Cinemark north hills and xd pittsburgh
Community for the North Hills of Pittsburgh
2015.02.24 20:16 beo559 Community for the North Hills of Pittsburgh
Discussion focused on the Northern suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
2023.06.06 03:57 goop_lizard Disimmurement 1/2
It's good to see you again, I'm sure you've been pretty busy lately. Don't bother ordering anything to eat, this shouldn't take that long. A drink might be in order though. Something strong. Nothing for me, thanks, I've work to do soon.
Now, while a social call would be pleasant I'm afraid I've reached out to you for some important business. I have seen the risen body of the king.
Sit down! Quiet. No need to make a scene, now. I can answer your questions once I've said my piece. We can leave the why for later, it's a bit complicated. Was a bit complicated. Simpler now, but... hard to explain. The how is an easier place to start.
You might think there's no way to slip by unnoticed somewhere as restricted as the exclusion zone - that they'd have sensor drones and satellites flag you the moment you stepped in and you'd be removed within minutes. In most places you'd be right, but the valley of the tomb is not most places. I'm sure you remember the beginning of the raid, before any of us knew what we were getting into. The whole place was covered in a haze so thick we had to tie ropes to eachother just to stay together, and what little sunlight made it through came down wrong. A thin, fetid color that should have been a beautiful gold but felt more like the yellow of rancid grease. The only other light that didn't die five feet from its source was from the constant flashes of actinic lightning that just so happened to drown out any radio signals.
I suppose they could set up the borders farther away, but honestly? I don't think they want to. Nobody sane would ever think of getting in, and they know they're not stopping anything that comes out. Better to let themselves think nothing comes in or out, that the exclusion zone is a formality to keep out the occasional crazy from wandering in. I think they're scared that if they keep too close an eye on things they'll see something that breaks that assumption. Something they don't want to think about.
I'm rambling a bit. The important part is that the only thing keeping me out was the patrols. They weren't much trouble though. Even outside the fog that place wears on you. Keeps you from sleeping right. Makes you feel like someone's watching. A few months of that, and I made sure to go in right before they got rotated out, and it's not hard to write off that figure in the distance as a trick of the mind.
Once I made it inside I knew things had gotten worse. The first few dozen yards were the same but past that I soon reached a point where no sunlight reached the ground at all. I found my way first by the the constant flashes of lightning, and, when even they had been eaten by the choking fog, and my flashlight served only to illuminate a yard or two ahead of my feet, by the pull of that damned place. I suppose I could feel it to begin with, that it was why I went back to begin with, but it was always in the background... Still calling me but ignorable, at least for a time... You can feel it too, right? Just over that hill to the North......
On second thought maybe I will have a drink. One moment.
Much better. Now, back to the story. It took me about an hour to reach our old base camp. I thought for sure it would have been destroyed but... Hmm? Well, yes, I did come from the opposite direction, but you're thinking too literally. A place like that is very abstract, much more about the journey you see, and the journey I set out on started with darkness, then the base camp, then the tomb, and then... I'll leave the end for the end, but the point is that I couldn't have passed them in any other order. It's like a story - the order is fixed once the book is printed.
From that explanation you might think the camp twisted into some metaphorical mockery of itself, or perhaps ruined to symbolize mankind's weakness, or some other similar thing, but what I came across impacted me far more deeply. It was intact. No, not intact, preserved. I've seen the old base camps from when we were cleaning out bandits, old tents abandoned for just a couple years to the sand when it was deemed not worth recovering them until we came along for some late cleanup, and it's amazing how fast the elements set to work on something not meant to stay in one place for more than a few days. It had been there for nearly a decade, with all the equipment we'd brought left in place, and yet not a speck of dust had found it.
I'm sure you recall how we were found afterwards, lying in the arid scrublands just outside the storm with nothing but our jumpsuits. I found our arms and armor there as well, neatly folded and placed in footlockers. Whatever made us flee, we didn't run in a panic - we calmly put everything in its place and simply walked away. We all said that we ran, though, that we had been chased. Isn't that curious to you? Probing my memory before the incident I still recalled panic, being paralyzed before an overwhelming presence, and yet I had nothing afterwards. Not a single clear image from after we breached the tomb. I said we ran because all I could remember was the fear, and that was the explanation that made the most sense of things.
At first I thought there wasn't much for me there besides the realization. The fuel cells had all gone dead, of course, and our records were all stored on the camp's computers. When I attempted to retrieve the memory cards, however, I found them gone - not just the cards themselves but the caddies that would normally extend to receive them. Propping open the spring-loaded slot and turning my flashlight to it, I could see that the entire computer was not without power, it had been entirely hollowed out. I will admit to having fallen into a bit of a panic at that, blindly tearing apart anything else electronic - no doubt the old base camp will prove far less preserved for whoever managed to stumble upon it next - but in all of them I found the same result. Even the displays had been stripped of their circuitry, leaving only black panels with not even a scrap of wire dangling from them to indicate they had ever been used as part of a larger device. Thankfully we'd taken purely mechanical weapons on that first expedition, and I took the opportunity to arm myself before proceeding, with great trepidation, to the tomb itself.
It was not similarly untouched. Most of the outer walls were intact, at least from what little I'd seen - those walls of some unknowable black material, broken up by countless gold adornments and engraved with what looked like stories of some great god-king. Carvings that would have found themselves perfectly at home in the stone burial halls of ancient Merkat or Hattesh, although I concede to not having looked too closely. I was far more focused on that great door where we had made our original entrance.
It had taken us hours to make that hole after the door had refused to open, even with the explosives at our disposal, and while the gap itself was thankfully still there, the edges had started to heal. That word, heal, is very important - nobody was rebuilding it. I saw no evidence of tools nor worldly methods of repair. Instead the edges had grown over with a bulging, fibrous mass that I took to be scar tissue. I attempted to take a sample, to see if any of the scientists could tell me its makeup, but it was just as cold and unyielding as the false-stone which surrounded it. I hurried inside after that, secure at least in the knowledge that if it was still growing the stiffness of it would make the process so slow as to not impede my escape.
Once inside the pull was much stronger, to the point I could barely resist it. Whatever those black walls had been made of was proving itself effective as insulation. I soon found myself abandoning any further investigation, only barely restraining myself from sprinting as I made my way into the central burial chamber...
submitted by goop_lizard to createthisworld [link] [comments]
Now, while a social call would be pleasant I'm afraid I've reached out to you for some important business. I have seen the risen body of the king.
Sit down! Quiet. No need to make a scene, now. I can answer your questions once I've said my piece. We can leave the why for later, it's a bit complicated. Was a bit complicated. Simpler now, but... hard to explain. The how is an easier place to start.
You might think there's no way to slip by unnoticed somewhere as restricted as the exclusion zone - that they'd have sensor drones and satellites flag you the moment you stepped in and you'd be removed within minutes. In most places you'd be right, but the valley of the tomb is not most places. I'm sure you remember the beginning of the raid, before any of us knew what we were getting into. The whole place was covered in a haze so thick we had to tie ropes to eachother just to stay together, and what little sunlight made it through came down wrong. A thin, fetid color that should have been a beautiful gold but felt more like the yellow of rancid grease. The only other light that didn't die five feet from its source was from the constant flashes of actinic lightning that just so happened to drown out any radio signals.
I suppose they could set up the borders farther away, but honestly? I don't think they want to. Nobody sane would ever think of getting in, and they know they're not stopping anything that comes out. Better to let themselves think nothing comes in or out, that the exclusion zone is a formality to keep out the occasional crazy from wandering in. I think they're scared that if they keep too close an eye on things they'll see something that breaks that assumption. Something they don't want to think about.
I'm rambling a bit. The important part is that the only thing keeping me out was the patrols. They weren't much trouble though. Even outside the fog that place wears on you. Keeps you from sleeping right. Makes you feel like someone's watching. A few months of that, and I made sure to go in right before they got rotated out, and it's not hard to write off that figure in the distance as a trick of the mind.
Once I made it inside I knew things had gotten worse. The first few dozen yards were the same but past that I soon reached a point where no sunlight reached the ground at all. I found my way first by the the constant flashes of lightning, and, when even they had been eaten by the choking fog, and my flashlight served only to illuminate a yard or two ahead of my feet, by the pull of that damned place. I suppose I could feel it to begin with, that it was why I went back to begin with, but it was always in the background... Still calling me but ignorable, at least for a time... You can feel it too, right? Just over that hill to the North......
On second thought maybe I will have a drink. One moment.
From that explanation you might think the camp twisted into some metaphorical mockery of itself, or perhaps ruined to symbolize mankind's weakness, or some other similar thing, but what I came across impacted me far more deeply. It was intact. No, not intact, preserved. I've seen the old base camps from when we were cleaning out bandits, old tents abandoned for just a couple years to the sand when it was deemed not worth recovering them until we came along for some late cleanup, and it's amazing how fast the elements set to work on something not meant to stay in one place for more than a few days. It had been there for nearly a decade, with all the equipment we'd brought left in place, and yet not a speck of dust had found it.
I'm sure you recall how we were found afterwards, lying in the arid scrublands just outside the storm with nothing but our jumpsuits. I found our arms and armor there as well, neatly folded and placed in footlockers. Whatever made us flee, we didn't run in a panic - we calmly put everything in its place and simply walked away. We all said that we ran, though, that we had been chased. Isn't that curious to you? Probing my memory before the incident I still recalled panic, being paralyzed before an overwhelming presence, and yet I had nothing afterwards. Not a single clear image from after we breached the tomb. I said we ran because all I could remember was the fear, and that was the explanation that made the most sense of things.
At first I thought there wasn't much for me there besides the realization. The fuel cells had all gone dead, of course, and our records were all stored on the camp's computers. When I attempted to retrieve the memory cards, however, I found them gone - not just the cards themselves but the caddies that would normally extend to receive them. Propping open the spring-loaded slot and turning my flashlight to it, I could see that the entire computer was not without power, it had been entirely hollowed out. I will admit to having fallen into a bit of a panic at that, blindly tearing apart anything else electronic - no doubt the old base camp will prove far less preserved for whoever managed to stumble upon it next - but in all of them I found the same result. Even the displays had been stripped of their circuitry, leaving only black panels with not even a scrap of wire dangling from them to indicate they had ever been used as part of a larger device. Thankfully we'd taken purely mechanical weapons on that first expedition, and I took the opportunity to arm myself before proceeding, with great trepidation, to the tomb itself.
It was not similarly untouched. Most of the outer walls were intact, at least from what little I'd seen - those walls of some unknowable black material, broken up by countless gold adornments and engraved with what looked like stories of some great god-king. Carvings that would have found themselves perfectly at home in the stone burial halls of ancient Merkat or Hattesh, although I concede to not having looked too closely. I was far more focused on that great door where we had made our original entrance.
It had taken us hours to make that hole after the door had refused to open, even with the explosives at our disposal, and while the gap itself was thankfully still there, the edges had started to heal. That word, heal, is very important - nobody was rebuilding it. I saw no evidence of tools nor worldly methods of repair. Instead the edges had grown over with a bulging, fibrous mass that I took to be scar tissue. I attempted to take a sample, to see if any of the scientists could tell me its makeup, but it was just as cold and unyielding as the false-stone which surrounded it. I hurried inside after that, secure at least in the knowledge that if it was still growing the stiffness of it would make the process so slow as to not impede my escape.
Once inside the pull was much stronger, to the point I could barely resist it. Whatever those black walls had been made of was proving itself effective as insulation. I soon found myself abandoning any further investigation, only barely restraining myself from sprinting as I made my way into the central burial chamber...
2023.06.06 03:55 carlosblue_14 The Amalgam: Chapter 4(Part 1)
N was flying while carrying Uzi and Doll with him follow V in the distance.
N: V, wait for us.
She didn't seem to pay attention to them and kept moving forward.
Uzi: What the hell is wrong with you 2? When my dad said that Thad was heading to the dead body area, you guys just, what was that all about?
N: Me, we… it's complicated.
Uzi: Don't tell me it's complicated! You're going to tell me everything you know about that thing NOW.
N hesitated for a few seconds, but Uzi looked at him annoyed, clearly not willing to listen to an excuse, to which she had to give up.
N: It's okay, but, you should know that I don't have all the details, it was V and J who knew the most about this, I… she just followed her orders.
Uzi: Fine, fine, but start talking already.
N: Okay… tell me, how much do you know about us when we got here?
Uzi: Outside of the fact that they came here killing everyone?
N: Well... let's say it wasn't that way, oh at least not as they told you.
Uzi: What do you mean?
In retrospect
A ship arrives and lands on Copper-9, some drones came out of it, but they weren't teardown drones, as they were wearing JCJenson uniforms.
N: When the core incident happened, they first sent an investigation team to find out what happened.
The group of “investigative drones” walked around the site examining the bodies of other wrecked drones on the ground.
Drone Researcher 1: Commando, you guys get to see this, it's a fucking massacre.
Suddenly a metallic noise is heard coming from a mound of bodies piled to one side. The drones look at each other suspiciously and approach cautiously. While one of them speaks.
Drone Investigator 2: Who's there?
N: These drones had no means of defense.
The leader of the group approaches one of the bodies and touches it, nothing happens.
N: They didn't have a chance.
A cable shoots out of the mound and through the leader's head.
Drone Investigator 3: Wow, what the hell?!
What looks like a clawed hand emerges from the mound and grabs the body, then a partially formed mechanical creature rises up, legless and missing an arm, but his appearance is intimidating enough that the drones know he caused it all. this, especially when he starts laughing.
