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| Details |
| Author: | Luridel |
| Summary: | Dane Atley, Bertrand Aspenwood, Colson Aspenwood, Ben Hazan, and Gwenivene Whittle go to the Deadmines in search of Vanessa VanCleef. Elohad listens in on a better buzzbox than the one he used to have a few years ago. The Defias have built yet another ship. It does not survive. ~8k words. |
| Rating: | M for Mature 17+ |
Atley stands in Moonbrook, squinting faintly in the sunlight. He waggles the voice box with a grunt before he presses a button. "Lord Ference. Do you read."
"I'm here," comes Elohad's voice clearly over the buzzbox. Technology has improved over the last four years.
Atley lifts a bushy brow and appraises the device.
Ben heads downhill from the meeting stone, trailing Gwen and adjusting his gauntlets. He looks up at the sound of Atley's voice.
"The black switch on the left side," Elo's voice goes on, "if you leave it on the down position, I should be able to hear you all without your having to push the red button."
The channel squeals…no, that's just Gwen being excited. "So good to hear your voice, sir!"
Atley grunts at the device before he upnods Ben and tosses it to him.
"This takes me back," Elo says over the box with a slight sigh. "Hopefully this is the last time we have to clean this place out."
"Good afternoon, everyone. Sir Ference," Colson says politely.
Bertrand approaches the group, Cobalt Company tabard over his black armor. He salutes Dane.
Atley cracks off a salute to Bertrand, helmet tucked under his arm. He scoffs at Elohad's musings and eyes the barn. "Indeed it does, my lord."
Gwen nods firmly, the brim of her hat wobbling with the weight of the frog perched on it. "We'll kick the Defias out once and for all!"
From the sky, a stormcrow swoops down and alights on a fence post.
"I sure hope so, sweetheart," Elo says to Gwen. "I sure hope so."
"Sorta frustrating," Elo says, "When the threat you got famous for ending just keeps… popping back up, y'know?"
Atley grunts. "It ends here. Today."
"Ain't glad we got to go back in," says Ben a little distantly, "but glad I get to go this time."
"Hello, miss," Bertrand says politely to Gwen. "I'm Bertrand, of Cobalt Company's Westfall team."
Gwen beams delightedly at Bertrand, reaching out for his hand. "It's so good to meet you! I've heard about you from the neighbors."
"Oh." Ben looks around the group. "Everyone else — we are all acquainted, yeah?"
"I've met you," says Elo dadly over the box.
Bertrand smiles and shakes her hand firmly. "This is Annuvin." He tilts his head towards the giant bird.
Ben counts heads. He is acquainted with all of these people.
Atley grunts at Gweniven and Bertrand, but responds to Ben. "After this, I warrant." he says with some amusement.
Annuvin caws.
"Has that beast much stomach for caves?" Atley inquires calmly.
Colson inclines his head with a faint smile. He bears a strong resemblance to his older brother.
"Oooh, Annuvin. Aren't you just a lovely bird!" Gwen coos over the stormcrow.
"Yessir, I also am acquainted with you," says Ben over the buzzbox. He is doing a side-by-side comparison of Colson and Bertrand, not as surreptitiously as he thinks.
"He's been in there before," Bertrand says. "Do you want to stay in that form? The ceilings are low until we get to the open areas." He seems to be asking the bird.
Atley furrows his brow at Annuvin.
Annuvin cocks his head, then lands on the ground. His form shifts, feathers melting into fur as he becomes a spotted cat - a classic druid's travel form.
Colson chuckles at Ben's comment to Elohad.
Atley grunts. "Bloody hell."
Ben blinks at Annuvin. "Oh," he says, and looks from the cheetah to Bertrand.
"Uh, wait," says Elohad. "We're… you're six, then? You've got a druid with you?" The connection is so good you can hear him shuffling papers.
[Atley]: "Aye, milord. There's six," he says.
[Elohad]: "…Huh." More paper-shuffling.
"He's my partner," Bertrand says. "He's been with the Westfall team before. He's not registered - he's, ah, limited in his forms."
Gwen gasps at Annuvin. "I had no idea! Oh, how lovely."
"Okay, we can get that all added to the file later I guess," says Elo. "But the more the merrier, I guess. Welcome, Annuvin. It's Annuvin, right?"
Ben checks Gwen for a frog. Maybe they're seven.
"It's Annuvin," Bertrand confirms. "He can't speak."
Gwen's hat is, indeed, befrogged.
Annuvin sniffs at the others and seems content.
"Okay, well, glad to have you anyway, Annuvin, and good luck!" Elo says dadly.
[Atley]: "Right then. For those who've not been inside, this place is more of a dungeon than a mine. The first the Company's ever stormed. The tunnel system is crude, unlike dwarven work, but extensive. Large enough in the end to fit an entire battleship."
Atley continues. "Do not underestimate them. These are no mere brigands. Our objective is to clean the place out, once and for all. Any questions?"
Ben looks the group over again, his brows raised.
Colson shakes his head. No questions.
Gwenivene takes a deep breath. "No questions, sir. This is for Westfall."
"One," Bertrand says. "How do we handle a potential civilian hostage situation?"
Ben nods at Gwen.
"Keep me posted as best you can without endangering yourselves," Elo says, "because there are people here in the House waiting for an immediate report. Things are uh, pretty tense around here and they want some good news."
Atley inclines his head to Gwen before he looks from Bertrand to Annuvin. "Free them, and Gwen generates a portal to send them to Stormwind."
Gwen nods emphatically at Atley.
"Abiding by the standard laws of the Alliance," Colson agrees.
"Very good, sir." Bertrand puts a hand on Annuvin's back.
Gwen opens a satchel to do a quick count of her portal runes. "Should be enough," she murmurs.
