The hole runs straight through the stone, perfectly circular, from one side to the other.  As Chance moves closer, and peers into the opening, he notes a peculiarity which had been invisible from further away.  The inside of the hole is covered with fine writing, or at least rows and lines of odd symbols which might be writing.  The lines spiral around the interior of the hole, and certain groups and combinations of symbols are repeated at irregular intervals.


Lexy studies Trgiaob, standing quietly just two yards from Trista.  "As far as we are aware, we do not serve the Seraphim.  We are travellers though."

The Archon turns its head to regard her, + WHY ARE YOU IN THIS PLACE?  IT IS DANGEROUS FOR YOUR KIND. +

Chance shakes his head. "Okay, Rosetta," he muses, "what are you trying to tell me." He glances around his environment, knowing that if there were an Archon nearby, preparedness would only lengthen his suffering anyway. He braces himself and leans closer for a better look at the symbols.

What little he knew of linguistics said this was probably some form of language, given how symbols and groups of symbols repeated.

"Or maybe I'm the one that should be leaving a Rosetta stone.

He adopts a sitting position atop the stone, next to the hole, as he thinks. The others would probably have a better idea of what to do with this. Among humans, writing was used to convey or store information. He felt certain this was an Archon's doing, remembering Cyan's pair of followers and how one of them demonstrated their precision by writing on the table. He doubted this Archon was writing down a recipe for Chicken Soup--so who was it trying to talk to?

"Hey Eben," he calls out. "Any idea what these symbols say in here? Come take a look."
This message was last edited by the player at 13:47, Thu 21 Aug 2008.

As Triagob speaks, Trista’s mind grasps for snatches of knowledge imparted by Berd. All the factions she’s heard about, into which does this one fit? Certainly not the Seraphim by the passive behavior he displays. And by his last question… interesting.

Why isn’t Chance here? He’s the diplomat. He would know what to ask, here. Me? Not a chance. Trista lets out a tiny little snort at her inward pun, glances sideways at Lexy, “Sorry,” and stills her face again. She’s meant to play guard, not think circles around what to ask.

Then her mind lights upon a possibility. Nephelim? Didn’t they actually like people?

Trista re-focuses on the conversation at hand. “Why is it dangerous to us?”

Trgiaob rises smoothly to its feet in a single sedate motion which leaves it towering over the two women.

+ THE SERAPHIM HAVE DAMAGED THIS WORLD, WE BELIEVE.  OTHER NEARBY PLACES ARE BLEEDING INTO IT, WEAKENING IT, AND THEM.  THE SMALL ONE WHO TRAVELS WITH YOU IS A CLEAR SIGN OF THIS.  THIS IS NOT TRULY HER HOME, THOUGH IT IS CLOSE. +

Lexy gives Trista a sharp look, "That might explain Katie's slightly different version of history."

+ SUCH MINGLING OF WORLDS, TO WEAKEN THEM, IS OFTEN A SIGN THAT THE SERAPHIM ARE TAKING AN INTEREST IN A PLACE. +


Eben wanders over to the stone, with its mysterious bore hole, "Looks like writin', but not like what's used in these parts.  'cept maybe out at some o' the further farms, where they didn't see much school."

"What made this?  Nothin' could make a smooth hole like this, so quick."

Trista tenses at the creature’s words; the need to safeguard Katie rises quickly. Katie and her world. She throws a tight nod toward Lexy and then focuses on Triagob again. “Trgiaob,” it doesn’t sound right coming from the woman’s lips, but she does her best to pronounce the Archon’s name, “you are an observer here? Do you know why the Seraphim have taken an interest?

She pauses for only a moment, weighing her words. Best to just ask, “And more importantly, are you willing to help these worlds?”