End of hindsight
Uzi: So, that thing was the one that slaughtered the drones and not you?
N: Uh… 50/50.
Uzi looked seriously at N.
Uzi: We're not for N games.
N: Sorry, just me-
Uzi: That doesn't matter now, if what you say is true and then they sent you guys to take over.
V: No
V realized that her partner had opened her mouth, so she decided that if they were to know the truth she should tell it herself.
Uzi: What did you mean by that?
V: That after that, "Incident", combat drones were sent to eliminate that thing.
Uzi: Drones what?
V: Basically soldier drones, with weapons and the whole thing.
Uzi: And what happened?
V: We could barely hold that thing back, what do you think happened to them?
Uzi swallowed at that.
Doll: Если компания хочет убить эту штуку, почему они не послали вас с самого начала?
V: Because we didn't exist at that time, or at least not as such.
N: what do you mean?
V hesitated a few seconds before answering.
V: According to J, we are an… update that the combat drones should have received, but they gave it to us because they had unwanted behavior changes.
Uzi: Define, “unwanted behaviors”.
V: Well, they became extremely irritable, hyper active and started killing everything that moved.
Uzi: How are you?
V looked annoyed at Uzi.
V: Believe me, they were much worse, but as she said, in short they went crazy, so the company ordered us to take care of them.
Uzi: They sacrificed them.
V: It's a way of saying it, but yes.
Uzi: N, why didn't you mention that?
N: Because, honestly I didn't remember them, I mean, from what V says I think he's referring to team 23 and J didn't let me help much.
Uzi: Anyway, I think- wait you said 23.
V: yes
Uzi: You mean-
V: 23 teams were sent to put an end to that thing and none of them succeeded, we are team 24.
There was an awkward silence, Uzi trying to process the information she had just received, knowing that 23 groups of company-armed drones had been destroyed by that thing… it was terrifying.
Uzi: And you say that only you could face it?
V: Well, not exactly, that bastard destroyed my head and it took me a while to regenerate, when I woke up N told me that J had killed him, something that by the way turned out NOT TO BE TRUE.
N laughed nervously at V's comments.
N: In my defense J said that he had done it.
V: Anyway, when I got there his body was lying in the snow without moving, it was very big and they had given us the order to eliminate all the drones in the area to make sure that it hadn't escaped infecting someone, we needed to stock up on oil and we couldn't leave it out in the open, just like that, so what and...
Uzi: So what?
V and N didn't respond, Uzi didn't understand the reason for this, until he realized with horror what they were referring to.
Uzi: You buried him-
Doll: На горе трупов.
He said coming to the same conclusion as Uzi
Uzi: But why didn't they destroy it?
V: J didn't want to and said we needed to keep it, company orders.
Uzi: You can't be serious.
V: Ok, looking back maybe it wasn't the best idea, but she was the boss at the time, okay?
Uzi: I know, but why the hell would the company want to keep the thing that killed so many of their drones, it doesn't make sense, they'd just be wasting resources.
Doll: Я тут о чем-то подумал, она говорит, что "Джей" убила эту штуку, но явно это было не так, но и она не мо гла притворяться, что это сделала, так как ее тело не имеет сознания, а vdrug-
Uzi: J was infected all this time.
Uzi noticed that Doll looked at her annoyed for interrupting her.
Uzi: Hey, you did the same.
V: I doubt J was infected, I mean, that thing tried to turn us into its "minions" several times, even with J, but never succeeded.
N: That is true.
Uzi: But, what if she wasn't infected as such, but she, she "contained" it.
N: What do you mean?
Uzi: Think about it, J was absurdly loyal to the company, and they wanted this thing alive, but clearly couldn't kill it, what if J managed to transfer that monster's consciousness into hers and she contained it.
There was silence again.
Uzi: But, when I killed her, the program took over, the Absolute Fixer was supposed to regenerate J, but instead she just grew and grew, what if she wasn't killing for the sake of killing.
N: I don't understand, what does the program have to do with that thing?
Doll: Во время занятия профессор сказал, что чем больше и сложнее машина, тем больше вычислительной мо щности требуется для ее правильной работы.
Uzi: Right, maybe the fixer was trying to keep him contained, but… when we killed him, we-
V: They released that thing.
V looked annoyed at N and Uzi, the latter lowered her head as she realized that the monster that had taken Thad and many others had been released by her, first attracting the murder drones to the colony and now releasing an immortal monster that He only seeks to kill. It was in situations like this that she wondered… what would have happened if she had never left the colony that day? I don't notice her concern and try to cheer her up.
N: Uzi, it's not your fault, well technically yes, but the point is that we've all made mistakes, right girls?
V was not interested in answering and Doll just looked away from her.
N: Uzi you don't-
V: Oh that's not true!
Quickly V decade, N did not understand until, under her sight, there were hundreds and hundreds of those "zombie minions" around the place, most walking aimlessly, while others pulled out the piled bodies and took them away.
N quickly descended with the girls and stood next to V.
N: V, now what?
V: Silence, I try to think.
Uzi: I thought you'd jump right in and kill them all.
V (annoyed): I don't know if you noticed, but those things aren't easy to kill.
Doll: Так что, мы просто спрячемся здесь?
V: No, but, hey, Violet.
Uzi: Don't call me that.
V: Ok, “Uvi” or whatever your name is, can't your weapon shoot a super laser like J?
Uzi looked annoyed at V
Uzi: First, my name is Uzi and second, no, the energy core wears out very quickly and I used it to kill that other thing.
V: Ugh, great, and your Russian girl?
Doll looked annoyed at vi and manifested a knife pointed at her.
V (growling): Seriously none of you think of anything! I guess that's how J must have felt with us.
Uzi: Oh I'm sorry if, you know, we tried to process everything that just happened.
N: Hey girls
V: Oh yes, of course, now you start to think about that, right?!
N: Girls
Uzi: Maybe we could deal with this more calmly if, you know, THEY DIDN'T KILL SO MANY OF US!
V: Do you really blame me? When were you the one who released that thing?!
Uzi: Hey, it was the Absolute Solver who broke my weapon and destroyed himself.
V: I remind you that you killed J and he became that thing because of you.
N: Girls
V (points to N): And if you hadn't sided with him, we would have finished all this, and we'd go home.
Tired of nobody listening to him, N screamed.
N: YOU COULD HEAR ME FOR JUST 5 SECONDS!
There was an awkward silence, mostly because N wasn't the type to, well, yell for attention.
Uzi: Hey, we're waiting for you, what's up?
N pointed to the side, when they turned around they saw a large number of those "zombies" staring at them.
V: oh
The creatures began to laugh and ran towards them.
V: Oh you have to be kidding.
V quickly launched herself at the "zombies" cutting a group of them in half, but as expected, this didn't stop you and they began to crawl towards her. N fired several energy shots from her arm.
N: Uzi, I think we could use a little help.
Uzi: I don't know if you noticed, but I need a power core for my weapon to work.
N: But you don't have those claws and-?
Uzi looked annoyed at N not wanting to bring it up at that moment.
N: O-okay
N pierced the torso of one of the zombies and ripped out its energy core which he delivered to Uzi. He quickly attached it to his gun and began shooting at the creatures that kept coming.
Uzi: This is much better.
He quickly smashed the heads of several of them, to ensure that the bastards could not rise again. While this was happening, Doll was eliminating multiple zombies that were trying to get to her, but either she sent them flying using her powers, or she crushed them with said strange symbol that she summoned. V for her part cut and shredded all the zombies she found, if she were around another time she would possibly drink her oil, but she was more focused on finding Thad and preventing him from finding the body of that thing that in that.
As she ripped the head off of a zombie drone, she heard what seemed to be the sound of... an engine?, when she turned her head a gray blur hit her. When he fell to the ground, he saw what appeared to be a wrecked takedown drone, barely standing, with wires sticking out of its body and its wings spread, but unlike them, its clothing was more… “formal”, it was covered. of oil, but even so the symbol of the company and the number 23 on his chest were distinguishable, he was one of the members of team 23 sent to deal with that thing, who had to be sacrificed as they became unstable.
V: Ugh, what I was missing.
The creature laughed and jumped towards her, its claws collided with V's who tried to defend himself from the zombie that did not stop laughing, N attacked him from behind, but surprisingly, his broken wings bent towards him causing a deep cut on his neck. chest. N stepped back somewhat in pain, then pointed her cannon arm at him, but noticed that V was in the middle.
N: V move.
V: Do you think I can? Just shoot him!
N: But-
V: Just do it!
N was forced to fire, creating a large cloud of smoke as the shot hit, she approached and found V badly damaged, having lost a leg and an arm.
N: are you okay?
V: This is nothing.
Suddenly the winged zombie pounced on N, a large part of her body was missing, only her torso and one arm remaining.
N: Ah, take it from me.
What could be described as a ninja star flew out and impaled the zombie's head, spinning inside and ripping him apart internally, the beast convulsing before falling dead to the ground. N looked in the direction of his savior seeing that it was Doll, Uzi was shooting at the other zombies that were advancing towards them trying to make them go back.
Uzi: Not to put pressure on them, but these things keep coming, how many of us did they kill?
V: In our defense, that thing did 70% of the job.
V, having partially regenerated, prepared to jump into the approaching zombie army, but stopped when she heard laughter and growls from another direction, she and N turned in that direction and saw multiple eyes in the blizzard staring at them, V between the hills. her eyes to see straight, only to be caught off guard when the rest of the now zombie team 23 flew in her direction. Team 23 unlike the team of N, V and J, this was made up of 12 prototype disassembly drones, if killing one cost them anything, this was going to take longer, they flew over them as if they were vultures, they then charged into the group in an attempt to finish them off.
V: Ugh, it had to be these guys.
N: Do you know them?
V cut two to one who flew at her and fired multiple rounds at her head to make sure he didn't get back up.
V: We killed them, you don't remember, no wait, J left you out of that.
N: That when she was her?
Uzi: Look, I'd love to know the context of all this, but we could focus on that later!
Uzi blocked the claws of one of those things with his weapon, he held her and tried to snatch it away to leave her defenseless, because she pressed the trigger, the weapon began to shoot in all directions, accidentally hitting both the zombie drones and V and N.
N: Ouch.
V: Be careful idiot!
Uzi: Do you think I can control it?!
One of the shots went to Doll, who covered herself waiting for the impact, but there was none, when she opened her eyes she saw that she had managed to stop the energy projectile in midair, she didn't have time to process this when one of those things struck her. stabbing him in the chest, she screamed in pain, but she wasn't going to sit idly by, so she redirected the projectile's course and launched it at the flying drone. Although she didn't hit the target, if she smashed her arms, she clearly didn't take it well and she lunged at Doll, who manifested several knives and threw them at her head to kill him once and for all.
On the other hand, V had to deal with 3 of those things, as if he didn't have enough problems. She turned her hand into a kind of harpoon and threw it at one of them, the harpoon stuck in the chest of the winged zombie and threw it at a group of common zombies that were approaching, the other two jumped towards her, she barely managed to stop. the first, but not the second, who bit his left arm. V grunted in pain before yelling at her partner.
V: M!
N: I'm-
V: Help!
N: oh
He quickly destroyed the drone that was attacking him and flew towards V, taking the drone that was directly attacking her by surprise and threw it at another one that was flying towards them, smashing them in the air, V turned his free hand into a sword and attacked the drone that was attacking him. It bit the arm, but it was faster and ripped it off, she screamed, but in anger and changed her sword for a machine gun with which she shot at the creature, destroying it.
V: Thanks, uh…
N:N
V: Yes, that.
Back with Uzi, she was trying to free her weapon from the grasp of the flying drone, who refused to let go.
Uzi: Oh come on, let it go.
Uzi kicked at the creature, but it had no effect, instead it hit him back, Uzi fell and the monster threw the weapon aside, she tried to move away, but he lunged at her, digging his claws into the snow and it opened its mouth, showing its sharp teeth and wires that dangled from its mouth. When the zombie was going to "bite" it, almost as if he did it out of instinct, Uzi attacked the creature, thrusting his fist into its mouth, then his hand turned into a claw and opened it, smashing its head, the monster fell dead. On top of her, Uzi pushed the body to the side and looked at her claw, covered in oil... and felt the need to taste it, lost in her thoughts it felt like time froze, until she heard Doll scream, she quickly regained her composure and returned his claw to normal. Doll was desperately trying to get rid of the tide of reanimated bodies that were trying to reach her, although she could easily just destroy them using her powers, it turned out that the damage caused by that "spider" in the colony somewhat interfered with her, so she was it was making it difficult to use them correctly. Quickly a flurry of energy shots tore most of them apart and they gave him time to get away from them. V flew into the air attracting the remaining flying zombies who started flying after her. N tried to follow them, but she saw that Uzi and Doll were being surrounded, she looked at V being surrounded in the air by those things, but Uzi was also in trouble. N had to decide whether to help Uzi or help V.
Uzi and Doll were trying to push back the zombies that were crawling towards them, Uzi's gun would run out of power at this point and Doll's powers would keep failing.
Uzi: Ugh, because they just don't die.
She kicked one that was nearby while the others kept getting closer. One who was supposedly dead behind Uzi, got up and grabbed her from behind, she tried to fight, but accidentally dropped her weapon, fed up with this, her hands turned into claws and she impaled the drone's head, then threw it to the ground and began to crush it over and over and over again until it was simply nothing but scrap.