[Atley]: "As Lord Ference says, we need a victory, and we will get one. We're taking you right along with us, Lord Ference. The device's signal ought to hold underground."
Atley tugs his helmet on and takes a moment to adjust it before he draws Thunderfury and his shield. "Let's get this done."
"Yessir," Colson says, adjusting his gauntlets.
"With you all the way, Cobalt," says Dad.
Gwen grips the brim of her hat, rotating it into Action Position.
Atley scowls at the familiar tunnels. "We're descending now."
Atley calls out to the gathered drifters. "Make way! Make way."
Gwen frowns sadly at all the displaced citizens.
"Excuse us," Colson says politely as he moves around a small time hustler.
"Hey," Bertrand greets several of them. "Reynard, you get those blankets? Good."
Gwen pulls up her collar, fastening it around the lower part of her face like a mask.
Ben mutters a blessing over the group before settling down with a fortifying sandwich as he considers the tunnel ahead.
Colson murmurs a blessing, and drinks a potion, setting a [Beacon of Light] on Dane as he waits patiently for the charge forward.
Atley cracks his neck left and right. "Let's get to work."
[Atley]: "Hold. They've got artillery…"
Colson holds.
Bertrand examines a nearby teleporter. "Still in working order," he says. "Er, they've put teleporters in, sir. The other locations will need to be reactivated."
Ben mutters something and steps back toward the wall of the tunnel as another shell lands with a blast.
Atley nods at Bertrand, and briefly examines the teleporter, before he raises his shield to protect himself from debris.
Gwen chimes in, "I just want to say…I've been practicing more with fire magic. It's been…mostly without incident. But um…just be careful."
"Move when I move. I'm charging straight at the ogre!" Atley growls.
Colson inclines his head. He is probably careful by default, but here we are.
"Understood," Colson calls back to Dane.
Bertrand notches a frost arrow.
Ben draws his sword.
Elo mutters something unintelligible about ogres.
"They had a bleeding cannon waiting for us," Atley growls.
Atley points at the cannon. "See if that's still serviceable. Turn it on that ogre."
"Yeah," reports Ben, swinging the cannon around.
Atley nods.
"Another one, here." Atley points.
"Damn, my ears are ringin'." Ben tips his head from side to side.
This is going to be a theme today.
Colson sends a [Holy Shock] to Ben, as Dane charges forward.
Atley scoffs at the ogre taking a nap and shakes his head before charging in.
"Steady progress, milord. Just kobolds and ogres," Atley calls out.
Gwen is not holding back her magic nearly as much as she has on previous Cobalt Company missions.
Bertrand fights silently, opening most fights with elemental arrows that detonate into traps.
"Damn ogres…" Elo mutters.
"Big…stinky ogres…" Gwen adds helpfully.
"Ah, a two headed mage," Colson remarks as they enter into the room.
Ben spits on the floor and sizes up the two-headed ogre ahead of them.
"Ah, the worst," commiserates Elo. "Good luck."
Atley shakes his head with a snarl. "Sir Anduin Lothar and a few of his soldiers were imprisoned here by ogres during the First War, for many weeks."
"I only need one head to be a mage!" Gwen taunts the ogre.
The ogre seems to take offense to Gwen. "Glubtook show you da power of de arcane!" He is also bad. He can be easily distinguished from Glubtok, who the previous Westfall Team killed, if you consult Ozmatoz's handy reference image of a distressingly detailed ogre posterior.
"Attack!" Atley growls.
There is a fight that ends with the ogre exploding into a pile of ash.
Gwen gasps! "He burned himself out!"
Atley furrows his brow and pokes at the pile of ash with Thunderfury.
"Let that be a lesson to you," Elohad says dadly.
Ben eyes the pile of ash. "That… happens?" he asks Gwen uneasily.
"So it would seem," Colson says, regarding the pile of ash with a faint frown.
Atley grunts. "Let's press on."
Gwen's eyes are wide under her hat. "I've heard of mages causing harm to themselves trying to harness too much power. But this…this is new to me."
Colson presses on with a hm.
Atley squints as they enter the next chamber. "They've goblin overseers… with mining monkeys."
"What the fff–" Ben eyes a monkey.
"Literal monkeys, sir," Colson adds.
"Ah. Yes." Birdie points to the shackles. "I see they've got some more."
[Atley]: "Put 'em to the sword. Prepare to defend yourselves from the beasts."
"No circus though, as far as we can see," Colson says.
Bertrand slips past the overseers to free the monkeys with his Gnomish Army Knife. It's got either a key or a lockpicking function in it, apparently.
"Any way not to hurt the monkeys?" Elo says faintly.
"Yessir," Bertrand says. "We haven't harmed them."
Colson rebukes a miner trying to motivate a monkey. No monkey for you, goblin man.
Atley grunts. "They've been pacified by Bertrand. We'll have to come back later to see to the beasts."
"Okay, great," says Elo. "Real shame, using the poor beasts like that."
Atley grunts. "The beasts are turning against their captors."
"Guess they're smarter than I figured," Elo says thoughtfully.
[Gwenivene]: "Awww, good monkeys!"
Atley grunts.
"There is an unusually large amount of stockpiled mining powder at certain places," Colson remarks.
Atley gives Bertrand a sharp nod as he undoes the shackles. "Well done."
"Sir." Bertrand nods sharply. "We'll need to send someone to lead them out after. I don't think portaling a bunch of monkeys without an escort is a good idea."
Atley nods with agreement, but scoffs with amusement. "You and Annuvin've just volunteered. I shall join you. Send these beasts back to where they belong."
"Ben," Atley says, stepping forward to take one part of a heavy door, tugging it open with a grunt.
"Yessir." Bertrand doesn't complain.
Ben steps up to the other side and heaves it open.
Atley squints at the inside room.