+ AGAINST THE SERAPHIM, WE COULD DO LITTLE.  COULD YOU DEFEND THIS WORLD, ALONE, AGAINST A THOUSAND OF YOUR KIND?  AGAINST TEN THOUSAND?  A MILLION?  WITH ALLIES, SUCH AS THE NEPHELIM, WE COULD, PERHAPS, MAKE A STAND HERE.  BUT WE ARE NOT OF THE NEPHELIM... WE ARE ALONE.  TRAVELLING, EXPLORING, LEARNING WHAT WE CAN BEFORE ALL IS DESTROYED. +

The Archon's harsh mnetallic voice, manages to sound lonely and sad, + WHEN THIS WORLD IS GONE, WE WILL STILL PRESERVE THE MEMORY OF SPIDERS.  THIS IS OUR PURPOSE. +

The blades begin to move faster, and briefly they disconnect from the skin, becoming a wheel of clashing steel, which scatters showers of sparks across the grass.  + THE SERAPHIM TOO HAVE A PURPOSE.  SINCE THEY LEARNED OF THESE WORLDS, THEY HAVE COVETED THEM.  WE BELIEVE THEY WISH TO CONQUER, AND MAKE ALL OF YOUR WORLDS INTO PLACES WHERE ARCHONS CAN RAISE YOUNG.  THE SERAPHIM ARE AN ARMY, BUT EVERY MEMBER OF THAT ARMY DESIRES ITS OWN ARMY, WITH WHICH TO IMPOSE ITS WILL ON THE REST. +

Trgaiob pauses briefly, befor adding, + WE HAVE HEARD THAT A HUMAN TRAITOR DIRECTED THEM HERE, TO THIS WORLD, AND TO OTHERS. +
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:00, Thu 04 Sept 2008.

Chance rubs his chin as Eben speaks. "I doubt this would be the work of farmers, though. Perhaps whatever made it meant to imitate their writing, but I can only guess at what made it." Pretty accurate guess, though, he thinks.

"Well, we should probably keep going and just keep our eyes open for trouble. I don't know what else we could do here. What do you think?"

+ ONCE THEY SET THEIR MINDS TO TAKING ONE OF YOUR WORLDS, THERE IS LITTLE THAT CAN BE DONE, BEYOND PERHAPS DELAYING THE END TO SOME SMALL DEGREE. +

The Archon tilts its head, gazing up at the sky, + SOMETIMES THE WORLD ITSELF WILL FIGHT BACK.  THE ESHURIANTI DISLIKE WATER, SO EXCESS MOISTURE IN THE ATMOSPHERE CAN SLOW THEM, AT LEAST WHILE IT CONTINUES.  EVEN SO, IT IS USUALLY ONLY A BRIEF DELAY. +

As if to emphasise the point, it starts to rain.  Large drops, seeming almost lazy in their descent.  Trgiaob's blades move faster again, and those droplets which fall close to the Archon seem to explode into mist...


Eben regards Chance thoughtfully, as if unsure just how much of a guess the man would be making.  Then he turns back towards the wagon.  "We needs to move.  Reckon it's comin' to rain soon."

He nods towards the sky, above the valley behind them.  Dark clouds are gathering there now, pierced by occasional swift-moving shafts of sunlight.  As Chance follows the man's gaze, something gleams in one of those shafts, just below the clouds, like a glittering disk of polished metal, no bigger than a pin's head at this distance...


Trgiaob's eyes drop, to meet Trista's, + THEY ARE HERE. +

To have more experience. To have more knowledge. To have those who know…

Trgaiob doesn’t impart good news to Trista, though its sentimentality touches her in an odd way. Stormy eyes reflect the anger brewing inside the woman. What right? What point to devour without thought. Pointless question, and she knows it.

“There has to be a way,” she retorts, “A way to stop them. Our worlds deserve preservation in more than memory.” Eyes soften and she adds, “Thank you, Trgaiob. Perhaps it is the Nephalim I need to seek. Otherwise, I’m at a loss.”

Then the rain.

And the foreboding news. Trista’s eyes open as the creature’s words take root and she immediately turns to look for Katie. Once she knows she’s safe – for now – she turns back, “I may only be able to delay, but I have to try.”

Turning to Lexy, she speaks in hurried words, “Can you reach Chance from here? We need to tell him of this.”

The small black bird stops to rest, finding a branch on a tall tree. It has been a long journey with little reward and the creature looks forward to seeing "The Woman" again. The insects crawling on the bark make a fine meal.

