ASTHENOA

[capemods]

WHO: The imPorts trapped in a video game.
WHERE: The virtual world of Asthenoa.
WHEN: 10AM August 26th to 11PM August 31st.
WARNINGS: Violence and fighting. Alert me of anything else for updates.
SUMMARY: A comedy of errors: imPorts are trapped in a Vulcanus-made video game.
FORMAT: As you like it.



Asthenoa is a land set on lush rolling hills under a bright blue sky eternally streaked with clouds. The only celestial variance comes during the nightly setting, where an eternally yellow full moon partially hides behind those clouds. The people of Asthenoa may be human, or elven, or dwarven, or they may have animalistic features, but none of that is of great social concern. Asthenoa has always been this way. The heart of the land is a medieval town set upon one of the highest hills, and the middle of that town sits a majestic stone castle. The busiest part of the town is the center, which hosts the marketplace. There you can buy necessities, or meet the blacksmith and other artisans at their working studios. Beyond the artisanal studios are the taverns and the inns.

Beyond the cheerier inns is a place called The Shriveled Shrike. If you head to the second floor and knock on the third room door thrice and rub your knee against the handle once, it will magically open and expose to you a staircase. People of the Rogue class know this inherently.

The staircase is five flights long. It leads to a black market in a mile long, mile wide underground bunker, where gambling and other darker magicks are indulged. You might meet a necromancer or three. You might run into trouble.

If you were to step out beyond the town, you would have to cross a moat via the drawbridge. It’s always closed up at nighttime, you can only pass during the day.

Beyond the moat (where serpents might swim) is a hilly pasture. Beyond the pasture is an enchanted forest. Strange things happen in these gnarled woods – this is where mystical creatures lurk. Acres of dark wood house sparkling lights and floating orbs and very unusual flora. The fauna includes many mythical beings, including centaurs and fairies and griffins. There could be even more hidden within secret caves or pools of darkening water.

You feel the need to venture past this alluring wood. You feel it deeply.

Comments

OPEN

[wisecracked]

[If there's one thing Kenzi hates it's labyrinths. She hates them in games. She hates them in stories. Hell, she doesn't even like doing maze puzzles. Screw them! They're stupid and confusing and she gets lost easy.

Not to mention there's usually monsters.

Needless to say she's wandering around lost. Jumping at any little noise. For a rogue she certainly is a terrible one, it seems she doesn't even have any kind of stealth ability? What the hell kind of gyp is that? Although it's very likely she just hasn't figured out how to use any kind of stealth should she have it.

If she came in with any sort of party it's very likely she ended up separated. Hopefully she'll run into someone that isn't a monster...]

God, this is like freakin' Gauntlet only less fun. [Only without the onslaught of monsters and "Warrior need food badly" every few minuets.]

rolled an 8, which is flaming headless chicken. hope that's cool

[symmachy]

["Warrior needs food badly" would usually make Scathach laugh, except for the fact that she had actually found herself to be hungry while in town. The usual provisions for this sort of thing was dried meat and hard biscuits, she's sure, but as a vegetarian she had opted for fare a bit fresher--hard bread and some fruits, to be exact. And it is on these snacks that she munches with disdain as she attempts to navigate the labyrinth.

Unsuccessfully, she thinks.

But at least she hears another voice, one that does not sound as if it belongs to a leonine creature. She rounds a corner, swallowing a bite of apple, and raises her eyebrows.]

The gauntlet has never been fun. That's the point.

[wisecracked]

[It would make most people laugh the first few times but after the fiftieth it stops being so amusing.

Kenzi is facing the opposite direction of Scathach and end up jumping and whirling around with her dagger in hand the moment she hears her. When she realizes she isn't a monster she slowly lowers the dagger with a sigh.]

No...it's a game. A game that is more fun than this bullshit.

[Somewhere nearby a clucking noise can be heard. Perhaps right around the corner?]

[symmachy]

[She's impressed by the girl's relatively quick reaction time. Perhaps this isn't her first time in this kind of situation. Scatty's brow creases.]

What sort of game would be about the gauntlet?

[Sometimes, modern technology is lost on her. But she, too, hears the clucking and her nostrils flare before she realizes that her senses have been dulled by this place. She takes one more bite of the apple before turning.]

And I wonder what that was.

[wisecracked]

[Partially her being used to it and partially due to her class. Speed bonuses are nice.]

Uh, it's multiplayer. You're all, like, stuck in this maze with monsters constantly pouring out of places and you gotta beat them and close the gates they come through and...well, I don't really remember what else. It's been a long time since I've played it.

[Kenzi looks around in confusion, she apparently didn't hear the clucking.] What what was?