"I think monkeys belong in… Stranglethorn?" says Elo in a tone that suggests he may have been doing some research during the pause.
Ben surveys the massive logs and saws around them dubiously. "They ain't… still buildin' a boat in here?" he asks.
Colson looks up at the tree logs with a faint frown. "Hm. I wonder."
"How many times we gotta set that thing on fire?" Elo grumbles.
"At least three, sir," Bertrand says, deadpan.
Atley grunts. "Like roaches. Kill these witless mongrels first."
Atley points at a goblin riding a lumbering oaf's shoulders. "Ought to be the foreman. Put them both down."
Ben spits on the floor again and nods.
"Yessir." Bertrand slips into stealth to set his traps.
"Bombs!" Colson calls out, just before he's taken, uh, away.
[Atley]: "Stay sharp! Above!"
"What's going on?" says a slightly panicked-sounding Elo.
There's a tremendous amount of goblin and oaf screaming, accompanied by repeated explosions.
"Combat, sir!" Birdie yells.
Colson is a calm healer, as a bomb goes off on Bertrand, healing the damage. Right before he's picked up by the ogre, and slammed into the wall into a bomb.
"Wow, that's loud," Elo says. He's been out of combat for too long, it seems.
Colson does not get up at the end of the fight, a stillness of death.
Birdie jogs across the room to check on his brother.
"Ben!" Atley leaps over to Colson's side.
Ben swears and drops his sword, raking his sweat-damp hair back with one hand. He jogs over to Colson.
"Everyone okay???" Elo is panicking again.
Ben kneels down. "I got him. I got him," he says, a little louder than necessary. He might be trying to convince himself.
Atley takes a breath and calmly says, "We are performing a resurrection on Colson."
"Working on it, sir," Bertrand says, looking to Ben.
Gwen's gasp is muffled by her hands over her collar over her face.
Atley looks to Ben with a stern, reassuring glare. "You've got him." he decides.
"You've got him," Bertrand says firmly. He seems very calm.
Ben takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, sitting back on his heels. A moment later, light gathers around him in a radiant aura. He leans forward and puts his hands on Colson's chest and seems to push the light into him.
Colson is an easy resurrection, coming to with a small gasp, and reorienting to living rapidly. "I am here," he says, blinking up at Ben. "Ben. Thank you."
"Ah… Light, thank the Light…" comes Elo's voice a little hoarsely.
Annuvin gnaws on a dead goblin as he watches the resurrection. He spits the body out when Colson opens his eyes.
Ben sits back on his heels again and drags back his hair. He grins at Colson. "Yeah. Yeah, 'course. Got us worried, there, Cole."
"Colson is alive," Atley says, offering Colson a hand.
"Well done," Bertrand says to Ben. "Thanks."
[Elohad]: "I heard him. This thing is so much better than the first buzzbox we used. Ah, thank the Light."
Colson sits up slowly, and carefully, as he murmurs a prayer to Light. "I apologize. I was not prepared for the explosion."
Ben pushes himself to his feet. "You want a sandwich?"
Atley grunts and shakes his head. "Merely good to have you back. These bastards are tricky."
Colson takes his hand and rises up to a stand. "For later, I would appreciate that very much, thank you, Ben."
"You need a minute, Cole?" Bertrand checks.
Gwen exhales heavily. "Thank the Light…."
"No, I am fine. We can continue," Colson says, in that sometimes eerie Aspenwood calm way.
Ben checks his pack and pulls out a paper-wrapped sandwich. He hands it to Colson.
Atley looks from Colson, to Bertrand, to Ben. He nods and grunts. "Let's get to it."
Colson inclines his head politely, and tucks it away into a bright orange pumpkin bag.
"A moment." Bertrand moves to the teleporter in the room and connects some cables.
[Bertrand]: "Lumber room teleporter online, sir," he reports as he returns to the others.
Atley narrates as they wait for Bertrand. "We've come to a tunnel with actual humans. Sorcerers and laborers."
They have come to a tunnel with actual humans. Sorcerers and laborers.
"Okay, this should be no problem for you lot," Elohad says confidently.
As promised, Colson seems fine, his reflexes as sharp as they need to be to send a stunning force of the Light down on an invoker.
Atley grunts. "No sorcerer. A priestess for hire." Atley swipes up her staff and examines it before holding it out to Colson.
"Disgusting," says Elohad. "I remember when the Church of Light was something a person could feel proud of, safe in."
When the Defias Envoker surrounds herself with a shield, Birdie pulls an arrow from a different quiver and fires a shot that hits her barrier and dispels it.
"Aye," Atley growls empathetically. "I, too, remember the old days," he laments with a shake of his head.
Colson takes hold of the staff, examining it.
Atley grunts and nods ahead.
Colson makes a faint hm sound, as he puts the staff into a bag that doesn't look even remotely like it could hold an entire staff. "I will see if we can trace back who these people were, and if they were recruited out of the Church."
One of the Defias overseers tries to run. Annuvin bites into the man's leg.
"Who's screaming? That's not one of us I hope?" Elo says.
"No, sir," Bertrand confirms.
Atley grunts. "One of theirs." No further explanation.
Atley points at mining powder as they pass. "Bertrand, see to all explosives and devices along the way. Disarm and disable."
Atley nods at another door. "Colson."
Colson…Colsons?
Ben nods approvingly. Good Colsoning.
The doors open and they find themselves at the forge. Atley scoffs. "Still bloody in service, is it…"
"Yessir." Bertrand does his best to keep anything that might explode from exploding. He puts some barrels of powder into a bag.
There's screaming over the communicator. Goblin screaming.
"RUN!"
"THEY'RE ALIVE!!!"
"NOOOOOOO!!!"
As several goblins rush past them, Colson blinks in surprise. "Ah."
"That sounds like goblin screaming," Elo notes.