ämi can still feel Her having never completely released the connection, but it is weak, though growing stronger all the time. Finally he is close enough now to pick out important bits from Her thoughts.

Trista doesn't have to look far to find Katie.  The child is running up the ramp towards the group who are conversing on the clifftop.  As she runs, she is crying out excitedly, "I sawed a star that danced!  It was in the clouds, and... "  She spots Trgiaob, and her words stop abruptly, becoming a scream.

The Archon shifts form, becoming a wheel of blades.  "BEHOLD!" it proclaims, and a swarm of assorted butterflies, bees, and birds burst forth from the empty space at its heart.

Katie stops screaming, though her mouth remains open.  Her eyes grow round, as she watches the scattering creatures darting out across the meadow.

Out above the lake, there is a flash among the clouds, Katie's "star" blazes brightly now, rain-dimmed sunlight, breaking through a sudden break in the cloud cover and reflecting from metal.

Lexy turns to Trista, "Chance may have moved away from the water.  I can't feel him."  Then, quietly, as an afterthought, "Or something might have happened to him."


The Archon drops rapidly, coming across the water towards the cluster of humans, and Trgiaob.  Behind Lexy, the rain seems to redouble in its intensity, curtains of water swirling around each other, and then...

... and then the waters of the lake seem to leap skyward, spinning, forming a tornado-like column which envelopes the lone Archon.

"Go!"

Damn.

The girl won't take this well, of course. And so Trista immediately moves toward her as she finishes speaking to Lexy, but not reaching the girl before she sees the Archon and a piercing shriek slices through her excited babble. Trgiaob displays his true self amidst a fluttering of tiny creatures, and the girl goes into shock.

Chance can't be reached, and time runs out.


She's confronted this choice before: to be the warrior and boldly face the enemy or to be the protector and bring safety to the innocent. There is no hesitation - she will protect the innocent Every. Blessed. Time.

Trista scoops the shell-shocked little girl up, hugging her close as she runs toward the village, her body confident and her step sure. Her thoughts, on the other hand, race and scatter, worrying over Lexy, Chance, and the gentle Archon.

And over Katie.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:39, Fri 19 Sept 2008.

Chance stares off at the darkening clouds for a moment, trying to catch another glimmer. This was too much. Too many warning signs all at once made him uncomfortable. Sure, he had made a promise to the town, but he never said when he would help clear the road.

"You know, Eben," He says, "I just realized I dropped my lucky coin back there, by the water. Why don't you go on ahead, and I'll catch up after I look for it. In fact, I know a thing or two about storms, you might want to find shelter for a little bit. This one is going to be ... something else. I'm serious, now. I've seen this kind of storm before."

Without waiting long for a reply, he stuffs his hands in his pant pockets and saunters off towards the water, intending to quicken the pace when Eben is further away.

Trgiaob moves swiftly towards Trista and Katie, shrinking until no bigger than a dinner plate.  The clashing metallic voice, somewhat quieter now, asks the young woman, "DO YOU REQUIRE ASSISTANCE?  WITH OUR COLLECTION RELEASED, WE COULD EASILY TRANSPORT YOU."


Chance heads back down towards the stream, while Eben, not requiring any further urging, gets his wagon moving along the road, and away from the water.


From where Chance stands, he can see the lake, seemingly rearing up to hammer against the clouds, a rapidly rotating column of water and floating debris, and then the gleaming metal ring breaks loose of the ascending torrent...


Above and behind Trista, the enemy Archon appears again, moving a little erratically for a moment, before plunging down towards Lexy.  The woman glances at Trista, and begins to change shape, becoming a spinning hoop of water.

Thinking Trgiaob intends to escape as the now-small archon reaches her swiftly, the creature's words take Trista off guard. It offers assistance, but full trust isn't easily extended.

Still in motion, Trista's thoughts fling about. First remembering the other archons she's seen. Then the words of Berd and Dorian. The little spider Trgiaob handled with such care. The myriad of creatures let loose from the archon. Collection? He was keeping them alive and safe.