She gasped at the incessant urge to kill, for doing so... felt good, felt VERY good, she looked at her claws again, with oil dripping from them, she again felt the need to taste it, but quickly came back to her senses when more of those zombies approached her, a wide smile broke out on her face while that strange symbol flashed on her visor, she didn't bother to retrieve her weapon, because she already had others.
As this was happening, a white eye under a mound of corpses watched the group fight their minions.
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Returning to our group, Uzi ripped and shredded the zombie drones that pounced on him, this while N and V took care of the last 2 remaining flying zombies.
V: huh, L?
N: It's N
V: Whatever, don't you think you should tell your girlfriend to calm down a bit?
N: what?! No, she's not-
No sooner had she noticed the small mountain of bodies that Uzi had created, she found herself hitting while she was laughing uncontrollably at a zombie that had stopped moving a long time ago.
N: Oh… that.
N managed to decapitate the flying zombie that was attacking him, then he approached Uzi, Doll was on one side watching, she didn't dare to approach her crazed companion.
N: Uh, Uzi?
Uzi ripped the head off one of the zombies and used it to hit the limp body of another that was next to it.
Doll: Я не думаю, что это хорошая идея, чтобы привлечь его внимание her?
N Uzi?
Uzi turned around, about to drink the oil from the head she was holding, until N caught her attention and she came to her senses.
Uzi: No?
N: what are you doing?
Uzi: I…
She quickly tossed her head to the side and climbed down the small hill of corpses that she had made.
Uzi: she was just in charge of cleaning the place.
N: Umm… And that was necessary?
N pointed to the mound of corpses that Uzi made.
Uzi: Oh, that, it's just… let's change the subject.
V: yes
V approached holding the head of the zombie that was attacking her, then smashed it to make sure the bastard stayed dead.
V: How to find your "little friend" and put an end to all this at once.
Uzi: Look, I want to end all of this too, but you don't think there's any alternative other than, you know, killing him.
V: NO
Doll: Ненавижу это признавать, но он прав.
Uzi looked at Doll confused considering that she tried to kill V just a few hours ago.
Doll: But that doesn't mean I like him.
V looked at Doll who looked at her annoyed, she rolled her eyes and turned her attention to N.
V: Well, I think he is already
V was interrupted when a kind of mechanical roar was heard in the distance.
V: DAMN IT, NOW WHAT!
And she was already fed up with these zombies, they simply did not stop coming, or so she thought, since there were practically none alive, but in the distance she could see a light moving erratically and quickly.
Uzi: What is that?
V: Ugh, I'll take care of it.
V opened his wings and flew into the blizzard which had increased, a few seconds passed without anything happening, until shots and sounds of clashing blades were heard, then V flew out and crashed into Doll.
N: V!
N rushed to help her partner while Uzi aimed his gun and fired at the approaching dim light, but missed as she was zic-zac.
Uzi: What the hell?
Suddenly, the creature jumped towards her, managing to ram her, the beast raised her claw to pierce it, but Uzi stopped it in time with his own, it was at that moment that she was able to see it more closely. He was moderately taller and bulkier than a common drone, he had a red jacket that was torn and covered in oil, his arms and legs were more robotic and coarse, in addition to having claws on both his hands and feet, his helmet was cracked and at the same time Like other zombies, it seemed that its jaw was attached to its head by cables, in addition to having a single glowing white eye in the middle of its visor.
Uzi: T-Thad?
A shot of energy hit the creature freeing Uzi, but this had not finished with it, as it was clearly more resistant than the others, the beast quickly recomposed itself and ran on all fours towards en, who fired again.
Uzi: No, wait.
N fired, but the zombie hunter dodged and jumped on him, digging his claws into his torso, N screamed in pain as the hunter violently withdrew his claws ripping into his chest and digging them into his face . Doll decided not to be left behind and materialized several knives around her and threw them at the creature. She, however, did not even bother to protect herself, since most of the knives could not go through his body and only one hit his head, but he simply took it from his face and threw it abruptly to the ground. He then began to approach her while chuckling slightly as Doll backed away, she tried to summon one of those weird symbols like when they were in the colony, but it just kept failing without interacting with the physical world. Luckily for her, V managed to wake up and lunged at the thing, using her swords to block the attack from her claws and trying to cut it.
V: I should have killed you when I had the chance!
He simply laughed, irritated by this, she managed to stab him into her chest with her sword, then spread her wings and began to soar with him.
N: W, wait!
V continues to rise as she punched the monster in the face.
V (hitting him): Let's see, if you keep laughing at this.
The creature continued laughing at her, V angrily tried to hit him to smash his head, but he caught her arm with her mouth and ripped it off causing her to scream in pain.
V: Ah, damn son of-!
But she couldn't finish when the enhanced zombie opened her mouth and several wires came out of it, digging into her head.
V: No
His visor glitched and a message appeared on it.
“THE SYSTEM HAS DETECTED HOSTILE COMPUTER AGENTS, PROCEEDING TO AN EMERGENCY RESET”
Then her body was inert beginning to fall at high speed. Below, Doll, N and Uzi looked expectantly when they noticed how they began to descend at high speed.
Uzi: Uh… that doesn't look good.
N: V!
N opened his wings and tried to reach them, but they crashed into the ground, generating a large cloud of dust and snow that covered the place. After a few seconds of waiting, the light from the creature's eye and its laughter became present and showed itself above. from V's body which cushioned the fall, N launched against the beast which responded in the same way, digging its claws into the torso, then opened them throwing large amounts of oil and took N's head and smashed it against the ground , only to then crush it with the claw of his foot, then he slowly turned his head and laughed when he saw the two remaining girls, to later launch himself on Doll.
Uzi: Ugh, dammit.
She tried to shoot, only to realize that she couldn't pull the trigger, it was as if her body refused to do it, while the zombie attacked Doll who threw knives at it to stop it but just like before, it was useless, because which using all his concentration, he managed to stop him by placing that strange holographic symbol on his limbs, although he could easily tear him to pieces at that moment, due to the failure of his powers, the most he could do was stop him, but that was enough, because Uzi could take care of the rest.
Doll: Давай, поторопись и сNESи ему голову.
Uzi raised her gun and aimed at the head of the zombie that was struggling to get free... but for some reason she couldn't pull the trigger, she tried to, but she couldn't, because in that monster she still saw her old friend her.
Doll: Узи, чего ты ждешь, я не могу-
The creature broke free of those holographic restraints causing a small burst of energy that sent Doll flying and knocked her unconscious. Then she directed her gaze to Uzi who still couldn't shoot him, he began to walk towards her while Uzi backed away out of fear.
Uzi: Thad
The creature began to laugh slowly as it extended its claws.
Uzi: I-I know you're there… please don't make me do this.
He did not stop his advance, in turn N recovered consciousness after regenerating seeing how that thing approached his friend.
N: Ozi!
Uzi finally using all his willpower managed to pull the trigger... but nothing happened. It turns out that he spent all of the weapon's energy on the zombie army from before. When he looked up he saw the zombie standing in front of her, staring at her with his only eye.
Uzi: Thad, I-
Uzi stopped as he felt the blades of the being's claws pierce his body, then the creature picked him up while roaring and split him horizontally in two, throwing his remains roughly in different directions, with the top falling to the side of the mound of bodies. that she had formed earlier and a few surviving zombies that were creeping towards her.
N: UZI!
N got up when he saw his friend being violently murdered and pounced on the monster that he had begun to laugh uncontrollably. He blocked the attack of his claws with his own and tried to subdue him, but N was too angry, and when that happens, he stops being the cute boy of the group, his visor showed an X instead of his eyes and he started to smile, then he held the creature's hands tightly and placed his foot on his chest, then he began to pull while it tried to free himself from his grip, but it was too late, N ripped off the zombie's arms and then dug his claws into his torso, beginning to destroying it while ripping out its insides even using his mouth, then he began to repeatedly hit its head with his hands and didn't stop until only shattered scrap was left. Despite this he didn't stop until he heard V's voice.
V: No?
N stopped his attack upon hearing that V finally remembered his name. Then they both looked at each other in awkward silence. To say that she was surprised was an understatement, J always said how N was a burden and a dead weight, so V's vision of him was not a big deal, but he never thought that his clumsy partner could "explode" like that. shape.
V (thinking): I wonder what J would have said if she saw you now?
N: I-
V: Look that doesn't matter now, that thing isn't really dead, now we just have to get rid of its body and all this hell will be over.
Doll: What kind of thing?
Doll said with her arms crossed, although she had been willing to help them finish this thing off, what would they do next? N and V were still Killer Drones, their purpose was to kill the worker drones, they would return to the colony and kill to all.
V (annoyed): What are you insinuating?
Doll: Что они собираются делать, когда закончат с этой штукой?
V: Look whatever your name is, I still haven't forgotten that you tried to kill me, so I would suggest you watch your words.
They both looked at each other with mutual contempt, while N was silent thinking about Uzi. But they all stopped when they heard a strange sound, like metal and plastic breaking. The three of them turned slowly in the direction of the creature and saw how it was getting up, despite its damaged state multiple cables were coming out of its body, and connected to the arms and various remains of other zombies scattered around the place and the remains of the shattered head, the wires from the head reached out and grabbed the head of the flying drone that N had decapitated earlier, then attached it to his body, for a few seconds there was silence, but it was broken by the laughter of that monster whose eye lit up in your viewer.
V: Why can't you just fucking die?!
Doll(scared): Ч-что это за монстр на самом деле?
N did not hesitate and launched himself again at Uzi's killer, but he had to avoid it as the zombie doubled his body and multiple cables with pieces of sharp metal extended from the large hole in his torso thanks to N. Then he rejoined and ran on all fours towards V and Doll, V changed his claws for weapons and started shooting, while Doll threw whatever she had, knives, throwing stars or pieces of zombie drones at him. But nothing seemed to stop him, V tried to sting him with the stinger of his tail, managing to infect his arm with the acid nanobots, but this did not seem to matter to him, even when it began to corrode and separate from his body. He countered by stabbing V into his arm and again ripping him from his body.
V: Not again!
The zombie was going to impale his head with his claws, but a holographic symbol of Doll around his wrist stopped him. N then charged and pinned him before throwing himself against a wall to pin him down.
N: V shoot!
V, unlike Uzi, did not hesitate and began to shoot at point blank range at both of them, the shots slightly damaged N but the same could not be said of the creature, that although its body could resist the shots, its head could not and it was being damaged. So to get rid of it, I grabbed the stinger from N's tail and cut it before digging into the head, causing it to remain inert on the ground, although the disassembly drones could resist the effect of their own nanobots, or at least of In a way that wasn't lethal, that didn't mean they couldn't hurt them. After breaking free, he ran again like a wild animal towards the two girls while they shot at him. V exchanged his amra for a sword while he attacked the monster.
V: JUST DIE!
He held the swords and using absurd force split them in two, V changed his weapon again, this time into normal claws. Then he tried to attack it with his claw, but the zombie opened its mouth and several cables came out like tentacles trying to catch it, V quickly moved away and avoided being touched, although he had tried to maintain his serious attitude throughout this time, the truth it's that there was something that worried her, and a lot, her arm, it didn't regenerate, well, it did, but VERY slowly. Because? Why wasn't her regeneration system repairing her at the same speed as before? What was that feeling in his chest? Was it fear?
V moved further away from the creature fearing for her life, whatever she did to him had triggered that survival instinct she apparently lacked, apparently a side effect of slowing her regeneration.
Doll looked annoyed at V when she saw that she was alone against this monster, who began to approach her in a threatening way while she laughed. She manifested various knives, saws, ninja stars and anything she could use as a weapon, then began to throw it at him as he began to run against her, unlike before if it had a greater effect, as the objects managed to go through his body and leave him still. more, but he kept advancing, even his cables quickly assimilated several of the objects that were thrown at him in his own body. Doll, on the other hand, was exhausted, using her powers so often and relentlessly was draining almost all of her energy, not to mention that they were not working properly, since several of the objects that she was throwing at her were vanishing in the air. So using what little energy she had left, she manifested various symbols on different parts of the zombie's body and turned them around several times, a horrible sound of metal and artificial organs breaking was heard as the creature's body fell to the inert ground. . Doll breathed heavily feeling her microprocessors boiling from overexertion, sure that now the damned should be dead...
I think by now you should get the idea that this is almost impossible, as her broken body began to rise again, twisting the broken joints and bending to stay upright. Then she began to walk on all fours towards her, she was helpless, too tired to do anything, she was about to close her eyes waiting for death when several shots attracted the creature. N and V started shooting at the monster in order to kill it once and for all, but without success. N had already regenerated and V had decided to attack again because she didn't know that this thing would inevitably kill them, but at least she wouldn't die hiding like a rat. Another confrontation with an obvious result was about to take place, but the zombie stopped and looked in another direction. The group of three looked confused in the same direction and noticed something, in the small mound of bodies from before, several of the zombies' bodies were torn apart and open, as if a wild animal had devoured them, since said animal was on its back. , over a corpse and what could be described as two wings made of... meat?, the creature slowly turned around and showed itself as Uzi, but in the middle of her visor was that strange symbol and her mouth had several sharp teeth, she started laughing when she flew at high speed against her old friend managing to ram him and causing them to crash against the wall causing a cloud of smoke, when this dissipated his new appearance could be better appreciated, his body looked slightly different, but his legs were now more similar to V's, in addition to possessing a tail with yellow acid on it, but the most prominent thing was clearly its wings that seemed to be made of meat. Uzi laughed and attacked the zombie Thad who could barely defend himself due to only having one arm, several cables came out of the zombie's mouth and tried to hold Uzi, but she countered with her tail which he bit and smashed, causing the acid to melt his wires and part of his jaw. As these two killed each other, V, N, and Doll looked away from the conflict.