Annuvin bites one of the fleeing goblins in half.
Atley glances over the railing with a grimace of angry disgust. "Right. Wot's all this, then."
"Well, that sounds as if something unexpected has occurred," Colson remarks calmly.
"Careful," Gwen warns. "Harvester ahead. They like to turn them into war machines."
One of the Harvesters remains fully docile, unmoving.
Atley raises his gaze, grunts, and approaches the Prototype Reaper.
"They've upgraded the Harvest Reapers," Bertrand reports. "I've seen them in action before."
Ben eyes the harvester grimly.
"Ah. I see," Colson says.
"What's alive?" Elo says. "Someone said they're alive?? Who is?"
"Them things ain't trustworthy," Ben says.
"Um…not sure yet, sir," Gwen advises Elo.
Atley stares up at the harvester, giving the impression of a petulant, heavily armored child.
Atley looks back to the group. "We can use this."
"Something that should not be alive," Colson says. "They may not be speaking literally though, sir."
Ben casts an incredulous look at Atley.
Bertrand climbs up the inactive harvest reaper's body and checks on the core. "Aye, we can."
"Ugh, Goblins," Elo says.
Atley grunts with agreement at Elohad.
"Bertrand is an engineer," Colson says. "If he says we can use it, we can."
"Get this thing working, Bertrand. Gwen'll pilot it," Atley says.
Ben eyes Gwen.
"Wait, what??" from Dad.
"Glyphe and I have done it before," Bertrand says. He takes some tools out and makes a few modifications to the core.
Atley looks over the edge. "The greenskins are dead. Their own machines turned against them."
"Okaaaay," Elo says, still sounding not fully convinced.
"I get to pilot this thing?" Gwen squeals! "You have no idea how much every Westfall kid wants to do this."
Ben eyes Gwen harder.
Atley scoffs lightly and nods at Gwen. "There you are, then. This thing was built by them. We turn it against them."
"Should be set, miss Whittle," Bertrand says. "If it starts to spark on the inside, you'll want to eject."
"I mean…technically it was probably built by a Westfaller. So we're just takin' it back!" Gwen giggles and climbs up into the 'cockpit'.
Atley eyes the Prototype Reaper up and down. "How's it, then." he asks of the pilot.
Gwen tests out the controls, and one of the scythed arms swings wide over everyone's heads. "Ack! Sorry! I've got this…I do."
Colson ducks.
"Gwen," says Elo sternly.
Atley glares patiently without flinching.
Ben ducks as well, and swears under his breath.
Bertrand moves several steps back. "Take a moment to familiarize yourself with the controls."
Colson steps back in time with his brother, almost perfectly synchronized, but not quite.
"Oi, have a look on the wall, here," Atley says, raising Thunderfury to tap at a plaque of instructions.
The plaque reads:
Prototype Reaper Instruction Manual V.1.28.92
1. To start the Prototype Reaper, simply enter the vehicle and engage the control-unlocking mechanism next to the red button. Do not, under any circumstances, push the red button.
2. The Prototype Reaper has been designed to withstand the severe heat of the slag pot. Do not attempt to move slag barrels without the Reaper!
3. The Prototype Reaper's main steam valve builds steam power during regular exertion. Steam power can be used to activate the hydraulic servos for a quick burst of speed, or a pressurized pump for heavy lifting.
Atley quickly growls impatiently at the jargon. "Bertrand! Translate this shit."
"Right…yes. Okay, this one makes the doohickey go whoosh," Gwen mumbles, "And this one causes the whatchacallit to go vroop!"
"Ah, instructions," Colson remarks.
"Any reason it's not Bertrand driving the thing?" Elo says testily.
"Hey," Ben calls at Gwen. "Don't push no red button."
[Gwenivene]: "This red button?"
"Gwen's the least armored of us, and the bastards down there've broad claws. She's also the smallest. Best to pilot it," Atley explains.
"It's resistant to extreme heat," Birdie says. "Do not push the red button. You can use the lever on the side to activate the steam power valve."
"I dunno but it says don't push," Ben says. "DON'T d - o - n - t."
"Right. Do not push. Gosh, why do they make it so big if I'm not supposed to push it?" Gwen grumbles.
Atley grumbles. "Let's move."
"If we do need to dismantle something downstairs, Bertrand will need to be out here to do so," Colson adds. "We are expecting machinery, sir."
"Fine, fine," says Elo. "But what I'm hearing isn't exactly filling me with confidence, here."
A Defias Watcher charges them. They destroy it, and it stares blankly at a wall before exploding. Atley raises his shield and grumbles.
"One down," Bertrand reports. "Miss Whittle is fine, sir."
At the bottom of the ramp, Atley points at the Foe Reaper 5001. "That's our chief enemy here. Gwen, stay away from it. Keep an eye about for any other foes that machine you're in's best used against."
"Umm…mine's not gonna explode, is it?" Gwen waffles. "Maybe that's what the red button does…."
"Not now!" Elohad can be heard hissing over the buzzbox.
"If the core inside is damaged, it will begin the self-destruct sequence," Birdie tells her. "You will know because it will begin to spark. Blink out of the construct before that happens."
Colson readies the Light, as he flexes his hands. "I will shield you if necessary, Miss Whittle. Do not hesitate to call for help."
"I don't need— fine, just set it down over there, and shut the door behind you," Elo can be heard saying to someone. He growls with frustration. "I meant with you on the other side," he continues.
Ben glances at the buzzbox, his brows knit.
[Elohad]: "Ugh, sorry, guys. Page," he explains, a bit louder and closer to the box. "Did not read the sign on the door."
Annuvin rolls a barrel of gunpowder over. Bertrand picks it up and puts it in a bag probably made by his sister. It fits.
Atley warily watches the giant Foe Reaper as they circle the room.