“Yes, if we can bring Katie to the village, warn the others, would you bring me back here?” Trust tenuously extends to her bladed ally as she comes to a halt and faces Trgiaob, “I would appreciate the help.”

To Katie, she whispers, “Trust me and close your eyes. We're going for a short ride.”

The Archon expands again, rising above Trista and Katie, to lay horizontal in the air above them for a moment, and then it drops...

Trgiaob rises again, leaving nothing but a ring of freshly cut grass where Trista and her young charge had stood.  Then the Archon blurs away through the air, towards the village.

High above the lake, in the hills, Chance hears a sound rolling up from the distant water.  It is a sound which probably only two people in this world might recognise, and one of those two is not in a place where she can hear it just now.  The sonic boom echoes back from the surrounding hills, startling Eben and his animals...

Chance glances in the direction of the sound, unsure of what it meant. Knowing what it was didn't tell him if it was friendly or hostile. Things were feeling out of control, and in a way he wasn't comfortable with. He frowned, glancing back towards Eben. He hated to leave the man unprotected, but worry over Trista overwhelmed him. He had just found her. He couldn't stand the thought of losing her. One archon here meant there would be more. There were always more.

He turns back to the water. "Lexy," he says. "Can you take me to Trista?"

Though she has extended trust to Trgiaob, the site of the creature expanding and hovering above her and Katie sends shiver down Trista's spine. I made a mistake!

But she stands fast, her eyes reflexively slamming shut as the archon drops around them. Lexy's voice suddenly cuts off, and Trista opens her eyes to see... nothing. Emptiness. No sounds, no lights, no color. Not hot, not cold. The woman gulps and sooths a hand through Katie's hair.

"I can try.  The ride may be rough, I'm a little preoccupied."

Chance suddenly finds himself on his knees, in about six inches of water at the edge of the lake.  Above him a hoop of water whirls through a deadly dance with one of the danioti, under a sky filled with a sprawling, rotating cloud formation, blazing with flickers of lightning.  Torrential rain falls upwards from the surface of the lake, is focussed and directed through Lexy's elemental form, and hammers into the Archon.

A twelve inch sliver of razor-sharp metal splashes down only a yard from Chance.  An upward glance reveals two more Archons ripping through the storm clouds and...

... Chance is back in the town, kneeling outside the chapel.  Around him, people are gathered nervously, staring down towards the lake.  The waters have receded from the dock, leaving boats laying on the exposed mud and weed.  A few fish are flapping about helplessly.  Far off, in the distance, a storm rages.

And then an Archon appears, hurtling into the crowded area and somehow failing to injure anybody.  It hovers before Chance, and a Trista steps from the empty space at the creature's core, with a small child, eyes tightly closed, gripping her hand...
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:27, Fri 03 Oct 2008.

Chance flinches at the sight of the Archons in the water, trying to get his bearings. Then, finding himself suddenly in town, flinches at the appearance of a second Archon--already preparing to throw himself between it and the townsfolk. Too late, it is already among them.

He sees Trista, somehow emerging from the belly of the beast.

Archons ... water ... inverted Rosetta stones ...

Before he can think he is on his feet and sweeps Trista up in an embrace, arms wrapping around her tightly.

Then, just as suddenly, but more awkwardly, he steps back. "I mean," he looks down and runs his fingers through his hair. "You okay?"

Emptiness gives way to the town with sky, buildings, people, and Chance kneeling before the church. Ironic. Before Trista can say anything, the man ran rises and she finds herself clutched closely to him. Startled, she brings her free hand up to return the embrace. It's been far too long since anyone greeted her in such a manner, and because of that she doesn't know quite what to do. Or say. Or think.

Behind her confusion, like a single note of an oboe in a cacophonous orchestra, lies a pleased appreciation for his warmth.

Concern fills her eyes as he steps back and she sees his soaked jeans. “Yeah,” she quietly responds, “I'm okay. But what about you? What happened to you?”

She wants to ask more, but after he responds, there's no time to lose and she continues on. “Archons are here. Interested in this world, or one of the worlds... they're bleeding into one another. I -” she cuts off as she crouches beside Katie.