V: Since when-?
N: We shouldn't help.
Doll: Я не думаю, что это хорошая идея?
Uzi pinned Thad slammed him repeatedly into the ground as he laughed uncontrollably, then without giving him a chance to defend himself plunged his claw into the hole in his chest and violently ripped out what could only be described as his heart. Whereupon the creature wailed in apparent pain, and its single eye went black. Uzi laughed as she dripped the oil onto her face.
V (pointing her arm at her weapon): Great now we have to deal with her.
Doll: Я думаю, мы не должны привлекать его внимание her-
N: Uzi you did amazing!
Uzi turned to look at them abruptly and smiled when he saw new prey, he put aside the artificial heart and began to approach them while she slightly tilted her head, as if they were analyzing them.
V: Goodbye to the surprise factor, idiot.
N: But, she-
Uzi's laughter began to increase as she approached them menacingly, so they "instinctively" began to back away. Uzi extended her claws ready to pounce on the poor defenseless group, as Doll could barely stand upright, V was missing an arm and his wounds were still not fully healed, N was the only one fit to fight, but it's not that the be willing to harm Uzi.
Just when she was about to pounce on them, suddenly the creature's arm grabbed her neck and pulled her close to him, showing that his "heart" had been reconnected by the cables that were reattached to his body. .
V: Oh you can't be serious!
N: Uzi!
N tried to go help her, but it was too late, the zombie opened her mouth and several new cables came out and stuck in Uzi's head. She struggled for a few seconds before going limp, N looked worried, but then the creature began to convulse violently, releasing Uzi.
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The creature's body went rigid and then fell limp to the ground, this time truly dead.
V:…what the hell just happened?!
N: Ozi!
N quickly approached Uzi who was unconscious on the ground, he lifted her up and tried to make her react. On her visor could be seen a constantly rotating charge symbol.
N: Come on Uzi, she reacts.
N tried to see if she could do anything, but it's not like he really knew how to fix her, especially given the change in her body. But luckily for him, her visor came on and Uzi started to react, this time without that strange symbol on her face.
Uzi: Ugh, my head, what happened.
N: uzi
N hug Uzi happily.
Uzi: N… I… can't… breathe.
N: Oh, sorry.
Uzi: *gasp* Thanks, I felt like, wait-
It was at that moment that Uzi felt something strange in his back and her legs, when he turned to look, to say that she was surprised was an understatement.
Uzi: WHAT?! WHEN?! AS?!
Uzi looked in shock at her wings and legs, as well as her tail whose stinger was broken. But I also notice something, Thad's body lying on the ground, rapidly closing in on him.
Uzi: Oh Thad.
N: are you okay?
Uzi: Yes, only…
I look sadly at the body of her former friend.
N: Don't worry, it was for the best.
At that moment V coughed to get her attention.
V: I don't want to ruin her “moment”. But I think we should find a way to kill this thing.
Doll: Разве она не мерт-
V: Don't say it!
N: Say what?
V: That damn thing is dead because it surely isn't!
As if it was a response from fate, a strong earthquake started at that moment.
Uzi: Wow, what's going on?
She suddenly came to a stop... only for moments later what could be described as several giant tentacles made of wires to emerge from the ground towering over the group who were in a visible state of shock.
V:… How I hate myself.
Doll: Я тоже ненавижу тебя.
Uzi: FOR ROBOT-CHRIST WHAT THE HELL!
N(in a panic): This can't be happening, this can't be happening, this can't be happening.
Then one of the tentacles began to descend dangerously in the direction of the group that quickly began to flee.
Uzi: Watch out!
The tentacle crashed into the ground digging into it, although it missed by a considerable distance, the ground began to crack, creating a crack that began to widen more and more.
Uzi: wow
Uzi lost her balance due to his new legs and fell into the void, not that she's used to how to use them.
N: Uzi!
N quickly launched after her spreading her wings. V and Doll tried to escape, but it was useless, because the ground began to collapse and Doll was about to fall, but she managed to hold on to V, who tried to get her off of her.
V: Get off me!
V struggled with Doll, completely forgetting that the damn floor was opening up, which is why she didn't notice when a large piece of rock collided with them and made them fall into the void. The crack began to widen as it swallowed various debris, zombie remains… and Thad's body. While a certain artificial life construct was beginning to see its priorities.
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----------------
YES, it was expected that episode 4 would be split into two parts due to how long it is, but I'm still glad to be able to release this before episode 5 of the series comes out as I don't want to see it and then have to change several things at the last minute, so the next part will be the last... of course if I don't overexplain it by mistake, XD.
Pdta: If you notice grammar errors or some misspelled words, it's because I don't speak English, use google translator to translate this, so some things may not be understood correctly.
submitted by carlosblue_14 to MurderDrones [link] [comments]
N: V, wait for us.
She didn't seem to pay attention to them and kept moving forward.
Uzi: What the hell is wrong with you 2? When my dad said that Thad was heading to the dead body area, you guys just, what was that all about?
N: Me, we… it's complicated.
Uzi: Don't tell me it's complicated! You're going to tell me everything you know about that thing NOW.
N hesitated for a few seconds, but Uzi looked at him annoyed, clearly not willing to listen to an excuse, to which she had to give up.
N: It's okay, but, you should know that I don't have all the details, it was V and J who knew the most about this, I… she just followed her orders.
Uzi: Fine, fine, but start talking already.
N: Okay… tell me, how much do you know about us when we got here?
Uzi: Outside of the fact that they came here killing everyone?
N: Well... let's say it wasn't that way, oh at least not as they told you.
Uzi: What do you mean?
In retrospect
A ship arrives and lands on Copper-9, some drones came out of it, but they weren't teardown drones, as they were wearing JCJenson uniforms.
N: When the core incident happened, they first sent an investigation team to find out what happened.
The group of “investigative drones” walked around the site examining the bodies of other wrecked drones on the ground.
Drone Researcher 1: Commando, you guys get to see this, it's a fucking massacre.
Suddenly a metallic noise is heard coming from a mound of bodies piled to one side. The drones look at each other suspiciously and approach cautiously. While one of them speaks.
Drone Investigator 2: Who's there?
N: These drones had no means of defense.
The leader of the group approaches one of the bodies and touches it, nothing happens.
N: They didn't have a chance.
A cable shoots out of the mound and through the leader's head.
Drone Investigator 3: Wow, what the hell?!
What looks like a clawed hand emerges from the mound and grabs the body, then a partially formed mechanical creature rises up, legless and missing an arm, but his appearance is intimidating enough that the drones know he caused it all. this, especially when he starts laughing.
End of hindsight
Uzi: So, that thing was the one that slaughtered the drones and not you?
N: Uh… 50/50.
Uzi looked seriously at N.
Uzi: We're not for N games.
N: Sorry, just me-
Uzi: That doesn't matter now, if what you say is true and then they sent you guys to take over.
V: No
V realized that her partner had opened her mouth, so she decided that if they were to know the truth she should tell it herself.
Uzi: What did you mean by that?
V: That after that, "Incident", combat drones were sent to eliminate that thing.
Uzi: Drones what?
V: Basically soldier drones, with weapons and the whole thing.
Uzi: And what happened?
V: We could barely hold that thing back, what do you think happened to them?
Uzi swallowed at that.
Doll: Если компания хочет убить эту штуку, почему они не послали вас с самого начала?
V: Because we didn't exist at that time, or at least not as such.
N: what do you mean?
V hesitated a few seconds before answering.
V: According to J, we are an… update that the combat drones should have received, but they gave it to us because they had unwanted behavior changes.
Uzi: Define, “unwanted behaviors”.
V: Well, they became extremely irritable, hyper active and started killing everything that moved.
Uzi: How are you?
V looked annoyed at Uzi.
V: Believe me, they were much worse, but as she said, in short they went crazy, so the company ordered us to take care of them.
Uzi: They sacrificed them.
V: It's a way of saying it, but yes.
Uzi: N, why didn't you mention that?
N: Because, honestly I didn't remember them, I mean, from what V says I think he's referring to team 23 and J didn't let me help much.
Uzi: Anyway, I think- wait you said 23.
V: yes
Uzi: You mean-
V: 23 teams were sent to put an end to that thing and none of them succeeded, we are team 24.
There was an awkward silence, Uzi trying to process the information she had just received, knowing that 23 groups of company-armed drones had been destroyed by that thing… it was terrifying.
Uzi: And you say that only you could face it?
V: Well, not exactly, that bastard destroyed my head and it took me a while to regenerate, when I woke up N told me that J had killed him, something that by the way turned out NOT TO BE TRUE.
N laughed nervously at V's comments.
N: In my defense J said that he had done it.
V: Anyway, when I got there his body was lying in the snow without moving, it was very big and they had given us the order to eliminate all the drones in the area to make sure that it hadn't escaped infecting someone, we needed to stock up on oil and we couldn't leave it out in the open, just like that, so what and...
Uzi: So what?
V and N didn't respond, Uzi didn't understand the reason for this, until he realized with horror what they were referring to.
Uzi: You buried him-
Doll: На горе трупов.
He said coming to the same conclusion as Uzi
Uzi: But why didn't they destroy it?
V: J didn't want to and said we needed to keep it, company orders.
Uzi: You can't be serious.
V: Ok, looking back maybe it wasn't the best idea, but she was the boss at the time, okay?
Uzi: I know, but why the hell would the company want to keep the thing that killed so many of their drones, it doesn't make sense, they'd just be wasting resources.
Doll: Я тут о чем-то подумал, она говорит, что "Джей" убила эту штуку, но явно это было не так, но и она не мо гла притворяться, что это сделала, так как ее тело не имеет сознания, а vdrug-
Uzi: J was infected all this time.
Uzi noticed that Doll looked at her annoyed for interrupting her.
Uzi: Hey, you did the same.
V: I doubt J was infected, I mean, that thing tried to turn us into its "minions" several times, even with J, but never succeeded.
N: That is true.
Uzi: But, what if she wasn't infected as such, but she, she "contained" it.
N: What do you mean?
Uzi: Think about it, J was absurdly loyal to the company, and they wanted this thing alive, but clearly couldn't kill it, what if J managed to transfer that monster's consciousness into hers and she contained it.
There was silence again.
Uzi: But, when I killed her, the program took over, the Absolute Fixer was supposed to regenerate J, but instead she just grew and grew, what if she wasn't killing for the sake of killing.
N: I don't understand, what does the program have to do with that thing?
Doll: Во время занятия профессор сказал, что чем больше и сложнее машина, тем больше вычислительной мо щности требуется для ее правильной работы.
Uzi: Right, maybe the fixer was trying to keep him contained, but… when we killed him, we-
V: They released that thing.
V looked annoyed at N and Uzi, the latter lowered her head as she realized that the monster that had taken Thad and many others had been released by her, first attracting the murder drones to the colony and now releasing an immortal monster that He only seeks to kill. It was in situations like this that she wondered… what would have happened if she had never left the colony that day? I don't notice her concern and try to cheer her up.
N: Uzi, it's not your fault, well technically yes, but the point is that we've all made mistakes, right girls?
V was not interested in answering and Doll just looked away from her.
N: Uzi you don't-
V: Oh that's not true!
Quickly V decade, N did not understand until, under her sight, there were hundreds and hundreds of those "zombie minions" around the place, most walking aimlessly, while others pulled out the piled bodies and took them away.
N quickly descended with the girls and stood next to V.
N: V, now what?
V: Silence, I try to think.
Uzi: I thought you'd jump right in and kill them all.
V (annoyed): I don't know if you noticed, but those things aren't easy to kill.
Doll: Так что, мы просто спрячемся здесь?
V: No, but, hey, Violet.
Uzi: Don't call me that.
V: Ok, “Uvi” or whatever your name is, can't your weapon shoot a super laser like J?
Uzi looked annoyed at V
Uzi: First, my name is Uzi and second, no, the energy core wears out very quickly and I used it to kill that other thing.
V: Ugh, great, and your Russian girl?
Doll looked annoyed at vi and manifested a knife pointed at her.
V (growling): Seriously none of you think of anything! I guess that's how J must have felt with us.
Uzi: Oh I'm sorry if, you know, we tried to process everything that just happened.
N: Hey girls
V: Oh yes, of course, now you start to think about that, right?!
N: Girls
Uzi: Maybe we could deal with this more calmly if, you know, THEY DIDN'T KILL SO MANY OF US!
V: Do you really blame me? When were you the one who released that thing?!
Uzi: Hey, it was the Absolute Solver who broke my weapon and destroyed himself.
V: I remind you that you killed J and he became that thing because of you.
N: Girls
V (points to N): And if you hadn't sided with him, we would have finished all this, and we'd go home.
Tired of nobody listening to him, N screamed.
N: YOU COULD HEAR ME FOR JUST 5 SECONDS!
There was an awkward silence, mostly because N wasn't the type to, well, yell for attention.
Uzi: Hey, we're waiting for you, what's up?
N pointed to the side, when they turned around they saw a large number of those "zombies" staring at them.
V: oh
The creatures began to laugh and ran towards them.
V: Oh you have to be kidding.
V quickly launched herself at the "zombies" cutting a group of them in half, but as expected, this didn't stop you and they began to crawl towards her. N fired several energy shots from her arm.
N: Uzi, I think we could use a little help.
Uzi: I don't know if you noticed, but I need a power core for my weapon to work.
N: But you don't have those claws and-?
Uzi looked annoyed at N not wanting to bring it up at that moment.
