from my rings at narrowly subsonic speeds. I feel the slight drain as whatever passive enchantments the Seven Devil cultists put on this place try to oppose my avarice, but either they've faded with age or they weren't strong enough to begin with. Plus, I've got three rings now so I definitely don't have to conserve power. High energy use is the name of the game.
I know that my energy pulses are narrowly subsonic. At this distance the impact will be basically instant but it feels like I've got minutes. Ring, transmit a message to the carrier. Send an image of this thing and ask Ms Parker what it is that I'm fighting.
Compliance.
Two clawed hands. The beak is potentially dangerous, but otherwise it's a giant humanoid in an enclosed space trying to fight a highly manoeuvrable target. On the face of it, the danger posed is minimal, but unless I know its full exotic threat potential I can't do a proper analysis.
Let's see what the destructive pulse does. End acceleration.
The creature's eyes leap to the orange glowing blur and I see its irises contract. With no time for it to dodge the pulse hits it in the upper chest, the manifestation of my desire to erase this thing bursting through its flesh. As the light fades I can see the dull grey of its Nth metal-reinforced ribs, blood beginning to flow from the exposed muscle tissue.
"Kyaaaaah!"
I fire another volley of pulses aimed at its face from the ring on my right hand while using the left to generate a pneumatic separator construct in the fist holding the thanagarian soldier using a fat stream of orange light to anchor it to me. I'd feel a bit stupid if I used a filament and the creature was able to destroy it because I hadn't considered that flaw. The pulses scour the Nth metal reinforced keratin of its beak-.
I see the space around its body distort, and my pulses are redirected into the walls of the temple. I accelerate and switch my attacking ring to generating a construct blade while adding a clamp to the wrist of the hand I'm trying to force open. No sign of the chest regenerating, which is nice. My sword construct.. struggles to make an impression on its-.
Construct lost.
The distortion grows and it's right in front of me, its free claw already swinging my way! I surge forward, its claw narrowing missing my helmet as I fly through its legs. Just about kept my separator construct in place, but the clamp is gone and-
Connection lost.
-so is the sword. Apply more force-
The creature leaps towards the ceiling, its free arm once more flashing towards me! I fly back, narrowly dodging as it stabs its talons into the rock floor-.
I'm still accelerated. It's not keeping up with me, but it's coming close. I dodge again as it swipes, rising up-.
"Hrah!"
The thanagarian soldier finally has enough wiggle room to move, but rather than escape she changes position and shoves her sword under one of the giant birdman's talons! It instinctively jerks its hand away and she flies for the borehole. I abandon my other constructs to generate armour around her, getting it in position just in time to block its backhand swing. Not a strike-
It appears immediately in front of me again, and I'm not quite fast enough -ugh- to dodge. My kinetic barrier flares and fails as the Nth metal in the talons causes a feedback loop into its internal systems, but my environmental shield and power armour take it reasonably well.
-and it didn't crush her when it first took her. It's intentionally trying to avoid killing her. Why?
She takes a position by the borehole and hunkers down as two more marines fly down, particle beams at the ready. Given the effectiveness of their personal protective equipment and the level of force the monster is generating, they'll die unless I hold its attention.
It no longer has a hostage. I can work with this.
It swings and I evade, generating a large crumbler gauntlet construct as its claws swipe past me and slapping it into its arm. There's a release of energy as the flesh under the crumbler flies apart! The energy explodes outward and I generate construct armour to hold it off as the creature staggers, particle beams from the soldiers striking its skin to no apparent effect. The creature blurs out of the way and then smashes my-
Connection lost.
-construct from behind, destroying it. And then it-.
Warning. Gravitic-.
Stabiliser!
Space… Bubbles, the sudden gravity shear created by the creature battering against my constructs. Shots from the soldiers fly around.. more or less at random, flowing around a dozen tiny gravity wells before expending themselves against the walls.
"Stop-"
The universe darkens as the gravity distortions focus on me.
"-shooting-."
Warning-.
Yes, yes, more gravity-
Faintly, I hear my armour groan. And my rings kindly let me know that it's doing all sorts of unpleasant things to the tissues of my body.
-stabilisers. More power. Reshape the universe according to my desires!
And the groaning stops as the area is filled with orange light. Space.. unbends, and the thanagarian soldiers who had completely ignored my request to stop shooting actually start hitting again. Though either they've turned up the dial or the gravity shift thing requires all of the creature's concentration, because they're actually leaving a mark now.
Hah! The Huntsman managed more powerful gravity effects than this, and he was an expendable scout creature! Earth-crazy rules! Suck it, rest of the universe!
Incoming transmission from Ms Parker.
Okay, body and armour fixed, gravity… Bit of a wobble but basically normal. The creature is mostly just cringing back.
Answer.
"The creature you're fighting is called a Blessed One. It's what happens when a warrior devoted to Thasaro survives unaltered for fourteen years and then volunteers to be changed."
"Intelligent?"
"They can follow commands. I don't know how clever they are."
"Weaknesses?"
"If only. We killed them with lasers and nuclear weapons. I'm honestly surprised that there are any left."
"Could it be new?"
"Yes, but why would it be down here?"
"Pass." External. "Either use heavy ordnance or go and get some!"
Warning: spell eater temperature increasing.
And I feel… Something strange. Ring scans indicate minor alterations to my body, which they're immediately correcting. Trying to turn me into a Man-Hawk?
I shake my head. No, Thasaro. The Ophidian has a prior claim.
"This is my cause, this is my fight.
Shine through the void with orange light."
Orange light burns around my hands.
"I've claimed all within my sight.
To keep what is mine, that is my right."
A solid beam of destructive energy tears the Blessed One apart.
03:32 GMT
The universe slows.