The Foe Reaper 5001 begins to spark and wake up.
"FOE REAPER 5001 ON-LINE. ALL SYSTEMS NOMINAL."
"Bring it down!" Atley snarls.
You can almost hear Elo sweating.
Colson brings it down. Well, actually he just heals everyone as they bring it down, but he's Helping.
Bertrand keeps his distance from the FOE REAPER 5001 and fires arrows into the joints.
Colson shields up. He's had enough of being blown up today.
"We're all right, milord. That bloody contraption hit like a wagon train," Atley explains.
"Um…sparks? OH, SPARKS!" Gwen bamfs the heck outta the reaper bot, materializing next to Bertrand as the machine shudders, then explodes. "Whoa…good call on the sparks."
Atley looks Gwen for inspection.
"All in one piece then, are you?" Atley asks her.
Gwen nods enthusiastically. "Right as rain!"
"Let's move," Atley says.
Atley looks ahead. "We've Wizards and Enforcers. Must be meeting with their primary force, at last."
"Well done, team," says Elo."
One of the mages casts some sort of blood magic. It looks like a red dome, perhaps made of blood.
"What is that?" Colson asks. "Some sort of…blood magic?"
Atley growls. "Vile."
Gwen nods with an "Ugh. Yeah, you called it."
Bertrand frowns and fires a flare into the dark tunnel ahead of them.
"Blood magic? What's going on?" Elo noses in.
"Hm." Colson's lips are set in a grim line.
"One of the wretches produced a red dome. P'raps made of blood." Atley explains mirthlessly.
"The Defias wizards have sunk to new lows, sir," Gwen explains.
"Violence, sir," Bertrand says. "Watch the sides."
Atley grunts as Bertrand points out a pair of Defias Shadowguards. "Ambushers."
"On me!" Atley calls out.
Ben follows the flare's trajectory with his gaze and narrows his eyes at the shadowguards.
Colson is on Dane. Respectfully.
"Ben, go blow that door open, will you," Atley remarks casually, before explaining for Elohad. "They cannot withstand us."
Ben swears.
"I have faith in you all," Elo says warmly.
The cannon explodes. It was rigged. The door opens, and a waiting group of Defias run in to challenge them.
"Shit," Ben says again, shaking his head to clear it.
[Bennarin]: "Was a trap on that fucken thing."
Atley grunts. "Fine recovery."
Colson heals Ben as swiftly as he can, as the Defias charge in.
"It's an ambush!" Gwen shouts as she unleashes arcane heck!
Bertrand frowns. "Should've checked. You alright?"
"You've got this," Elo says confidently.
Elohad is greeted with even more explosions. A constant downpour.
Ben shakes his head again and blinks. He nods at Bertrand. "Yeah. Yeah, I reckon so."
"I should've checked. Not you. Sorry." Bertrand claps Ben on the shoulder.
Atley growls and clenches his teeth. "It's a fackin' bombardment," he scowls. "Ammunitions' better spent on us than Stormwind. Moves swift, and stay on me. Bertrand, eyes up."
Atley gestures to the flying parrots with Thunderfury.
"Yessir." Bertrand moves swift, stays on Dane, eyes up.
Colson moves swift, and stays on Dane.
"It is. It's a fucken boat," Ben observes incredulously.
"Oh no," Gwen sighs. "They've rebuilt the juggernaut."
Fluent cursing is heard over the buzzbox.
Colson dodges explosions as they traverse the planks.
The sound through the buzzbox is near deafening. Only occasionally can Elohad hear monstrous parrots shrieking over the explosions.
"Aboard! Swiftly!" Atley commands.
"Yessir!" Colson aboards, swiftly.
Ben gives the cannon on deck a wide berth.
Atley narrows his eyes, looking from the cannons to the planks where they came in from. "They're still firing. They expect us to be a much larger group," he growls with pride.
"Clear the decks. Everyone on board dies," Atley growls.
Atley points at the cannons with Thunderfury. "Be certain to save all ammunition and weaponry we can. Our navy'll need it. That goes for the ship itself, this time."
"Understood," Colson says.
"Yessir." Birdie switches to freezing instead of explosive arrows.
"More of the wretches this way," Atley observes.
Bertrand pauses by a teleporter to connect more cables.
As Cobalt Company takes out the cannoneers, the sound of explosions gradually begins to die down.
"Sounds like it's going well in there," Elohad says.
[Gwenivene]: "Oof! Just peachy, sir!"
Atley slices a pirate clean in half. "These brigands are of no match."
Gwen grimaces at the sight. "Grooosss…."
Atley grunts. "We've cleared the lowest deck. We're ascending."
To godhood.
"Cobalt Company is always ascending!" Elo says dramatically.
The noise of the explosions seems to have stopped.
Atley turns his head to the side to peer at Admiral Ripsnarl. "A worgen, is it?"
"Be cautious with his bite," Colson warns.
"Bertrand," Atley says. "That one look familiar?"
Colson raises his brows as he glances back to his brother.
Bertrand scowls. "He didn't stay dead. Ripsnarl!" he shouts, nocking a freezing arrow.
Well, to be fair, neither has everyone else here.
Atley grunts. "Kill him."
"Stay sharp!" Atley warns as they're engulfed by a mist.
Admiral Ripsnarl seems to have it out for Bertrand in particular during the fight.
Elohad hears rushing wind and the snarling platitudes of a hostile worgen.
Admiral Ripsnarl yells, "You will… NOT find her … until it is too late…"
Gwen sighs. "Why can't they ever just surrender?"
"She isn't there…?" Elo sounds tense.
Atley raises Thunderfury and cuts off Ripsnarl's head as casually as if he were pulling weeds. He reaches down, swipes up his massive head, and tosses it over one side. "Come back from that."
Atley says, "All in one piece, are we?"