N: O-okay
N pierced the torso of one of the zombies and ripped out its energy core which he delivered to Uzi. He quickly attached it to his gun and began shooting at the creatures that kept coming.
Uzi: This is much better.
He quickly smashed the heads of several of them, to ensure that the bastards could not rise again. While this was happening, Doll was eliminating multiple zombies that were trying to get to her, but either she sent them flying using her powers, or she crushed them with said strange symbol that she summoned. V for her part cut and shredded all the zombies she found, if she were around another time she would possibly drink her oil, but she was more focused on finding Thad and preventing him from finding the body of that thing that in that.
As she ripped the head off of a zombie drone, she heard what seemed to be the sound of... an engine?, when she turned her head a gray blur hit her. When he fell to the ground, he saw what appeared to be a wrecked takedown drone, barely standing, with wires sticking out of its body and its wings spread, but unlike them, its clothing was more… “formal”, it was covered. of oil, but even so the symbol of the company and the number 23 on his chest were distinguishable, he was one of the members of team 23 sent to deal with that thing, who had to be sacrificed as they became unstable.
V: Ugh, what I was missing.
The creature laughed and jumped towards her, its claws collided with V's who tried to defend himself from the zombie that did not stop laughing, N attacked him from behind, but surprisingly, his broken wings bent towards him causing a deep cut on his neck. chest. N stepped back somewhat in pain, then pointed her cannon arm at him, but noticed that V was in the middle.
N: V move.
V: Do you think I can? Just shoot him!
N: But-
V: Just do it!
N was forced to fire, creating a large cloud of smoke as the shot hit, she approached and found V badly damaged, having lost a leg and an arm.
N: are you okay?
V: This is nothing.
Suddenly the winged zombie pounced on N, a large part of her body was missing, only her torso and one arm remaining.
N: Ah, take it from me.
What could be described as a ninja star flew out and impaled the zombie's head, spinning inside and ripping him apart internally, the beast convulsing before falling dead to the ground. N looked in the direction of his savior seeing that it was Doll, Uzi was shooting at the other zombies that were advancing towards them trying to make them go back.
Uzi: Not to put pressure on them, but these things keep coming, how many of us did they kill?
V: In our defense, that thing did 70% of the job.
V, having partially regenerated, prepared to jump into the approaching zombie army, but stopped when she heard laughter and growls from another direction, she and N turned in that direction and saw multiple eyes in the blizzard staring at them, V between the hills. her eyes to see straight, only to be caught off guard when the rest of the now zombie team 23 flew in her direction. Team 23 unlike the team of N, V and J, this was made up of 12 prototype disassembly drones, if killing one cost them anything, this was going to take longer, they flew over them as if they were vultures, they then charged into the group in an attempt to finish them off.
V: Ugh, it had to be these guys.
N: Do you know them?
V cut two to one who flew at her and fired multiple rounds at her head to make sure he didn't get back up.
V: We killed them, you don't remember, no wait, J left you out of that.
N: That when she was her?
Uzi: Look, I'd love to know the context of all this, but we could focus on that later!
Uzi blocked the claws of one of those things with his weapon, he held her and tried to snatch it away to leave her defenseless, because she pressed the trigger, the weapon began to shoot in all directions, accidentally hitting both the zombie drones and V and N.
N: Ouch.
V: Be careful idiot!
Uzi: Do you think I can control it?!
One of the shots went to Doll, who covered herself waiting for the impact, but there was none, when she opened her eyes she saw that she had managed to stop the energy projectile in midair, she didn't have time to process this when one of those things struck her. stabbing him in the chest, she screamed in pain, but she wasn't going to sit idly by, so she redirected the projectile's course and launched it at the flying drone. Although she didn't hit the target, if she smashed her arms, she clearly didn't take it well and she lunged at Doll, who manifested several knives and threw them at her head to kill him once and for all.
On the other hand, V had to deal with 3 of those things, as if he didn't have enough problems. She turned her hand into a kind of harpoon and threw it at one of them, the harpoon stuck in the chest of the winged zombie and threw it at a group of common zombies that were approaching, the other two jumped towards her, she barely managed to stop. the first, but not the second, who bit his left arm. V grunted in pain before yelling at her partner.
V: M!
N: I'm-
V: Help!
N: oh
He quickly destroyed the drone that was attacking him and flew towards V, taking the drone that was directly attacking her by surprise and threw it at another one that was flying towards them, smashing them in the air, V turned his free hand into a sword and attacked the drone that was attacking him. It bit the arm, but it was faster and ripped it off, she screamed, but in anger and changed her sword for a machine gun with which she shot at the creature, destroying it.
V: Thanks, uh…
N:N
V: Yes, that.
Back with Uzi, she was trying to free her weapon from the grasp of the flying drone, who refused to let go.
Uzi: Oh come on, let it go.
Uzi kicked at the creature, but it had no effect, instead it hit him back, Uzi fell and the monster threw the weapon aside, she tried to move away, but he lunged at her, digging his claws into the snow and it opened its mouth, showing its sharp teeth and wires that dangled from its mouth. When the zombie was going to "bite" it, almost as if he did it out of instinct, Uzi attacked the creature, thrusting his fist into its mouth, then his hand turned into a claw and opened it, smashing its head, the monster fell dead. On top of her, Uzi pushed the body to the side and looked at her claw, covered in oil... and felt the need to taste it, lost in her thoughts it felt like time froze, until she heard Doll scream, she quickly regained her composure and returned his claw to normal. Doll was desperately trying to get rid of the tide of reanimated bodies that were trying to reach her, although she could easily just destroy them using her powers, it turned out that the damage caused by that "spider" in the colony somewhat interfered with her, so she was it was making it difficult to use them correctly. Quickly a flurry of energy shots tore most of them apart and they gave him time to get away from them. V flew into the air attracting the remaining flying zombies who started flying after her. N tried to follow them, but she saw that Uzi and Doll were being surrounded, she looked at V being surrounded in the air by those things, but Uzi was also in trouble. N had to decide whether to help Uzi or help V.
Uzi and Doll were trying to push back the zombies that were crawling towards them, Uzi's gun would run out of power at this point and Doll's powers would keep failing.
Uzi: Ugh, because they just don't die.
She kicked one that was nearby while the others kept getting closer. One who was supposedly dead behind Uzi, got up and grabbed her from behind, she tried to fight, but accidentally dropped her weapon, fed up with this, her hands turned into claws and she impaled the drone's head, then threw it to the ground and began to crush it over and over and over again until it was simply nothing but scrap.
She gasped at the incessant urge to kill, for doing so... felt good, felt VERY good, she looked at her claws again, with oil dripping from them, she again felt the need to taste it, but quickly came back to her senses when more of those zombies approached her, a wide smile broke out on her face while that strange symbol flashed on her visor, she didn't bother to retrieve her weapon, because she already had others.
As this was happening, a white eye under a mound of corpses watched the group fight their minions.
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Returning to our group, Uzi ripped and shredded the zombie drones that pounced on him, this while N and V took care of the last 2 remaining flying zombies.
V: huh, L?
N: It's N
V: Whatever, don't you think you should tell your girlfriend to calm down a bit?
N: what?! No, she's not-
No sooner had she noticed the small mountain of bodies that Uzi had created, she found herself hitting while she was laughing uncontrollably at a zombie that had stopped moving a long time ago.
N: Oh… that.
N managed to decapitate the flying zombie that was attacking him, then he approached Uzi, Doll was on one side watching, she didn't dare to approach her crazed companion.
N: Uh, Uzi?
Uzi ripped the head off one of the zombies and used it to hit the limp body of another that was next to it.
Doll: Я не думаю, что это хорошая идея, чтобы привлечь его внимание her?
N Uzi?
Uzi turned around, about to drink the oil from the head she was holding, until N caught her attention and she came to her senses.
Uzi: No?
N: what are you doing?
Uzi: I…
She quickly tossed her head to the side and climbed down the small hill of corpses that she had made.
Uzi: she was just in charge of cleaning the place.
N: Umm… And that was necessary?
N pointed to the mound of corpses that Uzi made.
Uzi: Oh, that, it's just… let's change the subject.
V: yes
V approached holding the head of the zombie that was attacking her, then smashed it to make sure the bastard stayed dead.
V: How to find your "little friend" and put an end to all this at once.
Uzi: Look, I want to end all of this too, but you don't think there's any alternative other than, you know, killing him.
V: NO
Doll: Ненавижу это признавать, но он прав.
Uzi looked at Doll confused considering that she tried to kill V just a few hours ago.
Doll: But that doesn't mean I like him.
V looked at Doll who looked at her annoyed, she rolled her eyes and turned her attention to N.
V: Well, I think he is already
V was interrupted when a kind of mechanical roar was heard in the distance.
V: DAMN IT, NOW WHAT!
And she was already fed up with these zombies, they simply did not stop coming, or so she thought, since there were practically none alive, but in the distance she could see a light moving erratically and quickly.
Uzi: What is that?
V: Ugh, I'll take care of it.
V opened his wings and flew into the blizzard which had increased, a few seconds passed without anything happening, until shots and sounds of clashing blades were heard, then V flew out and crashed into Doll.
N: V!
N rushed to help her partner while Uzi aimed his gun and fired at the approaching dim light, but missed as she was zic-zac.
Uzi: What the hell?
Suddenly, the creature jumped towards her, managing to ram her, the beast raised her claw to pierce it, but Uzi stopped it in time with his own, it was at that moment that she was able to see it more closely. He was moderately taller and bulkier than a common drone, he had a red jacket that was torn and covered in oil, his arms and legs were more robotic and coarse, in addition to having claws on both his hands and feet, his helmet was cracked and at the same time Like other zombies, it seemed that its jaw was attached to its head by cables, in addition to having a single glowing white eye in the middle of its visor.
Uzi: T-Thad?
A shot of energy hit the creature freeing Uzi, but this had not finished with it, as it was clearly more resistant than the others, the beast quickly recomposed itself and ran on all fours towards en, who fired again.
Uzi: No, wait.
N fired, but the zombie hunter dodged and jumped on him, digging his claws into his torso, N screamed in pain as the hunter violently withdrew his claws ripping into his chest and digging them into his face . Doll decided not to be left behind and materialized several knives around her and threw them at the creature. She, however, did not even bother to protect herself, since most of the knives could not go through his body and only one hit his head, but he simply took it from his face and threw it abruptly to the ground. He then began to approach her while chuckling slightly as Doll backed away, she tried to summon one of those weird symbols like when they were in the colony, but it just kept failing without interacting with the physical world. Luckily for her, V managed to wake up and lunged at the thing, using her swords to block the attack from her claws and trying to cut it.
V: I should have killed you when I had the chance!
He simply laughed, irritated by this, she managed to stab him into her chest with her sword, then spread her wings and began to soar with him.
N: W, wait!
V continues to rise as she punched the monster in the face.
V (hitting him): Let's see, if you keep laughing at this.
The creature continued laughing at her, V angrily tried to hit him to smash his head, but he caught her arm with her mouth and ripped it off causing her to scream in pain.
V: Ah, damn son of-!
But she couldn't finish when the enhanced zombie opened her mouth and several wires came out of it, digging into her head.
V: No
His visor glitched and a message appeared on it.
“THE SYSTEM HAS DETECTED HOSTILE COMPUTER AGENTS, PROCEEDING TO AN EMERGENCY RESET”
Then her body was inert beginning to fall at high speed. Below, Doll, N and Uzi looked expectantly when they noticed how they began to descend at high speed.
Uzi: Uh… that doesn't look good.
N: V!
N opened his wings and tried to reach them, but they crashed into the ground, generating a large cloud of dust and snow that covered the place. After a few seconds of waiting, the light from the creature's eye and its laughter became present and showed itself above. from V's body which cushioned the fall, N launched against the beast which responded in the same way, digging its claws into the torso, then opened them throwing large amounts of oil and took N's head and smashed it against the ground , only to then crush it with the claw of his foot, then he slowly turned his head and laughed when he saw the two remaining girls, to later launch himself on Doll.
Uzi: Ugh, dammit.
She tried to shoot, only to realize that she couldn't pull the trigger, it was as if her body refused to do it, while the zombie attacked Doll who threw knives at it to stop it but just like before, it was useless, because which using all his concentration, he managed to stop him by placing that strange holographic symbol on his limbs, although he could easily tear him to pieces at that moment, due to the failure of his powers, the most he could do was stop him, but that was enough, because Uzi could take care of the rest.
Doll: Давай, поторопись и сNESи ему голову.
Uzi raised her gun and aimed at the head of the zombie that was struggling to get free... but for some reason she couldn't pull the trigger, she tried to, but she couldn't, because in that monster she still saw her old friend her.
Doll: Узи, чего ты ждешь, я не могу-
The creature broke free of those holographic restraints causing a small burst of energy that sent Doll flying and knocked her unconscious. Then she directed her gaze to Uzi who still couldn't shoot him, he began to walk towards her while Uzi backed away out of fear.
Uzi: Thad
The creature began to laugh slowly as it extended its claws.
Uzi: I-I know you're there… please don't make me do this.
He did not stop his advance, in turn N recovered consciousness after regenerating seeing how that thing approached his friend.
N: Ozi!
Uzi finally using all his willpower managed to pull the trigger... but nothing happened. It turns out that he spent all of the weapon's energy on the zombie army from before. When he looked up he saw the zombie standing in front of her, staring at her with his only eye.
