In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 132):

I look for a drying line and some human clothes in my size.  Then I 'liberate them for the Cause'.  After that I choose an easily identifiable and hidden place, don the clothes and bury my armor.

GE 21

After much searching, you locate a sufficiently out of the way drying line. You remove your armor and approach. You are right in the middle of finishing getting dressed when a young girl of perhaps 12 comes out of the house. Her mouth drops open when she sees you. A moment later, a Tuatha soldier comes up behind you. He puts his weapon, a blade of some sort to the back of your head.

The little girl sees you and the solider about the duke it out and, thinking quickly,  she squeals "Uncle Bob!!!!" Then she winks at you and approaches and throws her arms around you and hugs you like there's no tomorrow.

The Tuatha soldier is thrown by this. He just stands back and watches.

The girl's parents come out. She gestures to you and says "Look mom!!! It's Uncle Bob!!!" The mother coyly nods back. You are invited into their house.

The solider asks if everything is alright. The mother and the daughter both nod vigorously insisting that everything is fine and practically drag you into the house through the back door.

Seems like if you just shut up and go along with things, you'll get out of this.

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 18:57, Mon 21 Oct 2019.

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 134):

I go along with this, acting happy to see my 'niece'.

Once inside, the girl and her whole family gather around you. Her father is excited. He says:

"You're him, right? You're the Torcless One. You've come to liberate us all, right?"

The mother and daughter are likewise excited. Apparently they've heard of your exploits.

(Doing Therapy)

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 136):

"Uh, yes.  What have you heard, and what are the Tuatha saying?"

The father is excited. It's like he's met his hero in person.

"Is it true that you've liberated over 21 cities? You've murdered thousands of Tuatha? Can you really throw fireballs from your bare hands and rip the torcs open too?"

The mother says "Hush now darling. This gentleman needs our help too." Then she asks if you'd like anything to eat.

And the daughter says "Can you teach me to throw fireballs?"
This message was last edited by the player at 00:04, Thu 24 Oct 2019.

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 138):

"Three cities, a few hundred Tuatha, and I can take off torcs, which I can do for you if you like.  As to fireballs, not exactly, just a fire thing. And yes, I would love some cooked food.  Eating game cooked over a campfire is good, but actual food at a table would be nice."

"Sorry about the fireballs, kiddo."

The family looks rather disappointed. But they quickly brighten up. That's what you get for listening to hersay.



OOC) You're not wearing your armor. If you could scrounge up the blacksmithing tools, you could make more armor for people. Just saying. Kinda surprised you've not done that.

Yes, they all want the torcs taken off. Do you know what a Tuatha, even a child, can do to you if you're wearing one? Once it's off though, their brain powers are completely useless.



The guy kind of stammers and says "Sir, it IS going to be game cooked over a campfire. But we do sit at a table and commune with one another. So there's that."

And wild vegetables. A potato/onion hybrid tasting thing. And yes, they do know of that poisonous  plant you're carrying. It's a popular salad garnish. You're probably going to have some with dinner.

The guy is shocked. He kind of quietly screams "You mean to tell me that this whole time, we've had access to the means to decimate their entire population once and for all and nobody ever realized it????"

He's furious.




With the eye of a comic book geek looking over a player of cos, a piece of cosplay, a cosplayer in an X-Man suit, whatever tickles your groove, she looks you over, and exclaims "Of Course!!!! You're not wearing your magical gloves!!!! Could you make me a pair of magical gloves?"

She means the gauntlets, of course.

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 22:37, Thu 24 Oct 2019.

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 140):

"I'll be glad to take off your torcs." And I do that.  "Now remember, you have to wear the torc, but just keep the break hidden inside a high necked shirt or something.  Don't want to advertise that you are a free human, eh?"

I'm a little dissappointed at the food, but I nod.

"Even a table will be nice.  Thank  you, sir."  I smile gratefully.

"Brother," I say to the furious man. "Now you know, and knowing is half the battle. We can free humankind."

I nod to the girl.

"You know, that is a very good idea.  Now, I'd need a forge, and iron and hammers, and some place to work where I would not be bothered by wandering Tuatha snooping...."

The coarse food comes with lively joking and banter. Roast Rabbidillo. It's a mating of a rabbit and an armadillo, as far as you can tell. The salad is the onion/potato hybrid, onions, potatoes and the Tuatha poison. It's quite tasty.

The little girl tells you of some pranks she and her friends played on the Tuatha children.

"Me and Billy got Torced for it. But it was worth it!!"

Getting Torced is when they mentally choke you out.

The mother wonders about how we could poison enough Tuatha to make a difference. And how to coordinate the humans? You're talking about a single strike? Or are you going to take them out a few at a time? What's your plans?

"I've got friends who serve in high class restaurants. Maybe they could do something....."



The father agrees. He embraces you. He's dreamed of plans to take them out, but never did he have access to the means to go through with it.



You gotta go outside and get your gauntlets first. But when you do:



You notice that the guy's next door neighbor has a blacksmithing forge. The guy is fairly certain he'll let you use it. But first you have to make a torc for yourself. No crystals on the inside, no locks, but something that looks legit. It's a miracle the Tuatha who were here before didn't see that you weren't wearing one.

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 01:08, Tue 29 Oct 2019.

I enjoy my meal with them and laugh delightedly a few times.

==============

"Brave child.  Humanity will need bravery in the free future." I reply to the girl's story.

=================

I agree out loud with the mother.  I tell them we need to think about it.  "Its like finally having a sword.  You still need to learn how to swing and slash with it.  Its not magic."

===========

Right. I expect the Tuatha suffered from the usual blindness of expectation.  We all see what we expect to see sometimes.  I set to work on making a torc if the man of the house can get his neighbor to let me use the forge.

So you do.



The girl is taken by that. She really appreciates it. She says "I wish. I wish you were the king...."



She takes some of the herb and promises to get it to her friends. For the moment you've not done anything. But we'll let you know.



He'll let you use the forge. He'll even supply the coal and iron and whatnot that you need. But you have to make for him one of the magical gloves.

"Ya see, I gots to report to the greenies how much coal and whatnot I be using. Ain't hard to doctor the books...... make it look like I ain't using as much. But I'll tell you what, my conscience would be a whole lot clearer if'n I had me one of them magical gloves....."

Deal or no deal, but that's it.

(Doing Therapy)

"Are you going to use the glove to help humans?" I say, and if he agrees then I'm all for it.  I tell him I have to make a pair of gloves for another first, but he's second on the list.

GE 25

He laughs at you.

"Buddy, Imma beat me some Tuatha freaks to death with it. And if you don't like that, I'm under no obligation to let you use my forge. And I might even report your sorry scheme to the local authorities. You following me son?"

He's making a half-hearted attempt to blackmail you. Although I imagine your response is going to be something like Morgan Freeman's.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z6o1GIEsQE

(Doing Therapy)

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 146):

"I like the first idea..." I say slowly as I light my glove, and stare through him.  "The second not so much."  If he makes a move, I light him up with fire and then finish him with a sword.

He puts his hand up in a thumbs linking hand shake. Ya know, a handshake where it looks like you're arm wrestling?

"Deal brother. Use the forge. I just want the first a them thar gloves ya'lls goan make."

He shaking your hand in peace. Apparently he was just posturing. People don't get to do that here very often.

So, free use of the forge.

Whachadoin?

Your sword can morph, actually all of your armor can morph somewhat. Change size, etc. It's nano tech. The sword can become a hammer.

Anyway.....

(Doing Therapy)

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 148):

Build the girl some gauntlests, then the guy who is letting me use his forge, .....eat, sleep, hammer, eat, sleep, hammer....

You make the girl some gauntlets. Her parents forbid her from using them outside of the house. However, every member of the family trains to use them. But only inside where they won't be seen. There might come a day when they need to. They're fairly practical as a family. They each know their place. If you would like, you could make one more gauntlet and then they'd each have one. But that's your choice. Dad will take the left-handed one.

Mr. Forge gets his. He disappears the next day. The story around the campfire is that he promptly proceeded to punch a Tuatha in the face with it. He's immediately surrounded by Tuatha warriors. Apparently tries to use the gauntlet weapons. Apparently botches. Anyway, long story short, he's dead. The gauntlet is fried. It is no longer functional. But it is in possession of the Tuatha magistrate. Mr. Forge's family are denying all knowledge of it. So is the family you're with.

So you're safe, but in a bit of trouble?

Making anything else?

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 19:58, Sun 10 Nov 2019.

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 150):

Try to camoflage the forge a bit, make it so it won't be obvious where the smoke comes out.  Make new gauntlets for everyone.

Mr. Forge was stupid, but understandable.  I think if I can make a LOT of gauntlets and get people with practise in them the Men should be better off.  And the magistrate....??  We'll see.

Camouflaging the forge? Not a really good idea. Mr. Forge was known to the Tuatha. He did business with non-combative civilians. His family lived somewhat better than most because of this. It's kind of unspoken that you are to take up that role. It won't be much for you to do. Just an occasional repair. You'll have plenty of time to make gauntlets or whatever. It is camouflaged. Hiding in plain sight. And you'll have a few extra bucks to spend on whatever.



Your family talks to others in the area. Soon you've got something of an underground network. Underground railroad perhaps? People are gathering the poison plants. Others are gathering metal for you to make gauntlets from. They're waiting for the right time to strike and apparently that is your decision.

(Doing Therapy)

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 152):

Ok. I'll make the Tuatha their little things.  And in my off time, I make more gauntlets.  Do I have an idea about how many Tuatha there are in town?

It's nothing major. A Tuatha mother and son come over and ask you to repair the kid's bicycle. The smile on his face when you're finished almost makes you forget he's your mortal enemy. Almost.

Little things like that you do. You get paid for it. The family you're with is grateful for the extra income. You're pulling your own weight and then some.



And so you do. More than once you get questioned by Tuatha patrons about what you're doing, but I'm sure you come up with a satisfactory excuse. You're expected to drop everything in the middle of everything and work on Tuatha projects at a moment's notice. It's..... irritating.



How many blacks are in Washington DC? That's about how many Tuatha there are here.

(Doing Therapy)

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 154):

I look for more blacksmiths to teach how to do this.  We need a couple orders of magnitude more force.

You cannot teach a blacksmith how to make the armor. They must have an entire suit of Isis armor to make the armor. It will take you months to make one full suit.

The gauntlets are working out though. A sort of Fight Club opens up where they train each other. Tuatha have not discovered any new gauntlets. Things are cooling down on that front.

What else ya doing?

(Doing Therapy)

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 156):

I try to recruit some trusted assistants.  Sure I have to do the actual smithing, but someone else can be a gopher and speed the process up.