nick012000
Gone for Good
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It's a pity that White Dragon's dead. I wouldn't have minded seeing him meet Blitzen. It probably would have been hilarious.
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If she is, I suspect that she's very entertained.
"I am Despara, a Force Captain in the Horde."
"Despara?" From the sound of her voice I don't think that Evelyn is impressed by the try-hard name
So use trickery and deceit. Classic Paul tactics when he doesn't think brute force will win the day. I wonder what the Sorceress will think of this when she comes back?
He was mentally emphasising the two parts separately.
runes -> runs ?
up -> us ?
It's probably a very good thing she's unlikely to say the trigger phrase by accident. Otherwise she'd be very, very confused. And I would not be surprised if Castle Grayskull had some measure of self-repair facility about it. After all, it's the grand repository of all magical knowledge, or at least what King Grayskull had gathered.21st year of the reign of King Randor I
Season of Chill
307th day, 16th bell
Talk or fight?
Fighting in here isn't optimal. Eternians can't fly but the athletic ones can be bloody quick on their feet. And the fight would definitely damage the crystal chamber. I don't know how big a deal that is; Teela Na didn't seem especially concerned about the damage Zodak's fight caused, but it wasn't that much. I have no idea what weapons are integrated into that armour, and then there's the sword…
Heh, the almighty Jan-i-tor. Blessed with the power to clean messes with inhuman speed, no matter how large or disgusting!On the other hand, while I'm not as proficient as some of the other mes I met briefly after we got grabbed by Krona, I am still a Lantern. Or.. power ring user, anyway. Eternians are tough, but they're hardly invulnerable to levels of force I can generate. This fight should be winnable.
Alternately, I could try to convince her that I'm a minor functionary while I feel her out. Find out what -if anything- she remembers of Eternia. What Hordak's been doing with her. I can turn the staff into a broom-.
Thank goodness for the ally on the inside. Can you imagine the mayhem if she'd met the Sorceress first?Evelyn's half way to Adora already.
"Hail, friend. I am Evil-Lyn, a warrior in the service of Skeletor." Adora levels her sword at Evelyn, who stops walking closer and affects an expression of mild offence. "Is that any way to greet an ally?"
Well, at least she recognises the name. It would be damn embarrassing if she'd never heard of Skeletor.Thaaat works, I suppose. I send the staff into subspace before hesitantly following Evelyn, holding my body in a submissive posture.
"Skeletor." Probably-Adora doesn't sound entirely convinced. I suppose that Keldor isn't exactly a constant presence in… Wherever Hordak spends his time. He might just not have mentioned him to her. "This is… Eternia."
Ah, a half-truth. Classic 'lying without lying' trick. because she probably has a geas of truthfulness on her..."Ah, you do know of it. I hadn't realised that Hordak was trying to send his warriors here."
"Where are we?"
"An abandoned castle I was exploring. The crystals possess a strong magic."
No doubt. Logical enough that there'd be a link between sword and castle, capable of working across realms.Adora's helmeted face turns towards me, and I make a point of dropping my eyes submissively. She discounts me immediately, not even bothering to look at the Basophil Amulet on my chest. Now, Hordak shouldn't know that King D'Vann's power outlasted him. Keldor only found out about the power of Grayskull recently, and he wasn't in regular contact with his nominal superior. But if he were here, then he'd find out fairly swiftly.
Adora raises her sword slightly, looking at the blue stone in the ricasso. "They're the same."
Oooh-kay. Also logical, since she's in unknown territory with people claiming to be friendly.Evelyn shrugs. "Perhaps. The same colour, certainly." She extends her right hand. "If you'll hand it over I can check for-?"
Adora glares at her. "I'm keeping my sword."
Because of course he renamed her after kidnapping her. What better revenge on Grayskull's line than to subvert it? Better than having her running around as 'Adorable-' ...Sorry, 'Adora'."As you wish." Evelyn withdraws her hand. "And.. who, exactly, are you? From your armour I assume that you work for Hordak..?"
"I am Despara, a Force Captain in the Horde."
Yeah, best to play dumb, bow and scrape, until you can get a message out to the Sorceress. She probably won't enjoy having her nookie time interrupted, though..."Despara?" From the sound of her voice I don't think that Evelyn is impressed by the try-hard name. Evil Lyn isn't impressed by the try-hard name. I carefully school my expression and don't comment on dubious wisdom of projectile geology in silicate-based domiciles. "I don't believe that I've heard of you."
"My elevation is recent; long after Hordak's last contact with Eternia."
That's... Concerning. But at least he isn't free. No doubt working through cyborg-clone avatars."Where is Hordak these days? He was supposedly banished to Despondos, but if he has living followers that seems unlikely."
"Hordak's great horde is in the process of subjugating the world of Etheria. There is some… Magic to the place that makes it more accessible from Despondos. Hordak can walk among us for brief spans, and his presence and voice are always with us."
The joy of having to rely on spotty memories of the eighties series. Especially if you weren't a fan of the 'girl He-Man show'...Etheria… I guess that's where She-Ra happens? And I don't remember anything about Hordak having trouble interacting with the world. He was just sort of there, commanding his army and occasionally getting involved in active combat with the… She-Ra's team, whatever they were called.
"Fascinating. But how did you come here? I remember the last time that Hordak sent soldiers here, and the preparations were extensive."
Oh, that's not the reaction of someone fanatically loyal. No, that's someone doing some interesting math and finding something she believed doesn't add up."Last time?"
"Mmmmm. Fifteen or so years ago."
'Despara' doesn't move for a moment. Her eyepieces mean that I can't tell whether she's staring at Evelyn or staring into space. And while I could do some sort of ring scan, she might be able to detect it and it would be much better if we could resolve this without fighting.