“It's all right, you're home. Do you see your parents?” If she does, Trista encourages her to go to them. If not, she holds on all the more tightly to the girl.

Rising again, Trista draws closer to Chance, speaking in hurried, low tones. “Lexy is up against one. I told her I'd return to help. Trgiaob here,” she gestures to the patient Archon, “can bring us back to her. He's (no longer an it in her mind) one of the observing kind. I want to help these people but I don't know how unless we can stop a possible invasion if more show up. And Lexy needs our help.

“Will you come with me?”

"Oh, yeah," he says, looking down at his jeans. "Just a bumpy ride is all."

He watches as she talks to the child, unsure where the kid came from. As usual, his composure recovers almost immediately. The momentary awkwardness might never have existed given his features now.

"Yeah, I think we can stop one, but I'm not so sure about an invasion. No way to stop that from happening if it does, though. Let's go help her."

He steps back as his clothing flutters in an invisible wind and begins to change.  Glossy black plates and high-tech gray mesh replace jeans and t-shirt. An opaque faceplate drops over his features, from a helmet. The high-tech armor whines as internal power fires up, bringing targeting systems and automated defenses online.

Thick plated gloves finger a string on the guitar, spawning a gentle note.

His voice is metallic and distant. "Ready."

Katie looks about nervously, but she doesn't look nearly as nervous as the crowd which is pulling back from the hovering Archon.  Finally the girl points at one man, "Uncle Bak!"  She starts to run towards the confused-looking man who, nonetheless, does seem to recognise her.

She stops, and turns, running back to Trista, and giving her a quick hug, "Thank you."

Behind Trista, the Archon's voice suddenly booms out, and a number of the people start to run.  Others simply fall where they are, laying on the hard ground.

"WE SHOULD HURRY.  MORE HAVE ARRIVED."

And then, the wheel darts forward, dropping over Trista and Chance, before darting away again, leaving only an empty space in the market square.

Katie, holding the hand of her uncle, points to the place where the pair had stood.  "Magic, like Berd the Cat."


Trista and Chance are in a place where nothing exists except them.  It is neither warm nor cold, and there don't appear to be any walls, though there is sufficient light to see some distance in every direction.  For that matter, there doesn't really seem to be a floor, though they can feel that they are standing on something.

There is a blurring in the air, and a sort of circular window appears, displaying a view of the lake, and the surrounding hills and valleys.  The scenery is flashing past at incredible speed, and ahead, in the distance, there is a column of spinning water, lightning, and three gleaming metallic discs...

Trista mirrors Chance's backward step, putting more distance between the two as t-shirt and jeans give way to sleek black metal. She blinks hard. And I was sent along as a bodyguard for him? Against archons, he appears much more capable than Trista. Franky, it vexes her.

But there's no time to dwell as Trgiaob announces more of the enemy and their ally encloses them for the ride. The poor townsfolk will be talking about this for years to come, embellishing it as time goes by.

If they survive.

She attempts to send ämi a message, but cannot feel him inside this... place. This time, they're allowed a window to peer through. Tension quakes every muscle as Trista takes in what is happening ahead. “He's right, there are more.” Her hand wraps around the handle of her solitary machete. Normally, she would be strategizing, but right now, she doesn't know what she'll do against creatures such as these with Chance's hi-tech suit and her single blade. She shakes her head, though determination keeps her from hopelessness.

There's always a way.

Isn't there?

She takes a deep breath and glances at Chance, “Hurry, Trgiaob, hurry. I don't know how long Lexy can hold against them.”

Beneath the mask, Chance's visage shows hints of concern. He doesn't know how Trista will perform against Archons, but he knows he has little to bring against them. Remembering what he saw in Cyan's camp, he doubts the armor will mean much against those horrible, spinning blades. They'll carve through the armor as easily as flesh. He bows his head and tries to keep his breathing regular. What else can he do? He can't flee this battle, like he has so many times in his past. He doubts staying will be much better. He'll either die or be as useless as he was in Charyk. That's my fate, he thinks. Useless, little more than pretty decoration, standing among gods.