[symmachy]

[Scatty has yet to discover her minor healing powers. She'll probably be thankful when she does.]

Ah. It sounds like a trip I once took to Greece.

[You know, a few thousand years ago. After she finishes speaking, the Warrior holds up a hand to quiet her newfound companion. She listens, and then turns in the general direction of the clucking. There's a bright glow coming from around the corner, and she's pretty sure she can smell a bit of smoke. She draws her sovnya from across her back.]

Some kind of trouble, no doubt. Prepare yourself.

[wisecracked]

[Kenzi raises a brow and starts to respond before seeing the raised hand. She quickly shuts her mouth in time to hear the clucking. Oh, chickens. In a labyrinth. How weird is that?

And then she sees the glow and instinctively starts to back away, however she has her dagger at the ready.]

[symmachy]

[In just a moment, the creature comes around the corner. Scatty is about to pounce, until she sees what it is.

A chicken.

With no head.

On fire.

It somehow clucks. All she can do is stare.]

Seriously?

[wisecracked]

[Kenzi's just as baffled, even stopping in her retreat to stare.]

Seriously eff this place.

[And despite it being headless it still somehow seems to "look" right at the both of them before turning to charge.]

9 Barking dogwood, that K? (also that reference was divine)

[lucke]

[With how uncertain time seems to be here, Lancer has completely lost track of it. Winding his way through what he's pretty sure is an endless maze, tracking and slaying monsters for what feels like days, sometimes he wonders if this is the culmination of the trap he's found himself in.

As much as he was having fun, the idea that this place was designed to never let them out was a bit of a chilling one.

But he couldn't let himself get distracted. To his mounting concern, the canine tracks that he'd been sleuthing for the last few hours were merging with a human's. Which he deduced meant they were tracking someone as well.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, the tracks seperated, the animal tracks going wide as if to surround the human who Lancer could make out in the distance.

Not only that. One of the creatures was creeping up on her from behind. With practiced ease, Lancer twirled his spear till he was holding it like a javelin and lunges it with all his might. ]

lmao was just about to tag your post (and thank you :3)

[wisecracked]

[For someone who's been jumping at every sound she sure didn't seem to notice the fact she was being followed by a tree dog thing. It's only when she hears the loud yelp as the lance hits the dogwood that she notices something is amiss. She whirls around with her dagger at the ready to see beast turn on the man that threw the lance.]

Oh, shit no. [She quickly skirts around a corner but doesn't go much further. She peers around to see if the guy's going to be able to take care of the beast. If not she might attempt to help.]

[lucke]

That's right you little piece of- [Unfortunately the throw wasn't enough to KO the beast in one shot,thankfully it seemed to have gotten its attention. But what Lancer hadn't counted on was its buddy, who was crouched and waiting for him.

So focused was he on drawing the beast away from the girl that he left himself open as the monster charged his flank.

But hey, Lancer wouldn't be much of a hero if he was downed that quickly. Snapping around he caught the beast by the throat before the momentum of its charge knocks them both prone. With one hand he held the snapping maw at bay while he curls the other around for a series of hooking punches.

Although it seemed to daze the beast a little, it still pressed on trying to make a meal of Lancer's face.]

HUH?! You WANT SOME OF THIS?! I'm going to make you work for your supper you bitch! Come on!

[wisecracked]

[Kenzi nearly yells out about the other one but it seems he sees it quickly enough. But now it's really starting to look like trouble. Sure, he's doing a lot of damage but Kenzi's mind is yelling retreat over and over again. Yet she can't just run off, this guy has kind of saved her ass and she owes him as much to, at the very least, stick around and make sure he doesn't die.

On the other hand...she could lend a hand.

Sucking a deep breath Kenzi rushes forward with surprising speed and slashes out her dagger at the back right legs of one the beasts before continuing past and out of range of it's maw. She tries to aim for the heel joint in hopes to throw it off balance a bit.

At the most she seems to just make it angrier.] Oops.

[lucke]

[Lancer was having about the same effect on the tree-wolf. Its bark-like hide was mitigating the force of his strikes. And pined like this he didn't have access to any weapons he'd looted thus far.]

Aww fuck THIS!

[Anyone who knew the story of how Lancer gained the name Cu Chulainn, Hound of Chulainn, would surely be amused by his tactics now.

If he can't BEAT the dog to death, he knew one sure fire way to kill it. Giving up his strikes he instead just joined his free hand with the one clasped around the creatures neck and squeezed them both into a vice hold, throttling the creature where it stood.