"Well he ain't," Ben observes.
Atley scoffs with amusement.
"Do I even want to know?" says Elo.
Annuvin sniffs the air and growls low.
"Due diligence, milord," Atley explains with a cheeky gruffness.
Atley frowns at Annuvin, and then looks to Bertrand. "Another?"
Ben squints. "There someone else?"
"Must be." Bertrand fires a flare into the cabin.
"The worgen Ripsnarl referred to a 'she,'" Colson warns.
"Is it her..? Is she there?!?" Elohad seems to know exactly who.
"We do not see anyone at this time, sir," Colson reports diligently.
"Damn it…" Elo mutters.
"Who is she?" Atley growls with confusion.
"Vanessa VanCleef," Bertrand says. "Hope Saldean. She could be hiding just about anywhere, really."
[Bertrand]: "We couldn't find her last time, the team and I."
"I don't want her killed, if possible," Elo says, "But… damned if I don't want her stopped."
Colson inclines his head. "We will keep looking, sir."
Atley points at the cabin with Thunderfury. "We'll start here."
"She won't submit to arrest willingly," Bertrand says. "I'd bet an alarming amount of gold on it."
[Elohad]: "If you can disable her without killing her, I'd appreciate it. I… we went to some effort to save her. I have to believe there's still hope. She's so young…"
[Elohad]: "If you have to kill her, at least try to tie her up and resurrect her. The girl's… fifteen? Sixteen? I just don't want her life to go out like this."
[Elohad]: "But she may have evaded us again, anyway," he says with a sigh.
"Understood, sir," Colson says.
"She grew up in Westfall," Gwen laments, "And still she does all this. I…I want to believe there's hope for her. But…."
"No one's finished at sixteen," Elohad says firmly.
"We shall do wot' we can." Atley explains.
"As long as life persists, there is hope for change," Colson says.
"What Aspenwood said. Uh, Colson Aspenwood." Elo agrees.
"Don't let your guard down," Bertrand says to the others. "Best intentions aside, she wants us dead."
Colson inclines his head. "Of course."
Atley grunts. "And she is an enemy of Stormwind. We will attempt arrest. If she resists, she dies."
"That's true," says Elo. "Don't let mercy be the death of you, even for a little girl."
Gwen sighs, nodding.
[Elohad]: "But… just… if there's any way to bring her down without ending her life… it'd mean a lot to me."
"We will try," Colson promises. "And if we can resurrect her, we will."
"Wot's this, then?" Atley growls, spotting a note.
Atley reads aloud: "'Congratulations, adventurer.'"
[Gwenivene]: "Uh oh…"
[Atley]: "You've managed to walk right into –"
Ben startles with a curse.
Atley glares as Vanessa VanCleef leaps down and begins to monologue.
"I've been waiting a long time for this, you know," Vanessa says. "Biding my time, building my forces, studying the minds of my enemies."
[Vanessa]: "I was never very good at hand-to-hand combat, you know. Not like my father. But I always excelled at poisons."
[Vanessa]: "Especially venoms that affect the mind."
"Don't breathe it-…*gak*…" Gwen coughs.
Cobalt Company begins to hallucinate being in a different room entirely - the room with all the Harvest Reapers. Many things are on fire.
Vanessa speaks to the hallucinating group. "Poor Glubtook. When his powers manifested, his own ogre mound was the first to burn. Deep within his soul, the one thing he feared most of all was…himself."
"On me!" Atley yells through the hallucination.
"Is that real?" Ben asks in a strange voice.
"I don't know," Gwen grimaces.
Atley shakes his head "I cannot say — stay sharp," he says to everyone and himself.
"Most rogues prefer to cloak themselves in the shadows, but not Helix. You never know what skitters in the darkness." Vanessa seems to be ignoring Elohad entirely.
Cobalt Company is hallucinating a zillion spiders right about now.
"Some of it is real enough to do us harm," Colson says calmly, shielding himself.
Atley snaps his gaze to Colson upon the nightmare spiders.
"Damn it!" Elohad shouts from the box. "Vanessa, can you hear me? Stop this!"
"We're the ones that got you away from Lescovar!" Elohad says. "All we ever wanted to do was protect you! You have to understand!"
"What the fuck," Ben says. "Oh, what the fuck?"
"If you hurt my son, I swear to the Light…" Elo has switched from cajoling to threatening now.
"Something is affecting our minds, and whatever it is has convinced our bodies that it is real," Colson cautions. "Whatever this is, Vanessa is doing it. I believe if we return to her in this state, we will wake up."
Atley growls and snaps at his squad. "Stay sharp! She wants us panicked!"
"She poisoned us!" Gwen wails. "That…that 'very-nice-lady' poisoned us!"
[Bennarin]: "Ain't we killed this guy — ohhh yeah ok I get it?"
"This is much like the Nightmare of the Emerald Dream," Colson says. "It is not our Nightmare."
Atley gestures to Colson as he follows along.
"Can you imagine the life of a machine? A simple spark can mean the difference between life…and death," Vanessa croons ominously.
Colson grimly ignores Vanessa in turn as he focuses on keeping the team alive in whatever dream state he's healing in.
"This is no time for dramatics, girl!" says Elohad, extremely hypocritically.
Vanessa chuckles and continues: "Ripsnarl wasn't always a bloodthirsty savage. Once, he even had a family."
[Vanessa]: "He was called James Harrington. A tragedy in three parts."
Atley narrows his eyes.
To this, Colson pays a small amount of attention to, but his focus is clearly on the team.
Bertrand groans, trying to focus on his real body.
"Damn it, girl, I know why you're like this… but we could help you…" Elo is nothing but a helpless voice in a little box.
"I will not share my father's fate! Your tale ends here!" Vanessa yells as soon as she sees the others stirring.
Ben grunts and staggers to his feet. He looks around for his sword. He's holding his sword. Cool.
Colson shields himself as he shakes off the poison, to prevent a second poisoning. He [Cleanses] the others for clear headedness.
"Stop this!" Elo calls helplessly. "It doesn't have to end this way!"
The sound of combat fills the buzzbox. "Did you really think I would come to this fight alone?" Vanessa taunts as her reinforcements arrive.
Atley raises Thunderfury. "It's over!" he booms, charging in. "Kill them!"
Ben roars something that might just be a bad word, and charges after Atley.
Gwenivene's voice is tight with pain and regret, "I'm sorry…you've left us no choice."
Bertrand shoots the reinforcements first and then Vanessa.
Colson barely pauses between heals as he runs through a Defias charging him, the strike slightly pulled, but effective enough.
Atley does all he can to keep himself safe from her blades, even dropping to a knee at one point to protect his shins with his shield. She easily dodges every strike with Thunderfury.
"Fools!" Vanessa VanCleef yells. "This entire ship is rigged with explosives! Enjoy your fiery deaths!"
Ben flings Holy Wrath and Consecration a little wildly at the reinforcements as he tries to focus on Vanessa.
"Do not stand by them! Get out of range," Colson calls, his voice strong across the field.
Annuvin turns into a stormcrow and takes off into the cavern.
Atley narrows his eyes as he spots a collection of ropes. "There! Follow me!" He sprints towards the edge, grabs a rope with his shield hand, and kicks off of the ship.
Colson shields himself in a burst of speed and Light, keeping everyone in his line of sight as he takes hold of a rope.
Bertrand follows suit.
Ben sprints after Atley, then pauses to check on Gwen and the others.
Gwenivene blinks, vanishing and reappearing by the ropes. Taking hold of one, she grits her teeth and leaps off the edge, swinging out after Dane.
Ben seizes a rope and swings.
There is an explosion. The ship is now slightly on fire.
They swing out, nearly covering the entirety of Ironclad Cove before their momentum shifts and they swing back in. Atley does a small kip to generate momentum, landing on both feet with a thud before he charges back in at Vanessa, fierce and furious.
Colson keeps a position that is not currently on fire. "Do not stand in the fire!"
Bertrand does not stand in the fire. He fires a freezing trap to douse some of the flames.
Ben crashes back aboard like a reckless plate-clad meteorite and hurls himself back into the fray. He does not stand in any fire.
Atley spots a charging Defias Assassin in his periphery and responds with a swift, automatic, backhanded slash. The Defias hops back, nearly enough to dodge it, but instead of decapitated they're only rewarded with a lethal slice through their neck.
Gwen spots another blood mage wielding her vicious magic. "Oh no you don't!" Gwenivene unweaves the attempted spell, then unleashes her own barrage of arcane missiles to put the witch down.
"You didn't honestly think I would only plant ONE set of explosives, did you?" Vanessa taunts before vanishing into stealth.
Colson mutters a succinct, "Shit." And he runs back to the ropes.
Atley snaps his gaze to the side and points. "Go! Now!" He sprints over.
Bertrand groans and grabs ahold of a rope for the second time.
Colson goes. Now.
There is another explosion. The ship is now moderately on fire.
Atley glances back at the explosion just as his rope begins to creak. Then hiss. It starts to unravel near the apex of the swing.
"Try not to stand in too much fire," Colson warns. There are almost no places in actually no fire at all, as he summons what appears to be almost… a second Colson. A being of Light with wings who heals with the paladin.
"Atley!" Ben shouts, and throws a hand out toward him.
Atley abandons his rope just in time to grasp Ben's gauntlet with his own, his rope falling to the ground far below. Dane grits his teeth, eyes widened in anger and surprise.
Bertrand fires another freezing trap at the ground just to give the group space to stand. "Ship's in bad shape, sir!" he shouts.
Colson and his Light Guardian keep healing, as the inevitable burns scorch the others.
Ben seizes Dane's wrist and hauls him aboard with a grunt.
"So is SHE!" Atley yells as they swing back in. "Bring her down!"
Elo's voice can be heard faintly murmuring what sounds like prayer.
Gwen does her best to conjure up ice to extinguish the flames, but it's like trying to soak up a lake with a washcloth.
Atley clatters to the deck with Ben's help, and shoves himself to his feet to charge back in. Vanessa fights alone now, a match for five experienced fighters, but even she starts to wane and slow with her injuries.
"ENOUGH!" Vanessa shouts. "I will not give you the pleasure! If I'm going to die, I'm taking you all with me!"
"She wouldn't…" But Gwen knows in her heart that she would.
"No!" Elohad cries helplessly.
Colson pales enough through the ash streaking his face. "Get out of range!"
There is an ominous ticking coming from belowdecks.
Atley grits his teeth, and deliberates in a single second between charging in, or fleeing…
"Go, GO!" Ben shouts.
"Dane! We have to go!" Colson shouts, as he shields himself in a strong shield of Light to keep himself alive if the others don't make it.
"Overboard! Now! Aim for the water!" Atley yells, backtracking to keep an eye on everyone.
Bertrand leaps off the side of the boat into the water.
Gwenivene desperately casts spell after spell, creating arcane buffers for each of her companions to slow their descent. "Go now! Jump!"
Ben looks over his shoulder for Gwen and Dane, then turns away to leap.
"MY FATE IS MY OWN!" Vanessa cries out, loud enough for the buzzbox to catch before it is muted by being submerged.
Atley leaps over the edge — given his position, he would not have made it into the water. Fortunately, the slow fall eases his descent, but halfway to the ground the entire ship explodes. He instinctively raises his shield to deflect the blast, but he's launched into the hard soil of Ironclad Cove after a deafening crack of explosives.
Gwen leaps off the edge, trusting her magic to carry her to a safe landing…if she can escape the explosion.
There is one final explosion. The wreckage of the ship is now significantly on fire.
At the sound of the explosion, there is more cursing from the buzzbox.
Colson shields Bertrand in a [Hand of Protection] as the ship blasts apart, sending out a shockwave. The paladin heals as fast as he can for the others.
Maybe some crying from the buzzbox too.
Ben had been clambering out of the water, encased in his shining paladin shield. Just as he reaches the shore, his bubble wanes — and the explosion hits. He is tossed like a ragdoll onto the shore.
Still descending, Gwenivene is thrown by the blast, singed before she manages to raise a mana shield around herself. She lands on the far rocks, the impact softened by her spell.
The [Beacon of Light] stays on Dane, as each heal of the team echoes in him, as Colson remains unharmed within his Shield. The paladin pulls harder on the Light, his eyes gold in Divine Favor.
The buzzbox crackles with static and then a very nasal gnome's voice says, "RECONNECTING." It begins to make Noises.
Atley slowly rises, squinting at the blurred inferno. He tries to push himself up, but only his right arm obeys. The left's been shoved out of his socket. Aside from that, he's entirely healed by Colson as he leaps over to Gwen.
Bertrand climbs out of the water and hurries towards the others.
[Atley]: "Sound off, you lot!" He booms, voice barely audible over the crackle of fire.
"–nyone there?" comes Elo's voice as the buzzbox reconneccts.
"Aspenwood present, sir!" Bertrand is not too used to being with another Aspenwood in combat.
Colson pushes himself out of the water, moving swiftly to Ben. "Here," he sounds off to Dane.
"WHAT?" says Ben. He staggers and squints around.
"Ah, thank the Light, thank the Light…" Elo is definitely crying.
Colson offers Ben a hand, as he keeps up a heal, clearly getting close to the end of his mana.
Atley yanks Gwen to her feet and looks around for Ben as he brushes the mage off. He doubletakes the inferno where the ship had been and nods once. "Let's move!" CRUNCH. He pops his arm back into place and rotates his shoulder before he finally tears his gaze off of the ship, as if waiting for something, or someone else.
Gwen squeaks at the sudden yank, scrambling after Atley.
Colson throws another heal Dane's way, panting, as he entreats the Light in a plea for more mana, pls.
Annuvin lets out a sharp cry - still a stormcrow - and swoops down after the others.
Ben steadies himself with Colson's hand, then lowers his head and charges doggedly after the others.
Colson chugs a mana potion as they run.
Atley turns one last time as they leave to scan the wreckage before he jogs down the tunnel.
They rush out into fresh air and sunshine. Atley yanks off his helmet with a grunt, leaving a nice square shaped soot mark over his exposed face. He turns to inspect the others.
Bertrand tilts his face up as they emerge into the sunlight.
As they get into the open air, Colson exhales heavily, and hits down to a knee, breathing slowly.
Ben squints up into the sunlight, squints around them, tilts his head and shakes it like he suspects water in his ear, and then sits down hard in the grass and takes a deep breath.
Gwen just flops to the ground, exhausted. She unclasps her collar, removing her hat, and takes heavy breaths. "It's over…it's over now…"
"I am fine. Mana," Colson explains, before he upends an entire waterbottle into his face, drinking quickly enough that he's no polite company.
Atley catches his own breath as he clasps a hand on Colson's pauldron, and leaves it there. "There's no body," he says to everyone, buzzbox included. "But I'm bloody near certain she didn't survive that."
"WHAT?" Ben squints at Atley.
"She might've," Bertrand says. "There's no body. I'm still to go herd monkeys, sir?"
Oh, right, the monkeys.
Atley doubletakes Ben at the noise, eyes flashing with fondness despite his harsh expression. He marches over to try and clasp him on the shoulder and gives him a shake.
"I… If there is anything, I could make the attempt," Colson says. "But I do not think I could find anything quickly enough. It would take too long for the fire to die down to be safe to look."
"Such a waste," Elo says heartbrokenly. "I'm just… glad you're all all right. Yeah, and if you can get those poor animals out of there at some point…"
Ben is shaken. He looks surprised by this turn of events.
Bertrand offers his brother a clean handkerchief.
Atley moves to stand by Gwen, now, offering her a hand as he looks to Bertrand. "Aye. And I'm to join you." He sighs. "There's nothing left to salvage," he explains to Elohad.
"Back in the mines," Elo clarifies. "The monkeys?"
"She may have made it out with a hearthstone if she channeled it fast enough, but I do not think so. I lost track of the sense of her life," Colson says, tipping his head back.
Ben clambers to his feet. He shakes his head again and says, "Oh." The world is starting to sound normal.
Gwenivene grips Atley's hand to rise more gently this time. "Thank you," she murmurs.
Colson rises back to his feet, casting another soft group heal.
Atley is gentler with her this time as well. He gives her a nod and says, "Aye. That ship's blasted to smithereens, but the beasts are still in there."
[Colson]: Colson takes out his sandwich, preserved by his bags, and eats mechanically but gratefully.
"Bertrand and I'll stay back a time. The rest of you lot are dismissed," Atley explains.
That nasally gnome voice says, "RECONNE–" and then makes a sound that a device should not make. The buzzbox, having been through too much today, finally gives up the ghost and dies.
Atley looks to Bertrand and nods, tugging his helmet on.
"You're well enough to herd monkeys?" Bertrand asks. "If there's an actual professional you can call in, a druid, perhaps…"
Atley grunts and briefly looks away a moment. "Short on druids at the moment." He looks to Annuvin. "'Sides from this one. I'm the help you have."
Bertrand takes the buzzbox from Ben and starts fiddling with it. "Right then." He trudges back towards the mine entrance. Time to rescue some monkeys.
Atley jogs along.