I see someone's been wondering where she came from."What did they do here?"
It's hard to notice, but there was a slight hesitation between the first few words of her question.
Heh. Not quite the same as the original series' reveal, but I doubt Prince Adam could be here for this, what with the partying going on."They kidnapped the infant daughter of one of the local rulers. They never said why, but they returned through the portal back to 'Etheria' and never returned."
"What-? Was her name? What did she look like?"
Oh, yes, she recognises that name. What's the bet she's been eavesdropping on Shadow Weaver chatting with Hordak about something."She looked like a small, crying child." Evelyn shrugs. "Archivist?"
Who-? Oh, me. "Blonde hair, blue eyes, your eminence. Her name was Ador-."
"Adora."
Damn, she's stuck on the 'I'm not who I thought I was' thing. Pity percussive maintenance isn't an option.I bow my head. "Yes, your eminence. Have you met the young lady? Actually knowing what Hordak intends would make it far easier for us to enact his will."
"Adora. She came from here."
Uh, well, about that... Hordak isn't the best recruiter of local talent..."Well… A city a short distance from here."
"Have its people been enslaved and tasked to labour for the Horde?"
Sometimes, you got to call an idiot an idiot.I shake my head. "No. Skeletor has been more focused on increasing his personal power rather than conquering and holding inhabited territory. He nominally 'rules' half the world, but in fact his writ runs shallow outside of Snake Mountain."
"You are impudent to speak so of the one Hordak has placed over you."
Ah, dumb muscle. Or so she'd appear, I guess."I try to keep a realistic view of the abilities of those around me. For example, I don't see any sign that you are a magician."
"I am not. I am a warrior."
Oh, thank goodness for happy accidents."You armour appears…" Evelyn runes her eyes over Despara's armour. "Sophisticated, but I see nothing that could open a portal to this… 'Etheria'."
"Shadow Weaver wished to study my interaction with this sword. Usually I arm myself with two short swords. Shadow Weaver is Hordak's greatest sorceress, and she believed that this sword would react to me in some way. I held it aloft, then… Here I was."
So for all she knows, the shockwave of transit levelled the room. We can but hope."That's it? No flash of light? No glow?"
"Not that I noticed." She hesitates, her attention moving to the sword. "Though most of my attention was focused on Shadow Weaver. If it was a subtle sign, I may not have noticed."
...Also, she doesn't know how to return? Not that she'd admit that to strangers."Then what are you intentions? Do you wish to return as swiftly as possible? Or do you have other orders you wish to complete first?"
"I should return. But the ability of this sword to open portals could be an asset to the Horde, and none of my usual responsibilities are anything that another Force Captain could not complete nearly as well."
Ah, good, a chance to call for backup. Boy, the Sorceress is going to be pissed. She was so set on ruining Duncan's bedsheets. And maybe the bedframe, too."Then studying the sword is what we will do. Archivist." I perk up attentively. "Fetch my staff and some refreshments and then meet up in the castle library."
I'm sure your innate sneakiness can help you sort this put, Lantern. (And damn, I keep wanting to hyphenate it as Lan-Tern...)I bow my head to hide my smile. And of course I can't refuse now, or the mummery comes to an end and we're back to fighting. Evelyn could have just told Adora that she needs help, so I don't think that she intends to betray me. Of course, that doesn't mean that she isn't trying to find out whether or not Hordak would give her a better deal if she did. Fortunately, I can monitor her while I'm away to make sure that she doesn't do that the moment my back is turned, but I just got put on the back foot something fierce there.
"At once, Evil-Lyn. I will meet you there."
"Your armour appears…" Evelyn runs her eyes over Despara's armour."You armour appears…" Evelyn runes her eyes over Despara's armour.
"Then what are your intentions?
I don't think the Sorceress is ever going to trust Lantern with the Castle again anytime soon... Even if this wasn't his fault.
A single continuety.Zoat, I've been meaning to ask for a while - are each of the Common Sense sections in a single continuity, or are they separate branches from the main Paragon timeline?
Thank you, corrected.
You aren't familiar with the expression 'meet up'?
Thank you, corrected."Your armour appears…" Evelyn runes her eyes over Despara's armour.
"Then what are your intentions?
So use trickery and deceit. Classic Paul tactics when he doesn't think brute force will win the day. I wonder what the Sorceress will think of this when she comes back?
Are you trying to do a star trek thing?I carefully school my expression and don't comment on dubious wisdom of projectile geology in silicate-based domiciles
You have got to tease her relentlessly later. At the first opportunity.. It's required."I am Despara, a Force Captain in the Horde."
"Despara?" From the sound of her voice I don't think that Evelyn is impressed by the try-hard name. Evil Lyn isn't impressed by the try-hard name.
I am glad for not skipping as well and yes, Paul needs to tease her about this at a later date.I am very glad we aren't getting time skips about this.
You have got to tease her relentlessly later. At the first opportunity.. It's required.
No, I'm trying to keep my modern writing good.
she hit last time
Of course I am. I just thought there was a possiblity that there was another typo and you meant 'us'. Hence my use of the question mark indicating that it could go either way.
Thank you, corrected.
I've gotta start waiting till I'm fully awake. I thought for sure I typed star wars!
And the device Teela Na attached to Evelyn's staff to neutralise it, which I'm going to drop off there, just outside of the library, because I might want to grab it again really quickly.
Though from the way she's chomping it down as if she's afraid that someone will take it away from her, I would guess that the experience is a pleasant one.
Depending on the activity.
Thank you, corrected.
No, that's correct.