Though it's claws were shredding his attire and cutting him deep whenever their erratic flailing found purchase, Lancer never let go. Giving it everything he had, one eye huge and the other squinted to the point of being closed in his fury, the beast finally quivered in its final moments and went limp.

But he couldn't rest, the commotion around him alerted him to the girl's distress. Tossing the creature aside with a heavy THUMP, Lancer rose to a crouching position before pouncing on Kenzi's pursuer, snapping up the shaft of his spear and driving the creature into the wall and pinning it here.]

You ok?!

[wisecracked]

[While Lancer is busy strangling the one dogwood Kenzi is all over the place trying to avoid the other. Literally, all over. Her speed is enough that it almost looks like she's teleporting around in a short range. Really she's stepping and out of shadows without realizing it. It's a tactic that's certainly working to keep her out of range of the beast and confuse it all at once. There is a down side, however, she's quickly running out of the energy to keep it up. She also can't attack as long as she's continuing to run as she is.

It seems she just continues to have decent luck, however. The beast howls in frustration as it's pinned against the wall and for a moment Kenzi is confused. She was more focused on staying away from the beast that she wasn't really paying attention to anything else. At the sound of Lancer's voice she blinks then slowly nods.]

Y-yeah. [She can already start to feel her adrenaline ebb and a sudden exhaustion beginning to take it's place.]

[lucke]

[Lancer looks relieved to hear it, struggling with the fighting beast who, despite being ran through, still and quite a bit of fight in him.]

Good. But you should probably look away for this next part.

[Without waiting to see if she'll heed his advice, Lancer changes his stance, crouching low and raising his shoulders. With a twitch he pulls free the sovnya from the creature's flank, but when it turns to attack him, he drives it back in.

Straight into its maw and out the back of its head in a clean motion.]

There. [Retracting the spear from his prey and turning back on her.] That wasn't so bad was... [There was another right behind her.] Shit.

15: Wax Men

[promised_victory]

[Saber had been about to greet the woman as she turned the corner, having had no real problem with the maze. The trick of these things tended to be to keep your hand on one wall to keep track and just follow it without removing your hand. It would take a long time, but you were guaranteed to find an exit sooner or later.

Or so Saber hoped. For all she knows the maze is constantly shifting via soem kind of magics or had no exit. In which case the usual solution is completely pointless.

Anyway, she turns the corner, about to say hello to Kenzi and ask if she's all right when she brings up Gauntlet. Saber gives her a confused look and holds up her arm to stare at her gauntlet.]

I thought gauntlets were meant to be practical, not fun. Are you a blacksmith of some sort, milady?

[wisecracked]

[Kenzi jumps at the sudden voice. Being jumpy has suddenly become a specialty of her's since entering the labyrinth.

She stares, wide eyed, for a moment before her gaze drops to Saber's gauntlets.] Uh, no. I didn't mean, like, armor it's a video game...

[promised_victory]

Oh! [She's been in this era enough to know what those are.] I suppose it's about a similar scenario then?

I apologize for the misunderstanding. Would you like company in the maze? There's monsters about and numbers will be our greatest strength should we run into any.

[wisecracked]

Uh, kind of. [Only not really.

She nods, somewhat eagerly.] Don't worry about it and yes! Yes. Company would be great. Fantastic even! [Because she really doesn't want to take on anything on her own in this place.]

[promised_victory]

All right. Let us go then. I'm called Saber. [She holds a fist over her heart and bows deeply.] A pleasure to meet you, madam. I will make sure we leave here safely.

[wisecracked]

Kenzi. [She wants to question what kind of name Saber is but decides that'd be like looking the gift horse in the mouth.] Assuming there is an exit to safety...

[promised_victory]

If anything, we should be able to find the entrance again eventually. Our main concern might turn out to be food if we are stuck here for days.

[Something not present in abundance down here in a volcano of all places.]

Come along. If you keep one hand on a wall and follow the wall you can normally find the exit. It will take a while, but it's the only surefire way I know of.

4!

[paints_lanterns]

[Rapunzel had been doing pretty well until the two lion flowers had attacked her. She had cast some spell thatnhad one of them chasing colored lights in the corner, but the other was about to pounce.]

[She looks absolutely panicked.]

Kenzi! Help!

[wisecracked]

[Kenzi's version of helping is wanting to run in the opposite direction. But...this is her friend in trouble.

She groans before carefully creeping toward Rapunzel and the lion that's after her. She's glad to see the other lion monster is busy with some lights so that one can be worried about later.

With a burst of speed she leaps at the one after the blonde and digs her dagger into the back of it's neck, hoping to get it between the vertebra. Only, that might not be so easy given the weird mane on these things.]

Don't you have any other spells? [Like something more useful than lights?]