The blast of scintillating orange energy flies from my rings at narrowly subsonic speeds. I feel the slight drain as whatever passive enchantments the Seven Devil cultists put on this place try to oppose my avarice, but either they've faded with age or they weren't strong enough to begin with. Plus, I've got three rings now so I definitely don't have to conserve power. High energy use is the name of the game.
I know that my energy pulses are narrowly subsonic. At this distance the impact will be basically instant but it feels like I've got minutes. Ring, transmit a message to the carrier. Send an image of this thing and ask Ms Parker what it is that I'm fighting.
Compliance.
Two clawed hands. The beak is potentially dangerous, but otherwise it's a giant humanoid in an enclosed space trying to fight a highly manoeuvrable target. On the face of it, the danger posed is minimal, but unless I know its full exotic threat potential I can't do a proper analysis.
Let's see what the destructive pulse does. End acceleration.
The creature's eyes leap to the orange glowing blur and I see its irises contract. With no time for it to dodge the pulse hits it in the upper chest, the manifestation of my desire to erase this thing bursting through its flesh. As the light fades I can see the dull grey of its Nth metal-reinforced ribs, blood beginning to flow from the exposed muscle tissue.
"Kyaaaaah!"
I fire another volley of pulses aimed at its face from the ring on my right hand while using the left to generate a pneumatic separator construct in the fist holding the thanagarian soldier using a fat stream of orange light to anchor it to me. I'd feel a bit stupid if I used a filament and the creature was able to destroy it because I hadn't considered that flaw. The pulses scour the Nth metal reinforced keratin of its beak-.
I see the space around its body distort, and my pulses are redirected into the walls of the temple. I accelerate and switch my attacking ring to generating a construct blade while adding a clamp to the wrist of the hand I'm trying to force open. No sign of the chest regenerating, which is nice. My sword construct.. struggles to make an impression on its-.
Construct lost.
The distortion grows and it's right in front of me, its free claw already swinging my way! I surge forward, its claw narrowing missing my helmet as I fly through its legs. Just about kept my separator construct in place, but the clamp is gone and-
Connection lost.
-so is the sword. Apply more force-
The creature leaps towards the ceiling, its free arm once more flashing towards me! I fly back, narrowly dodging as it stabs its talons into the rock floor-.
I'm still accelerated. It's not keeping up with me, but it's coming close. I dodge again as it swipes, rising up-.
"Hrah!"
The thanagarian soldier finally has enough wiggle room to move, but rather than escape she changes position and shoves her sword under one of the giant birdman's talons! It instinctively jerks its hand away and she flies for the borehole. I abandon my other constructs to generate armour around her, getting it in position just in time to block its backhand swing. Not a strike-
It appears immediately in front of me again, and I'm not quite fast enough -ugh- to dodge. My kinetic barrier flares and fails as the Nth metal in the talons causes a feedback loop into its internal systems, but my environmental shield and power armour take it reasonably well.
-and it didn't crush her when it first took her. It's intentionally trying to avoid killing her. Why?
She takes a position by the borehole and hunkers down as two more marines fly down, particle beams at the ready. Given the effectiveness of their personal protective equipment and the level of force the monster is generating, they'll die unless I hold its attention.
It no longer has a hostage. I can work with this.
It swings and I evade, generating a large crumbler gauntlet construct as its claws swipe past me and slapping it into its arm. There's a release of energy as the flesh under the crumbler flies apart! The energy explodes outward and I generate construct armour to hold it off as the creature staggers, particle beams from the soldiers striking its skin to no apparent effect. The creature blurs out of the way and then smashes my-
Connection lost.
-construct from behind, destroying it. And then it-.
Warning. Gravitic-.
Stabiliser!
Space… Bubbles, the sudden gravity shear created by the creature battering against my constructs. Shots from the soldiers fly around.. more or less at random, flowing around a dozen tiny gravity wells before expending themselves against the walls.
"Stop-"
The universe darkens as the gravity distortions focus on me.
"-shooting-."
Warning-.
Yes, yes, more gravity-
Faintly, I hear my armour groan. And my rings kindly let me know that it's doing all sorts of unpleasant things to the tissues of my body.
-stabilisers. More power. Reshape the universe according to my desires!
And the groaning stops as the area is filled with orange light. Space.. unbends, and the thanagarian soldiers who had completely ignored my request to stop shooting actually start hitting again. Though either they've turned up the dial or the gravity shift thing requires all of the creature's concentration, because they're actually leaving a mark now.
Hah! The Huntsman managed more powerful gravity effects than this, and he was an expendable scout creature! Earth-crazy rules! Suck it, rest of the universe!
Incoming transmission from Ms Parker.
Okay, body and armour fixed, gravity… Bit of a wobble but basically normal. The creature is mostly just cringing back.
Answer.
"The creature you're fighting is called a Blessed One. It's what happens when a warrior devoted to Thasaro survives unaltered for fourteen years and then volunteers to be changed."
"Intelligent?"
"They can follow commands. I don't know how clever they are."
"Weaknesses?"
"If only. We killed them with lasers and nuclear weapons. I'm honestly surprised that there are any left."
"Could it be new?"
"Yes, but why would it be down here?"
"Pass." External. "Either use heavy ordnance or go and get some!"
Warning: spell eater temperature increasing.
And I feel… Something strange. Ring scans indicate minor alterations to my body, which they're immediately correcting. Trying to turn me into a Man-Hawk?
I shake my head. No, Thasaro. The Ophidian has a prior claim.
"This is my cause, this is my fight.
Shine through the void with orange light."
Orange light burns around my hands.
"I've claimed all within my sight.
To keep what is mine, that is my right."
A solid beam of destructive energy tears the Blessed One apart.
Last edited: