Heroica RPG - Heroica Hall

[Emjajoas]

"Sorry. My... roots are showing, huh," Em mutters with a frown. He blinks slowly to clear his mind, then nods. "I know he needs to die. I'm prepared to bleed to kill him, Punii. I'm prepared to die to kill him. You need not worry about my resolve. As I said before, I'll do everything in my power to prevent harm to you, and that includes taking on that monstrosity."

[joeshmoe554]

Jeaux looked around the hall trying to determine who could have placed the note in his briefcase. It sounded like the author was in dire straights and needed assistance from members of Heroica. As desperate as he was to find the answer to what he was missing, he had made a decision to serve Heroica and he could not turn away from that commitment. He approached the quest board and found a notice regarding another letter from this mysterious scribe. It sounded like they needed assistance urgently; however the requester had chosen to wait a full week for responses, hopefully they are not all dead when the heroes finally arrive. Jeaux signed his name on the list for 108.

[Kintobor]

I sigh.

"As they say, if the light is in your life, there is no room for darkness. The most important thing is to know the truth and to embrace it. Every time you do the right thing, you step closer to the light and further from darkness. Doing the wrong thing works the other way around. These days people argue about what is the right thing and the wrong thing to do and they try to rationalize wrong actions, but ultimately everyone has a conscience instilled in them by God which is meant to be a guide to them on the path of light. Granted, people who have their consciences for so long have a detached connection to them, but that is why it is important to heed it when you hear it speaking to you. Certainly yielding to the will of God in your life is almost certain to grant you freedom from any forms of attack from outside influences, especially demons, however, it is not easy to reach that state of mind. It is not just a one-time fix where you claim to believe in God and He solves all of your problems for you. It's a daily living. It requires great dedication; a lifestyle change really. In all honesty though, I have to inform you that demon possession is easier to stay away from than it is to fall into, although things seem to be changing these days as more and more the hearts of humanity turn away from what's right. In the past people found it relatively easy to live a good, worthy life even without the help of God. These days it's far, far harder, because few people really believe in everything. The world is grey to them. They see a demon and think that perhaps it's just a darker shade of grey. But tell me, is it easier for somehow you don't know and whom you are suspicious of to rob from you or to kill you, or is it easier to be killed and robbed from by someone who has your trust? The answer is quite obvious. The main problem with demon possession is that many people more or less invite the demons into their lives by leaving their minds wide open to receiving them. It's not that difficult to spot the workings of a demon, in truth, but these days people seem to be so dull to their workings. I would instruct you in the ways of God, but it is very difficult for people to understand that sort of power. I imagine, from looking at you, that you are not the most religious of sorts. In that case, I would strongly advise that you get a basic foundation. For that, I would strongly advise going to the Temple of Ennoc and learning about him. Ennoc is one of God's chief ministers for warring against demons, some people go so far as to think he is God Himself. In any case, learning of him will likely help you to understand more and know what to avoid and how to fight most effectively against demons to help those who are possessed by them. It is good that you asked me about this. I would be wary of asking too many others, especially if you sense darkness behind them, for some people would use your desire to help those who are possessed and turn it into a fascination for such possession to the point where you will be seeking out to be possessed by demons. It's a dark world and seems to be getting darker, but in darkness is when light shines the most brilliantly."

Karie shrugs.

"'Never really believed in a higher power. I figured if there was one, he would've shown up by now. However, what you say is interesting. The father of Isabeau Carpenter was possessed by a demon. It had apparently made a pact with him when he was at his lowest point. However... well, let's just say me going to the Temple of Ennoc is a bad idea."

Karie halfheartedly laughs, looking a little guilty.

I nearly splutter out when Sorrow mentions Karie being his granddaughter, but I manage to regain my composure quickly enough. My splutter turns into a laugh.

"What stunt are you trying to pull now? Are you attempting to use some machination of the mind to make this girl believe she is related to you? Don't be ridiculous! It will not work."

I turn to Karie. "You see, these are the stunts that demons pull to influence humankind. They make one believe in something that is not at all true. They come in softly, pretending to have no evil intent, but then when you don't suspect, they begin their more dirty work and slowly begin to influence one's mind to the point their target begins to think the story is reality."

I turn back to Sorrow, but continue to address Karie.

"Look at this sad creature, once a decent man, by all appearances, maybe not good, but probably decent all the same, but his body is being used by some necromancer or some demon somewhere to sow confusion and discord in this Hall of Heroes. Cannot the world let the dead rest as they deserve? No. People who seek power but do not receive it from humans look for something else to give them that sense of power, even raising the dead to a state of undeath where the necromancer can possess the body of a corpse. It is a terrible thing."

Karie sternly looked the monk down before speaking.

"If he did have evil intent, why would he not've killed me already? I do believe some of what you say is useful, in fact, I found much of it to be incredibly insightful. However, I have to disagree with you on the notion that all undead are possessed by necromancers."

She looks back to see Sorrow return to sit with Lawrence. Why was he hanging around that clown?

[Zepher]

"Agh. I don't suppose you've met the monk? My granddaughter is a smart enough woman to not get indoctrinated into some false cause, though... That Monk is worshiping the right principles in the wrong way."

"I'm not sure I've had the pleasure," says Boomingham, genuinely not sure if he had ever met the Monk... surely he'd at least seen him around the Hall. "And yes, I'm sure your family is as smart as I am forgetful," Boomingham beams, apparently unable to draw the connection between Sorrow's granddaughter and Karie. "A question, pertaining to our previous conversation, and one that bothers me from time to time whenever I remember to think about it - you think every hero in this Hall is good? Do we have some sort of screening process? I don't recall going through one when I wandered in, but, Hel, truth being told I don't recall much. I hardly recall leaving Strivvi, and that only happened however long ago it happened."

[Endgame]

"We're gonna hafta *wheeze* figure this one out as we go along, aren't we? Figure out how to get into the Citadel, how to take down Iris, *wheeze*, Seerus, The Regret, whatever else he has *wheeze* made... It's gonna be a pretty big struggle, isn't it?"

---------------------------------------------------------

The orange larva looks up at Monk Pretzel.

"You say a lot of words really quickly, mister. Did you notice that too, Karie?"

--------------------------------------------------------------

"Heh, thank you - Karie tries to hide it sometimes, I think, but she's about as smart as they come.

I think none are evil - not all necessarily good, though. Some are amoral, some are maybe even cruel. But no hero in this hall is a villain. We've all done things wrong, Boomingham. If you met me when I was 20, you would've hated me. I was vain, foolish, greedy. I was almost a villain. But I picked myself up and moved on.

I'm sure the Veterans watch over us, though I must admit I can't recall being screened, either. We've been lucky so far."

Edited July 22, 2014 by Endgame

[Emjajoas]

"Yes. It's going to be a struggle. It's going to hurt. It's going to be terrible, Punii, and we're all going to come out with scars."

Em nods. "But the important thing is that we're going to come out. We can win so long as we still stand. Keep your chin up-- or keep your head held high, I suppose."

[Palathadric]

"'Never really believed in a higher power. I figured if there was one, he would've shown up by now. However, what you say is interesting. The father of Isabeau Carpenter was possessed by a demon. It had apparently made a pact with him when he was at his lowest point. However... well, let's just say me going to the Temple of Ennoc is a bad idea."

"God cannot just intervene in the world. He has set some things in place. For instance every one of us has the ability to choose between what's right and wrong. If God were to come and intervene and make everything right it would be denying mankind that choice. For example, that man had a choice to make. I do not know what brought him into that 'low in his life,' but whatever it was he had a choice of whether to let that dampen his fires or force him into even greater deeds. I tell you, Karie, many of the finest heroes here are here because when they had their low times, they refused to give and refused to give up. They determined that their lows would only make them stronger. If I had quit heroing once Daxus had died, if Erik or Mizuki had as well, think of how Eubric would be different? I don't know all that Mizuki and Erik have been up to recently, in fact I wondered if Mizuki was even still around considering how badly she took the blow, but I just heard from her again recently. Got a letter. We are the image of God in this world and we need to act like it."

"If he did have evil intent, why would he not've killed me already? I do believe some of what you say is useful, in fact, I found much of it to be incredibly insightful. However, I have to disagree with you on the notion that all undead are possessed by necromancers."

"Demons purposes rarely are to just kill. They are more crafty and sinister than that, especially the ones that try to get in at your mind. They have an agenda, they always do, but often it's more their design to influence you in some way than to kill you. Can you think of anything that undead may have done to influence you recently. It's more than likely there if you make the decision to really look at it. Of course, if you let your emotions get in the way, then they will cloud your perception, but just think and think hard. Surely he has an agenda, it's your duty to find it. I must ask you though, if undead are not possessed by necromancers then how do they function? Their mind has stopped working along with their body. There has to be someone pulling the strings somewhere. There is a huge difference between healing and necromancy. In rare occasions, by a miracle of God, a man may be healed from death, perhaps to complete a mission on earth, but undead are not healed. They are still just walking corpses. Their minds are switched off."

[CMP]

"I tell you, Karie, many of the finest heroes here are here because when they had their low times, they refused to give and refused to give up. They determined that their lows would only make them stronger."

"Words to live by," remarked Atramor a few tables away, raising his bottle briefly before taking another swig.

[Wedge09]

"My name would be Pius, but I'm sure my siblings would simply respond to you by the color of our hides. Except the yellow, wheezy fellow - he's our elder by a few weeks, actually. His name is Punii."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Pius, and what brings you and your sibling here in the Heroica Hall?"

[-obelix-]

Hybros sits and looks at Thalion. "You do remember our quest some months ago, when we had to deliver the painting device for the newspaper, yes? Well my most recent quest brought me underground to Zylstra and even deeper. The U'Kin doctor, U'Reeka, was experimenting with ancient Moon Elf technology and the painting device. The result was... not good. The device was creating shadow creatures, Shades, that took the people of Zylstra and copied their forms, along with the forms of Moon Elf corpses below the surface. We had no choice but to destroy the box and the creatures, along with the Doctor who would not give up his creations..."

Hybros coughed.

"It turns out the Crimson Crown, one of the organizations to attack us in that square all that time ago, was not all wrong about the machine being dangerous, eheh. We met them again below the surface, and had no choice but to help them seal the Shades' fate. I will not cherish that fact, and I do not agree with the Crown's mission, but... they were right. And they had some way to get down below the surface quickly." Hybros recalls the gaping hole in Eubric, and wondered how they were able to conceal such a large project. "These are confusing times. I thought you should know about the result of our previous quest..."

Thalion sits silently for a while, his head lowered as Hybros tells his story. After weighing everything he heard carefully, he replies, "Thank you for sharing that with me, a truly regrettable turn of events as it is... I feel sorry for the members of the Crimson Crown, I never would have thought that U'Reeka would do something like that... And the machine itself, it seemed capable to produce paintings and nothing more... But then again, such is life, you learn certain things only when certain other things happen, and as you said, these are confusing times... That is why at that time we thought we were doing the right thing by repelling the attackers back then... Still, we are only mercenaries, we are trying to do good, but we are still mercenaries, and as such, only operating with the information we get, which at the time was what it was..." He pauses for a moment, "Tell me, what happened to that gnomish boy, U'Reeka's apprentice - Wally, if I remember correctly? Was he aware what was going on?"

[JimBee]

Thalion sits silently for a while, his head lowered as Hybros tells his story. After weighing everything he heard carefully, he replies, "Thank you for sharing that with me, a truly regrettable turn of events as it is... I feel sorry for the members of the Crimson Crown, I never would have thought that U'Reeka would do something like that... And the machine itself, it seemed capable to produce paintings and nothing more... But then again, such is life, you learn certain things only when certain other things happen, and as you said, these are confusing times... That is why at that time we thought we were doing the right thing by repelling the attackers back then... Still, we are only mercenaries, we are trying to do good, but we are still mercenaries, and as such, only operating with the information we get, which at the time was what it was..." He pauses for a moment, "Tell me, what happened to that gnomish boy, U'Reeka's apprentice - Wally, if I remember correctly? Was he aware what was going on?"

"Mercenaries, yes... I feel that we are making the right choices, but who are we to say what is right and what is wrong? We put a stop to the Crimson Crown and The Plague Doctor, and I have stopped the Shades and many others from succeeding with my blade. I have also helped others, for reasons that at the time seemed right, but I have seen the problems it has caused." Hybros thinks back to one of his earlier quests, during which he allowed Reno Bonaparte freedom. He kept that a secret from most others in the Hall, though. "I opposed Guts, but even he may not be wrong, about change in Eubric and the world..." Hybros sat staring into the tea that he had ordered, pondering the topic.

"I think... I think change must come from the strongest. If no one really knows what is best for everyone, and has no real authority over others, then only the strongest survive and their ideas of change are the ones to affect all of us, for better or for worse. I wonder if people who came before us knew what their change would cause, and what the world would look like today..."

Hybros stares into his cup some more before finally looking up. "I am... sorry. I do not know why this is on my mind." He did have more important things to worry about, but at the same time he wondered if they were related. "Yes, Wally was... there. He helped the Doctor into the tunnels that led from Zylstra to Nu Mercution. The boy was... very attached to the Doctor, and I regret having to kill him. Wally is my friend, but I betrayed his trust, even if I had no choice and it was for the good of everyone else... I am... not sure if he will ever be the same again."

[Endgame]

"Yes. It's going to be a struggle. It's going to hurt. It's going to be terrible, Punii, and we're all going to come out with scars."

Em nods. "But the important thing is that we're going to come out. We can win so long as we still stand. Keep your chin up-- or keep your head held high, I suppose."

"...You're right, Em. *wheeze* Thanks for the advice.

I gotta get these five back to their father soon, though... *cough*"

"It's a pleasure to meet you Pius, and what brings you and your sibling here in the Heroica Hall?"

"Punii, the most diminutive of us, was enlisted by the Sand Queen to participate in a quest - one put up by a blatant villain. I'm not sure what The regret hopes to gain by inviting Heroicans, but-"

"Pius! *wheeze* We've already been here later then we should've. Let's get out of here, and back to the colony."

"Understood."

And with that, the Progg larvae vacate the hall, in a single file line.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Shortly thereafter, a veteran strides into the hall of Heroica, and checks the sign-up board.

Current Sign-Ups for Quest #105: The Eternal Reaper

-Erdathcath Madilinas (The_Customizer)

-Masson Cour (At the request of the Sand Queen)

-Em (Emjajoas)

-Grimwald Gjinko (LordOfTheNoobs)

-Monk Pretzel (Palathadric)

-Alexander Vandangant (Wedge09)

-Lawrence Boomingham (Zepher)

-Heckz Brutenhal (Cutcobra)

-Punii the Progg (At the request of the Sand Queen)

-Karie Alderflask (Kintobor)

"Hmm. The two I sent request to have arrived, but... Dark times await. Dark times..."

The Sand Queen takes a seat as she ponders, distant but seemingly approachable.

Edited July 25, 2014 by Endgame

[Waterbrick Down]

Current Sign-ups for Quest 108: Message in a Bag-of-holding:

Atramor (CallMePie)

Heckz (Cutcobra)

Monk Pretzel (Palathadric)

Thalion (-obelix-)

Grimwald (LordoftheNoobs)

Jeaux (joeshmoe554)

[Zepher]

Current Sign-Ups for Quest 107

Ellaria, level 27 2/3 Druid

Grimwald, level 16 Sage

Atramor, level 32 Regulator

Hybros, level 30.75 Chi Monk

"Heh, thank you - Karie tries to hide it sometimes, I think, but she's about as smart as they come.

I think none are evil - not all necessarily good, though. Some are amoral, some are maybe even cruel. But no hero in this hall is a villain. We've all done things wrong, Boomingham. If you met me when I was 20, you would've hated me. I was vain, foolish, greedy. I was almost a villain. But I picked myself up and moved on.

I'm sure the Veterans watch over us, though I must admit I can't recall being screened, either. We've been lucky so far."

"Who's to say I don't hate you now," laughs Boomingham with a conventional twinkle in his eye. "I'm joking, of course," he elaborates unnecessarily. "I wasn't much of much when I was twenty either. But I don't know if I've done more good since then to make up for the bad I did. Though I was quite the general then, and I did kill a Hel of a lot of invading Orcs and only lost a few men doing, least of all the units I knew, at least-" his eyes mist up- "I promised my men, I sat them down round the camp fire first night we'd left our kingdom, when our armor was still all shiny and what- should have seen it- and I said 'listen boy-os, if anyone is going to die in this mad war it will be me and me first, not a single one of you, and you can write home and tell your mothers I said that' and I imagine quite a few of them did, and Hel, I was telling the truth: I mean, I lost one or two to disease and other stuff I couldn't control, but no more than ten, and of course Old Man Harrington who we all bet on - when he might die... he was really old and could hardly use a sword- even he outlived me." Boomingham licks his lips.

"But, yeah, lucky so far, I guess. If you say so. But yeah, that smart Karie." Boomingham eyes her, unable to remember how she came up even though he was thinking about her - maybe Sorrow just picked up on his glares.

[Emjajoas]

"Goodbye, Punii; Goodbye, Nervo; Goodbye, Trajin; Goodbye, Hadrius; Goodbye, Pius; Goodbye, Marcus; May your travels be safe," Em calls solemnly. He waves to the Proggs as they leave, the corners of his mouth gravitating towards his chin.

"May all our travels be safe," he mutters, striding out of the hall towards the marketplace.

[Endgame]

"A general, and a good one too? Impressive - You accomplished a lot so early. Back then I was just a wanderer. The most I did was kick a few direwolves out of a ranch. Back then, though, I had skin, so I had that going for me, I suppose. Now... just bones and rot. Not too pleasant, but hey, it's enough to get this whole hero business done. It... works, I suppose, but not much more than that."

But, yes, Karie is the best granddaughter I could ask for. Don't tell her that, though, I already embarrassed her enough on our last quest. Have you met?"

[Emjajoas]

Em strides back into the hall, placing his two Grating Stones and Crimson Haze (Causes a weapon to deal the poisoned by 7 and cursed effects permanently) on the table in front of him. "Looking to trade these Grating Stones and Crimson Haze for shield upgrades. I'd be willing to part with them for 80, 90, and 100 gold respectively. I will also trade the Grating Stones for Bright Polish, as it will come out to the same thing."

He gestures towards his bag.

"Any other equipment I'm not using I can negotiate a price for."

[CMP]

Atramor glanced sideways at the armored ranger peddling off a small variety of items. The vial of glowing red liquid caught his eye, reminding him fondly of his time as a witch. He missed the allure of poisoning his enemies...the regulator shrugged, making a quick trip to the marketplace.

After he returned, he dropped a bag of 100 coins in front of the man, scooping up the vial and holding it up to the light gingerly.

"I've seen a lotta different venoms in my time mate, but damn if this stuff don't look foul."

[Cutcobra]

Heckz enters the Hall once again. He's relieved to know that the little Proggs aren't there anymore. Then, he notices Em selling some interesting items, so Heckz approaches him.

"Hello Em! It's good to see you."

He says as he puts on a fake smile, hoping to get a discount.

"That's a fancy thing you got there..."

He then notices Atramor put 100 gold, so he puts 125 gold on the table. Then he gives Atramor a nasty look.

Edited July 23, 2014 by Cutcobra

[The_Customizer]

Erdathcath notices the two bargaining for the items Em has placed available, and decides to join in. "Em darling, perhaps you would take 150 gold for the Crimson haze? It is of utmost importance that I use this for my Handcannon. Perhaps there is also something of mine you would like?"

Edited July 23, 2014 by The_Customizer

[Cutcobra]

"Will you really give the poison to these two, instead of your dear old friend?"

He says as he makes his gold 151.

Edited July 23, 2014 by Cutcobra

[The_Customizer]

"Ah, I see that you are attempting to pull the 'friend' card to manipulate your friend into selling you an item? I must disagree with your attempts. Em, perhaps 160 gold would be better?"

[Zepher]

Boomingham, never to miss a bidding war, spring up from his table. "Excuse me," he mumbles to Sorrow, but a concealed look of disgust and panic slides over his face, replaced immediately by a sweet smile. "I must see what Em has gotten everyone in an excitement over." Boomingham ambles over to the table. His eyes fall on the highly contested Crimson Venom... but tapping his pocket, he recalls that though he has been out Eubric for months on business of the Watch, he was never compensated in any way for it - the third time this has happened to him in his Heroica career. He sighs elaborately - it is an item he wants desperately, but sadly cannot afford. He makes fleeting eye contact with Em.

"Hopefully it will serve whoever you gift it to in their quest to slay evil," he says with a morose shrug.

[Cutcobra]

Idiot tree...

"How dare you call me a 'manipulator'? I am not, I'm just an honest hearty mage who needs some venom for reasons unknown, and luckily, my friend has such venom."

He says as he adds 161 gold.

Edited July 23, 2014 by Cutcobra

[The_Customizer]

"I dare call you anything I wish to. I am your elder by over 160 years, I do not believe you have much room to speak with. In either case, I cannot allow you to win the poison." Erdathcath places down more gold, totaling 162.