Uzi: Thad, I-
Uzi stopped as he felt the blades of the being's claws pierce his body, then the creature picked him up while roaring and split him horizontally in two, throwing his remains roughly in different directions, with the top falling to the side of the mound of bodies. that she had formed earlier and a few surviving zombies that were creeping towards her.
N: UZI!
N got up when he saw his friend being violently murdered and pounced on the monster that he had begun to laugh uncontrollably. He blocked the attack of his claws with his own and tried to subdue him, but N was too angry, and when that happens, he stops being the cute boy of the group, his visor showed an X instead of his eyes and he started to smile, then he held the creature's hands tightly and placed his foot on his chest, then he began to pull while it tried to free himself from his grip, but it was too late, N ripped off the zombie's arms and then dug his claws into his torso, beginning to destroying it while ripping out its insides even using his mouth, then he began to repeatedly hit its head with his hands and didn't stop until only shattered scrap was left. Despite this he didn't stop until he heard V's voice.
V: No?
N stopped his attack upon hearing that V finally remembered his name. Then they both looked at each other in awkward silence. To say that she was surprised was an understatement, J always said how N was a burden and a dead weight, so V's vision of him was not a big deal, but he never thought that his clumsy partner could "explode" like that. shape.
V (thinking): I wonder what J would have said if she saw you now?
N: I-
V: Look that doesn't matter now, that thing isn't really dead, now we just have to get rid of its body and all this hell will be over.
Doll: What kind of thing?
Doll said with her arms crossed, although she had been willing to help them finish this thing off, what would they do next? N and V were still Killer Drones, their purpose was to kill the worker drones, they would return to the colony and kill to all.
V (annoyed): What are you insinuating?
Doll: Что они собираются делать, когда закончат с этой штукой?
V: Look whatever your name is, I still haven't forgotten that you tried to kill me, so I would suggest you watch your words.
They both looked at each other with mutual contempt, while N was silent thinking about Uzi. But they all stopped when they heard a strange sound, like metal and plastic breaking. The three of them turned slowly in the direction of the creature and saw how it was getting up, despite its damaged state multiple cables were coming out of its body, and connected to the arms and various remains of other zombies scattered around the place and the remains of the shattered head, the wires from the head reached out and grabbed the head of the flying drone that N had decapitated earlier, then attached it to his body, for a few seconds there was silence, but it was broken by the laughter of that monster whose eye lit up in your viewer.
V: Why can't you just fucking die?!
Doll(scared): Ч-что это за монстр на самом деле?
N did not hesitate and launched himself again at Uzi's killer, but he had to avoid it as the zombie doubled his body and multiple cables with pieces of sharp metal extended from the large hole in his torso thanks to N. Then he rejoined and ran on all fours towards V and Doll, V changed his claws for weapons and started shooting, while Doll threw whatever she had, knives, throwing stars or pieces of zombie drones at him. But nothing seemed to stop him, V tried to sting him with the stinger of his tail, managing to infect his arm with the acid nanobots, but this did not seem to matter to him, even when it began to corrode and separate from his body. He countered by stabbing V into his arm and again ripping him from his body.
V: Not again!
The zombie was going to impale his head with his claws, but a holographic symbol of Doll around his wrist stopped him. N then charged and pinned him before throwing himself against a wall to pin him down.
N: V shoot!
V, unlike Uzi, did not hesitate and began to shoot at point blank range at both of them, the shots slightly damaged N but the same could not be said of the creature, that although its body could resist the shots, its head could not and it was being damaged. So to get rid of it, I grabbed the stinger from N's tail and cut it before digging into the head, causing it to remain inert on the ground, although the disassembly drones could resist the effect of their own nanobots, or at least of In a way that wasn't lethal, that didn't mean they couldn't hurt them. After breaking free, he ran again like a wild animal towards the two girls while they shot at him. V exchanged his amra for a sword while he attacked the monster.
V: JUST DIE!
He held the swords and using absurd force split them in two, V changed his weapon again, this time into normal claws. Then he tried to attack it with his claw, but the zombie opened its mouth and several cables came out like tentacles trying to catch it, V quickly moved away and avoided being touched, although he had tried to maintain his serious attitude throughout this time, the truth it's that there was something that worried her, and a lot, her arm, it didn't regenerate, well, it did, but VERY slowly. Because? Why wasn't her regeneration system repairing her at the same speed as before? What was that feeling in his chest? Was it fear?
V moved further away from the creature fearing for her life, whatever she did to him had triggered that survival instinct she apparently lacked, apparently a side effect of slowing her regeneration.
Doll looked annoyed at V when she saw that she was alone against this monster, who began to approach her in a threatening way while she laughed. She manifested various knives, saws, ninja stars and anything she could use as a weapon, then began to throw it at him as he began to run against her, unlike before if it had a greater effect, as the objects managed to go through his body and leave him still. more, but he kept advancing, even his cables quickly assimilated several of the objects that were thrown at him in his own body. Doll, on the other hand, was exhausted, using her powers so often and relentlessly was draining almost all of her energy, not to mention that they were not working properly, since several of the objects that she was throwing at her were vanishing in the air. So using what little energy she had left, she manifested various symbols on different parts of the zombie's body and turned them around several times, a horrible sound of metal and artificial organs breaking was heard as the creature's body fell to the inert ground. . Doll breathed heavily feeling her microprocessors boiling from overexertion, sure that now the damned should be dead...
I think by now you should get the idea that this is almost impossible, as her broken body began to rise again, twisting the broken joints and bending to stay upright. Then she began to walk on all fours towards her, she was helpless, too tired to do anything, she was about to close her eyes waiting for death when several shots attracted the creature. N and V started shooting at the monster in order to kill it once and for all, but without success. N had already regenerated and V had decided to attack again because she didn't know that this thing would inevitably kill them, but at least she wouldn't die hiding like a rat. Another confrontation with an obvious result was about to take place, but the zombie stopped and looked in another direction. The group of three looked confused in the same direction and noticed something, in the small mound of bodies from before, several of the zombies' bodies were torn apart and open, as if a wild animal had devoured them, since said animal was on its back. , over a corpse and what could be described as two wings made of... meat?, the creature slowly turned around and showed itself as Uzi, but in the middle of her visor was that strange symbol and her mouth had several sharp teeth, she started laughing when she flew at high speed against her old friend managing to ram him and causing them to crash against the wall causing a cloud of smoke, when this dissipated his new appearance could be better appreciated, his body looked slightly different, but his legs were now more similar to V's, in addition to possessing a tail with yellow acid on it, but the most prominent thing was clearly its wings that seemed to be made of meat. Uzi laughed and attacked the zombie Thad who could barely defend himself due to only having one arm, several cables came out of the zombie's mouth and tried to hold Uzi, but she countered with her tail which he bit and smashed, causing the acid to melt his wires and part of his jaw. As these two killed each other, V, N, and Doll looked away from the conflict.
V: Since when-?
N: We shouldn't help.
Doll: Я не думаю, что это хорошая идея?
Uzi pinned Thad slammed him repeatedly into the ground as he laughed uncontrollably, then without giving him a chance to defend himself plunged his claw into the hole in his chest and violently ripped out what could only be described as his heart. Whereupon the creature wailed in apparent pain, and its single eye went black. Uzi laughed as she dripped the oil onto her face.
V (pointing her arm at her weapon): Great now we have to deal with her.
Doll: Я думаю, мы не должны привлекать его внимание her-
N: Uzi you did amazing!
Uzi turned to look at them abruptly and smiled when he saw new prey, he put aside the artificial heart and began to approach them while she slightly tilted her head, as if they were analyzing them.
V: Goodbye to the surprise factor, idiot.
N: But, she-
Uzi's laughter began to increase as she approached them menacingly, so they "instinctively" began to back away. Uzi extended her claws ready to pounce on the poor defenseless group, as Doll could barely stand upright, V was missing an arm and his wounds were still not fully healed, N was the only one fit to fight, but it's not that the be willing to harm Uzi.
Just when she was about to pounce on them, suddenly the creature's arm grabbed her neck and pulled her close to him, showing that his "heart" had been reconnected by the cables that were reattached to his body. .
V: Oh you can't be serious!
N: Uzi!
N tried to go help her, but it was too late, the zombie opened her mouth and several new cables came out and stuck in Uzi's head. She struggled for a few seconds before going limp, N looked worried, but then the creature began to convulse violently, releasing Uzi.
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01010101 01001110 01001011 01001110 01001111 01010111 01001110 00100000 01001000 01001111 01010011 01010100 01001001 01001100 01000101 00100000 01010000 01010010 01001111 01000111 01010010 01000001 01001101 00100000 01000010 01010010 01000101 01000001 01001011 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01010100 01001000 01010010 01001111 01010101 01000111 01001000 00100000 01000100 01000101 01000110 01000101 01001110 01010011 01000101 01010011
01010000 01010010 01001111 01000111 01010010 01000001 01001101 00100000 01001001 01001110 01000110 01000101 01000011 01010100 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01000100 01000001 01010100 01000001 00100000 01001110 01010101 01010010 01001111 01001110 01000001 01001100 00100000 01001110 01000101 01010100 01010111 01001111 01010010 01001011
01000011 01001111 01010010 01010010 01010101 01010000 01010100 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01010011 01011001 01010011 01010100 01000101 01001101 01010011
01010000 01000101 01010010 01000110 01001111 01010010 01001101 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01000101 01001101 01000101 01010010 01000111 01000101 01001110 01000011 01011001 00100000 01010011 01001000 01010101 01010100 01000100 01001111 01010111 01001110
The creature's body went rigid and then fell limp to the ground, this time truly dead.
V:…what the hell just happened?!
N: Ozi!
N quickly approached Uzi who was unconscious on the ground, he lifted her up and tried to make her react. On her visor could be seen a constantly rotating charge symbol.
N: Come on Uzi, she reacts.
N tried to see if she could do anything, but it's not like he really knew how to fix her, especially given the change in her body. But luckily for him, her visor came on and Uzi started to react, this time without that strange symbol on her face.
Uzi: Ugh, my head, what happened.
N: uzi
N hug Uzi happily.
Uzi: N… I… can't… breathe.
N: Oh, sorry.
Uzi: *gasp* Thanks, I felt like, wait-
It was at that moment that Uzi felt something strange in his back and her legs, when he turned to look, to say that she was surprised was an understatement.
Uzi: WHAT?! WHEN?! AS?!
Uzi looked in shock at her wings and legs, as well as her tail whose stinger was broken. But I also notice something, Thad's body lying on the ground, rapidly closing in on him.
Uzi: Oh Thad.
N: are you okay?
Uzi: Yes, only…
I look sadly at the body of her former friend.
N: Don't worry, it was for the best.
At that moment V coughed to get her attention.
V: I don't want to ruin her “moment”. But I think we should find a way to kill this thing.
Doll: Разве она не мерт-
V: Don't say it!
N: Say what?
V: That damn thing is dead because it surely isn't!
As if it was a response from fate, a strong earthquake started at that moment.
Uzi: Wow, what's going on?
She suddenly came to a stop... only for moments later what could be described as several giant tentacles made of wires to emerge from the ground towering over the group who were in a visible state of shock.
V:… How I hate myself.
Doll: Я тоже ненавижу тебя.
Uzi: FOR ROBOT-CHRIST WHAT THE HELL!
N(in a panic): This can't be happening, this can't be happening, this can't be happening.
Then one of the tentacles began to descend dangerously in the direction of the group that quickly began to flee.
Uzi: Watch out!
The tentacle crashed into the ground digging into it, although it missed by a considerable distance, the ground began to crack, creating a crack that began to widen more and more.
Uzi: wow
Uzi lost her balance due to his new legs and fell into the void, not that she's used to how to use them.
N: Uzi!
N quickly launched after her spreading her wings. V and Doll tried to escape, but it was useless, because the ground began to collapse and Doll was about to fall, but she managed to hold on to V, who tried to get her off of her.
V: Get off me!
V struggled with Doll, completely forgetting that the damn floor was opening up, which is why she didn't notice when a large piece of rock collided with them and made them fall into the void. The crack began to widen as it swallowed various debris, zombie remains… and Thad's body. While a certain artificial life construct was beginning to see its priorities.
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01001111 01010101 01010100 01010011 01010100 01000001 01001110 01000100 01000101 01000100 00100000 01000100 01000101 01000110 01000101 01001110 01010011 01000101 00100000 01010011 01011001 01010011 01010100 01000101 01001101 01010011
01000100 01001111 01001110 00100111 01010100 00100000 01010101 01001110 01000100 01000101 01010010 01010011 01010100 01000001 01001110 01000100
01010010 01000101 00101101 01000101 01010110 01000001 01001100 01010101 01000001 01010100 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01010000 01010010 01001001 01001111 01010010 01001001 01010100 01001001 01000101 01010011
00101101 01000101 01010011 01000011 01000001 01010000 01000101 00100000 01000110 01010010 01001111 01001101 00100000 01001100 01001111 01000011 01001011 01000100 01001111 01010111 01001110 00100000 01011011 01000001 01000011 01001000 01001001 01000101 01010110 01000101 01000100 01011101
00101101 01010010 01000101 01001101 01001111 01010110 01000001 01001100 00100000 01001111 01000110 00100000 01001111 01010010 01000111 01000001 01001110 01001001 01000011 00100000 01001100 01001001 01000110 01000101 00100000 01000110 01001111 01010010 01001101 01010011 00100000 01011011 01000001 01000011 01001000 01001001 01000101 01010110 01000101 01000100 01011101
00101101 01010011 01010101 01010010 01010110 01001001 01010110 01000001 01001100 00100000 01011011 01001001 01001110 00100000 01010000 01010010 01001111 01000011 01000101 01010011 01010011 01011101
00101101 01001000 01001111 01010011 01010100 01001001 01001100 01000101 00100000 01000110 01001111 01010010 01000011 01000101 00100000 01010010 01000101 01001101 01001111 01010110 01000001 01001100 00100000 11100010 10000000 10011100 01001010 01000011 01001010 01100101 01101110 01110011 01101111 01101110 11100010 10000000 10011101 00100000 01011011 01001111 01001110 00100000 01010011 01010100 01000001 01001110 01000100 01000010 01011001 01011101
00101101 01010000 01010010 01001111 01010100 01000101 01000011 01010100 00100000 01010100 01001000 01000101 00100000 01000101 01010110 01000101 01010010 01011001 01010100 01001000 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01011011 01001101 01000001 01011000 01001001 01001101 01010101 01001101 00100000 01010000 01010010 01001001 01001111 01010010 01001001 01010100 01011001 01011101
01000001 01010011 01010011 01000101 01010011 01010011 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01010011 01001001 01010100 01010101 01000001 01010100 01001001 01001111 01001110
11100010 10000000 10100110
01010011 01010100 01000001 01010010 01010100 01001001 01001110 01000111 00100000 01000001 01010000 01001111 01001100 01001100 01011001 01001111 01001110 00100000 01010000 01010010 01001111 01010100 01001111 01000011 01001111 01001100
----------------
YES, it was expected that episode 4 would be split into two parts due to how long it is, but I'm still glad to be able to release this before episode 5 of the series comes out as I don't want to see it and then have to change several things at the last minute, so the next part will be the last... of course if I don't overexplain it by mistake, XD.
Pdta: If you notice grammar errors or some misspelled words, it's because I don't speak English, use google translator to translate this, so some things may not be understood correctly.
2023.06.06 02:59 Maleficent_Ocelot302 Ideas to celebrate our birthdayS-anniversary
My husband (m37) and I (f36) want to get some ideas on how we should celebrate our birthdays and 4th year wedding anniversary. Yes, we have the same birthday which is on Thursday July 6th. To make it extra special, we got married on our birthday. This year, we are also celebrating our 4th year anniversary.
July 6 has been and will continue being a big and super special day for us... So big and super special that we're not sure what to do and how to celebrate that we need ideas from kind fellow Torontonians.
Constraints for this special day: - we have a 2month old that needs to tag along with us. Or.. we can get grandma to watch him at home for a couple of hours so we can't do anything that takes up too much time. - we have a toddler (17 month old) that is in daycare and needs to be picked up no later than 5pm. 6pm is the absolute latest. Grandma cannot handle both newborn and toddler at the same time so we will have to be available to pick him up at the end of the day. - we are located in north west Scarborough and would like to keep it local (North York, Scarborough, Markham, Richmond Hill, etc) in case there's an emergency at home/daycare. - we like food, musical theatre, technology, movies... Not so much sports or gambling. - money is a bit tight lately. We want to set a budget of 100-150 per person.
Within the last four years, we haven't done much due to the pandemic that took away a large chunk of our celebration time. Our last real adventure was (sadly) our honeymoon during the summer of 2019. We were one of the lucky ones that got married before the pandemic hit, places were shut down and venues had to cancel bookings.
We hope to get some good ideas on how to celebrate this special day. Please help us!! Thank you 😘
submitted by Maleficent_Ocelot302 to askTO [link] [comments]
July 6 has been and will continue being a big and super special day for us... So big and super special that we're not sure what to do and how to celebrate that we need ideas from kind fellow Torontonians.
Constraints for this special day: - we have a 2month old that needs to tag along with us. Or.. we can get grandma to watch him at home for a couple of hours so we can't do anything that takes up too much time. - we have a toddler (17 month old) that is in daycare and needs to be picked up no later than 5pm. 6pm is the absolute latest. Grandma cannot handle both newborn and toddler at the same time so we will have to be available to pick him up at the end of the day. - we are located in north west Scarborough and would like to keep it local (North York, Scarborough, Markham, Richmond Hill, etc) in case there's an emergency at home/daycare. - we like food, musical theatre, technology, movies... Not so much sports or gambling. - money is a bit tight lately. We want to set a budget of 100-150 per person.
Within the last four years, we haven't done much due to the pandemic that took away a large chunk of our celebration time. Our last real adventure was (sadly) our honeymoon during the summer of 2019. We were one of the lucky ones that got married before the pandemic hit, places were shut down and venues had to cancel bookings.
We hope to get some good ideas on how to celebrate this special day. Please help us!! Thank you 😘
2023.06.06 02:50 diabeet0 Expand The T
 | submitted by diabeet0 to CarIndependentPGH [link] [comments] |
2023.06.06 02:36 _hardliner_ [WTS] Google Nest Hub 7 inch display 2nd generation - $60
Bought for Christmas 2021 - Never used
All of this is in a non-smoking house, no pets, and I'm the only owner.
Local pickup only. Cash only. Email me if you are interested.
I'm in North Richland Hills.
https://imgur.com/Y5rkLIk
https://imgur.com/32sZV4M
submitted by _hardliner_ to DFWClassifieds [link] [comments]
All of this is in a non-smoking house, no pets, and I'm the only owner.
Local pickup only. Cash only. Email me if you are interested.
I'm in North Richland Hills.
https://imgur.com/Y5rkLIk
https://imgur.com/32sZV4M
2023.06.06 02:33 _hardliner_ [WTS] Used Western Digital My Book 4TB USB 3.0 external hard drive - $50
Comes with USB 3.0 cable and power adapter
All of this has been in a non-smoking house, no pets, and I'm the only owner.
Local pickup only. Cash only. Email me if you are interested.
I am in North Richland Hills.
It has been wiped using DBAN.
https://imgur.com/g9jqSyM
https://imgur.com/8pAOcgu
https://imgur.com/UZVmAMN
https://imgur.com/3p1Jrmz
submitted by _hardliner_ to DFWClassifieds [link] [comments]
All of this has been in a non-smoking house, no pets, and I'm the only owner.
Local pickup only. Cash only. Email me if you are interested.
I am in North Richland Hills.
It has been wiped using DBAN.
https://imgur.com/g9jqSyM
https://imgur.com/8pAOcgu
https://imgur.com/UZVmAMN
https://imgur.com/3p1Jrmz
2023.06.06 00:37 Houndguy Randy Gilson - Pittsburgh's own hero
Randy is a local artist and gardening hero in the local area. He can be credited with creating countless gardens in the Pittsburgh North Side area - once a blighted area, now one of the most desirable parts of the city to live due to the green spaces.
Recently some of his work was scheduled for demo to build new buildings. The community didn't let that happen.
https://www.facebook.com/gilsonrandy/videos/936405630918999
submitted by Houndguy to GuerrillaGardening [link] [comments]
Recently some of his work was scheduled for demo to build new buildings. The community didn't let that happen.
https://www.facebook.com/gilsonrandy/videos/936405630918999
2023.06.05 23:07 JoshAsdvgi THE NUNNE'HI AND OTHER SPIRIT FOLK
 | submitted by JoshAsdvgi to Native_Stories [link] [comments] THE NUNNE'HI AND OTHER SPIRIT FOLK A Cherokee Legend The Nûñnë'hï or immortals, the "people who live anywhere," were a race of spirit people who lived in the highlands of the old Cherokee country and had a great many townhouses, especially in the bald mountains. They had large townhouses in Pilot knob and under the old Nikwasi' mound in North Carolina, and another under Blood mountain, at the head of Nottely river, in Georgia. They were invisible excepting when they wanted to be seen, and then they looked and poke just like other Indians. They were very fond of music and dancing, and hunters in the mountains would often hear the dance, songs and the drum beating in some invisible townhouse, but when they went toward the sound it would shift about and they would hear it behind them or away in some other direction, so that they could never find the place where the dance was. They were a friendly people, too, and often brought lost wanderers to their townhouses under the mountains and cared for them there until they were rested and then guided them back to their home . More than once, also, when the Cherokee were hard pressed by the enemy, the Nûñnë'hï warriors have come out, as they did at old Nikwasi', and have saved them from defeat. Some people have thought that they are the same as the Yûñwï Tsunsdi', the "Little People"; but these are fairies, no larger in size than children. There was a man in Nottely town who had been with the Nûñnë'hï when he was a boy, and he told Wafford all about it. He was a truthful, hard-headed man, and Wafford had heard the story so often from other people that he asked this man to tell it. It was in this way: When he was about 10 or 12 years old he was playing one day near the river, shooting at a mark with his how and arrows, until he became tired, and started to build a fish trap in the water. While he was piling up the stones in two long walls a man came and stood on the bank and asked him what he was doing. The boy told him, and the man said, "Well, that's pretty hard work and you ought to rest a while. Come and take a walk up the river." The boy said, "No"; that he was going home to dinner soon. "Come right up to my house," said the stranger, and I'll give you a good dinner there and bring you home again in the morning." So the boy went with him up the river until they came to a house, when they went in, and the man's wife and the other people there were very glad to see him, and gave him a fine dinner, and were very kind to him. While they were eating a man that the boy knew very well came in and spoke to him, so that he felt quite at home. After dinner he played with the other children and slept there that night, and in the morning, after breakfast, the man got ready to take him home. They went down a path that had a cornfield on one side and a peach orchard fenced in on the other, until they came to another trail, and the man said, "Go along this trail across that ridge and you will come to the river road that will bring you straight to your home, and now I'll go back to the house." So the man went back to the house and the boy went on along the trail, but when he had gone a little way he looked back, and there was no cornfield or orchard or fence or house; nothing but trees on the mountain side. He thought it very queer, but somehow he was not frightened, and went on until he came to the river trail in sight of his home. There were a great many people standing about talking, and when they saw him they ran toward him shouting, "Here he is! He is not drowned or killed in the mountains!" They told him they had been hunting him ever since yesterday noon, and asked him where he had been. "A man took me over to his house just across the ridge, and I had a fine dinner and a good time with the children," said the boy, "I thought Udsi'skalä here"--that was the name of the man he had seen at dinner--"would tell you where I was." But Udsi'skalä said, "I haven't seen you. I was out all day in my canoe hunting you. It was one of the Nûñnë'hï that made himself look like me." Then his mother said, "You say you had dinner there?" "Yes, and I had plenty, too," said the boy; but his mother answered, "There is no house there--only trees and rocks--but we hear a drum sometimes in the big bald above. The people you saw were the Nûñnë'hï." Once four Nûñnë'hï women came, to a dance at Nottely town, and danced half the night with the young men there, and nobody knew that they were Nûñnë'hï, but thought them visitors from another settlement. About midnight they left to go home, and some men who had come out from the townhouse to cool off watched to see which way they went. They saw the women go down the trail to the river ford, but just as they came to the water they disappeared, although it was a plain trail, with no place where they could hide. Then the watchers knew they were Nûñnë'hï women. Several men saw this happen, and one of them was Wafford's father-in-law, who was known for an honest man. At another time a man named Burnt-tobacco was crossing over the ridge from Nottely to Hemptown in Georgia and heard a drum and the songs of dancers in the hills on one side of the trail. He rode over to see who could be dancing in such a place, but when he reached the spot the drum and the songs were behind him, and he was so frightened that he hurried back to the trail and rode all the way to Hemptown as hard as he could to tell the story. He was a truthful man, and they believed what he said. There must have been a good many of the Nûñnë'hï living in that neighborhood, because the drumming wits often heard in the high balds almost up to the time of the Removal. On a small upper branch of Nottely, running nearly due north from Blood maintain, there was also a hole, like a small well or chimney, in the ground, from which there came up a warm vapor that heated all the air around. People said that this was because the Nûñnë'hï had a townhouse and a fire under the mountain. Sometimes in cold weather hunters would stop there to warm the selves, but they were afraid to stay long. This was more than sixty years ago, but the hole is probably there yet. Close to the old trading path from South Carolina up to the Cherokee Nation, somewhere near the head of Tugaloo, there was formerly a noted circular depression about the size of a townhouse, and waist deep. Inside it was always clean as though swept by unknown hands. Passing traders would throw logs and rocks into it, but would always, on their return, find them thrown far out from the hole. The Indians said it was a Nunne'hi townhouse, and never liked to go near the place or even to talk about it, until at last some logs thrown in by the traders were allowed to remain there, and then they concluded that the Nunne'hi, annoyed by the persecution of the white men, had abandoned their townhouse forever. There is another race of spirits, the Yûñwï Tsunsdi', or "Little People," who live in rock eaves on the mountain side. They are little fellows, hardly reaching up to a man's knee, but well shaped and handsome, with long hair falling almost to the ground. They are great wonder workers and are very fond of music, spending half their time drumming and dancing. They are helpful and kind-hearted, and often when people have been lost in the mountains, especially children who have strayed away from their parents, the Yûñwï Tsunsdi' have found them and taken care of them and brought them back to their homes. Sometimes their drum is heard in lonely places in the mountains, but it is not safe to follow it, because the Little People do not like to be disturbed at home, and they throw a spell over the stranger so that he is bewildered and loses his way, and even if he does at last get back to the settlement he is like one dazed ever after. Sometimes, also, they come near a house at night and the people inside hear them talking, but they must not go out, and in the morning they find the corn gathered or the field cleared as if a whole force of men had been at work. If anyone should go out to watch, he would die. When a hunter finds anything in the woods, such as a knife or a trinket, he must say, "Little People, I want to take this," because it may belong to them, and if he does not ask their permission they will throw stones at him as he goes home. Once a hunter in winter found tracks in the snow like the tracks of little children. He wondered how they could have come there and followed them until they led him to a cave, which was full of Little People, young and old, men, women, and children. They brought him in and were kind to him, and he was with them some time; but when he left they warned him that he must not tell or he would die. He went back to the settlement and his friends were all anxious to know where he had been. For a long time he refused to say, until at last he could not hold out any longer, but told the story, and in a few days he died. Only a few years ago two hunters from Raventown, going behind the high fall near the head of Oconaluftee on the East Cherokee reservation, found there a cave with fresh footprints of the Little People all over the floor. During the smallpox among the East Cherokee just after the war one sick man wandered off, and his friends searched, but could not find him. After several weeks he came back and said that the Little People had found him and taken him to one of their eaves and tended him until he was cured. About twenty-five years ago a man named Tsantäwû' was lost in the mountains on the head of Oconaluftee. It was winter time and very cold and his friends thought he must be dead, but after sixteen days he came back and said that the Little People had found him and taken him to their cave, where he had been well treated, and given plenty of everything to eat except bread. This was in large loaves, but when he took them in his hand to eat they seemed to shrink into small cakes so light and crumbly that though he might eat all day he would not be satisfied. After he was well rested they had brought him a part of the way home until they came to a small creek, about knee deep, when they told him to wade across to reach the main trail on the other side. He waded across and turned to look back, but the Little People were gone and the creek was a deep river. When he reached home his legs were frozen to the knees and he lived only a few days. Once the Yûñwï Tsunsdi' had been very kind to the people of a certain settlement, helping them at night with their work and taking good care of any lost children, until something happened to offend them and they made up their minds to leave the neighborhood. Those who were watching at the time saw the whole company of Little People come down to the ford of the river and cross over and disappear into the mouth of a large cave on the other side. They were never heard of near the settlement again. There are other fairies, the Yûñwï Amai'yïnë'hï, or Water-dwellers, who live in the water, and fishermen pray to them for help. Other friendly spirits live in people's houses, although no one can see them, and so long as they are there to protect the house no witch can come near to do mischief. Tsäwa'sï and Tsäga'sï are the names of two small fairies, who are mischievous enough, but yet often help the hunter who prays to them. Tsäwa'sï, or Tsäwa'sï Usdi'ga (Little Tsäwa'sï), is a tiny fellow, very handsome, with long hair falling down to his feet, who lives in grassy patches on the hillsides and has great power over the game. To the deer hunter who prays to him he gives skill to slip up on the deer through the long grass without being seen. Tsäga'sï is another of the spirits invoked by the hunter and is very helpful, but when someone trips and falls, we know that it is Tsäga'sï who has caused it. There are several other of these fairies with names, all good-natured, but more or less tricky. Then there is De'tsätä. De'tsätä was once a boy who ran away to the woods to avoid a scratching and tries to keep himself invisible ever since. He is a handsome little fellow and spends his whole time hunting birds with blowgun and arrow. He has a great many children who are all just like him and have the same name. When a flock of birds flies up suddenly as if frightened it is because De'tsätä is chasing them. He is mischievous and sometimes hides an arrow from the bird hunter, who may have shot it off into a perfectly clear space, but looks and looks without finding it. Then the hunter says, "De'tsätä, you have my arrow, and if you don't give it up I'll scratch you," and when he looks again he finds it. There is one spirit that goes about at night with a light. The Cherokee call it Atsil'-dihye'gï, "The Fire-carrier," and they are all afraid of it, because they think it dangerous, although they do not know much about it. They do not even know exactly what it looks like, because they are afraid to stop when they see it. It may be a witch instead of a spirit. Wafford's mother saw the "Fire-carrier" once when she was a young woman, as she was coming home at night from a trading post in South Carolina. It seemed to be following her from behind, and. she was frightened and whipped up her horse until she got away from it and never saw it again. |
2023.06.05 23:06 JoshAsdvgi The Nunnehi
 | submitted by JoshAsdvgi to Native_Stories [link] [comments] The Nunnehi The Cherokee believed there was a race of spirits called the Nunnehi. The were only seen when they wanted to be seen, but usually looked like ordinary people when someone did see them. Here are some stories about the Nunnehi. A 10 or 12 years old boy was playing one day near the river, shooting at a mark with his bow and arrows, until he became tired, and started to build a fish trap in the water. While he was piling up the stones in two long walls a man came and stood on the bank and asked him what he was doing. The boy told him, and the man said, "Well, that's pretty hard work and you ought to rest a while. Come and take a walk up the river." The boy said, "No"; that he was going home to dinner soon. "Come right up to my house," said the stranger, and I'll give you a good dinner there and bring you home again in the morning." So the boy went with him up the river until they came to a house, when they went in, and the man's wife and the other people there were very glad to see him, and gave him a fine dinner, and were very kind to him. While they were eating a man that the boy knew very well came in and spoke to him, so that he felt quite at home. After dinner he played with the other children and slept there that night, and in the morning, after breakfast, the man got ready to take him home. They went down a path that had a cornfield on one side and a peach orchard fenced in on the other, until they came to another trail, and the man said, "Go along this trail across that ridge and you will come to the river road that will bring you straight to your home, and now I'll go back to the house. " So the man went back to the house and the boy went on along the trail, but when he had gone a little way he looked back, and there was no cornfield or orchard or fence or house; nothing but trees on the mountain side. He thought it very strange, but somehow he was not frightened, and went on until he came to the river trail in sight of his home. There were a great many people standing about talking, and when they saw him they ran toward him shouting, "Here he is! He is not drowned or killed in the mountains!" They told him they had been hunting him ever since yesterday noon, and asked him where he had been. "A man took me over to his house just across the ridge, and I had a fine dinner and a good time with the children," said the boy, "I thought Udsi'skalä here" -- that was the name of the man he had seen at dinner -- "would tell you where I was." But Udsi'skalä said, "I haven't seen you. I was out all day in my canoe hunting you. It was one of the Nunnehi that made himself look like me." Then his mother said, "You say you had dinner there?" "Yes, and I had plenty, too," said the boy; but his mother answered, "There is no house there -- only trees and rocks -- but we hear a drum sometimes in the big bald above. The people you saw were the Nunnehi." Once four Nunnehi women came, to a dance at Nottely town, and danced half the night with the young men there, and nobody knew that they were Nunnehi, but thought them visitors from another settlement. About midnight they left to go home, and some men who had come out from the townhouse to cool off watched to see which way they went. They saw the women go down the trail to the river ford, but just as they came to the water they disappeared, although it was a plain trail, with no place where they could hide. Then the watchers knew they were Nunnehi women. Several men saw this happen, and one of them was Wafford's father-in-law, who was known for an honest man. At another time a man named Burnt-tobacco was crossing over the ridge from Nottely to Hemptown in Georgia and heard a drum and the songs of dancers in the hills on one side of the trail. He rode over to see who could be dancing in such a place, but when he reached the spot the drum and the songs were behind him, and he was so frightened that he hurried back to the trail and rode all the way to Hemptown as hard as he could to tell the story. He was a truthful man, and they believed what he said. There must have been a good many of the Nunnehi living in that neighborhood, because the drumming was often heard in the high balds almost up to the time of the Removal. On a small upper branch of Nottely, running nearly due north from Blood mountain, there was also a hole, like a small well or chimney, in the ground, from which there came up a warm vapor that heated all the air around. People said that this was because the Nunnehi had a townhouse and a fire under the mountain. Sometimes in cold weather hunters would stop there to warm themselves, but they were afraid to stay long. This was more than sixty years ago, but the hole is probably there yet. Close to the old trading path from South Carolina up to the Cherokee Nation, somewhere near the head of Tugaloo, there was formerly a noted circular depression about the size of a townhouse, and waist deep. Inside it was always clean as though swept by unknown hands. Passing traders would throw logs and rocks into it, but would always, on their return, find them thrown far out from the hole. The Indians said it was a Nunnehi townhouse, and never liked to go near the place or even to talk about it, until at last some logs thrown in by the traders were allowed to remain there, and then they concluded that the Nunnehi, annoyed by the persecution of the white men, had abandoned their townhouse forever. |
2023.06.05 21:56 blobfishy13 Pittsburgh Street Circuit - Inspired by the recent Indycar layouts in Detroit and Nashville
 | submitted by blobfishy13 to RaceTrackDesigns [link] [comments] |
2023.06.05 21:32 drainbamage826 Looking for help pinpointing a few small tornados in my region in 2021
Hey guys! I've been following this page for some time now and absolutely love all the great info you put out. I've learned so much since I found this subreddit and it has amplified my interest in tornados immensely. I live in Pittsburgh, PA and unfortunately (fortunately? lol) we don't get many tornados let alone ones of any substantial size. In 2021 I had my closest encounter with one. Tracked a storm for a couple hours when I realized it might dump something out just north of the city near my neighborhood. In my inexperience I ended up driving directly into a a small EF0-Lower end EF1 tornado. This event happened in the evening so I was caught very much off guard and didnt even realize it was an actual tornado until later. I pulled over briefly and once the worst of it had passed, I drove through the neighborhood that was directly impacted. It was mostly just tree damage although there was a roof or two that had been blown off of a couple houses.
Anyways, since then I have always wanted to see if I could pinpoint any rotation/hook on radar, but I am still learning and having trouble deciphering exactly what I am seeing. I was hoping that maybe it would be fun to give you guys the info and see if you can come up with and radar imagery showing the moment this storm rolled through the exact area where most the damage occurred. Any help would be greatly appreciated! I will post GPS coordinates below as well as any other pertinent info in case anyone is interested in giving it a shot...
GPS Coordinates to roughly the area where most of the damage I witnessed was located...
40.56313496658909, -79.97283464284588
Date and time of storm: October, 21, 2021 (Roughly between 6:00pm and 9:00pm)
This was a mini-outbreak in our region that day so feel free to check out some of the other areas that got hit if you get bored. Link to an article below talking about it...
https://triblive.com/local/regional/record-setting-number-of-tornadoes-strikes-region-in-2021/
submitted by drainbamage826 to tornado [link] [comments]
Anyways, since then I have always wanted to see if I could pinpoint any rotation/hook on radar, but I am still learning and having trouble deciphering exactly what I am seeing. I was hoping that maybe it would be fun to give you guys the info and see if you can come up with and radar imagery showing the moment this storm rolled through the exact area where most the damage occurred. Any help would be greatly appreciated! I will post GPS coordinates below as well as any other pertinent info in case anyone is interested in giving it a shot...
GPS Coordinates to roughly the area where most of the damage I witnessed was located...
40.56313496658909, -79.97283464284588
Date and time of storm: October, 21, 2021 (Roughly between 6:00pm and 9:00pm)
This was a mini-outbreak in our region that day so feel free to check out some of the other areas that got hit if you get bored. Link to an article below talking about it...
https://triblive.com/local/regional/record-setting-number-of-tornadoes-strikes-region-in-2021/
2023.06.05 21:08 pazne Spanish GP 2023 Experience
So I thought I would write up something for anyone interested in going to the Spanish GP in the future; those who might never have been to any GP and those that travel solo (as I did this year).
Commute: I went there by train and had a bit of a longer commute due to my stay with a friend in Barcelona falling through last minute.
Getting to the track was easy on all three days and the trains weren’t too full, even on Sunday because everyone got there at different times.
Getting back was somewhat fine on Friday but I would honestly recommend walking to Granollers and taking the train from there (the R11 even skips Montmeló completely).
On Sunday all the trains on that route were running late though, so if you need to get somewhere quickly, I’d walk to Parets de Vallès instead.
Shuttle busses from the train station weren’t actually much quicker and you still had to walk quite a bit. I’m only mentioning this because I don’t think it would be a good option for people who have trouble walking.
The trip was 2,40€ and you had to pay in cash.
The lines were fine on Friday and Saturday but were really long on Sunday.
Getting back to train station I didn’t see any buses but the roads were taken over by people walking away from the circuit anyway, so I’m not sure that would have been any quicker or easier.
Cars also took a long time to leave the parking lots.
Outside the track: There were merch and food tents outside the train station, as well as, small supermarkets. If you wanted to get drinks or food, this was the place to get them.
Food & drinks: As I mentioned above, if you didn’t bring your own food and non-alcoholic drinks; which were allowed, you could buy lots of things outside the train station; sandwiches (half a baguette; 4-5€), sausages, Hot Dogs, fries, chips, sweets, fruit, cold water and drinks, beer, sangria, tinto de verano (2-4€).
Right by the track there were also tents but the prices were super high (9€ for beer, 500ml).
Inside, they had non-alcoholic beer and beverages (coca cola 4€ for 500ml) sandwiches (>6€) paella, snacks, fruit cups (4€). They also had at least one fully vegetarian food vendor.
There were several areas with tables and benches were you could eat (any food).
Merch: Super expensive inside the track (starting at 60€ for a cap); more affordable outside the track in the fan zone by the train station (starting at 30€).
There were outlet stores, however, for caps they only had Vettel caps for Ferrari, for example, and they were still 30€.
GA: I now have a hatred for camping chairs. Friday and Saturday were fine and most people with chairs stayed at the top of the GA hills but on Sunday, when space was already so limited, people sat in the middle of the hill basically making metres of space behind them unusable because they were blocking the view.
Though in the end it didn’t matter too much because, where I was, people were standing all qualifying and throughout the entire race. I’m not sure if that was the same in all the GA sections, though.
Bring a towel, the ground is dirty. Also, bring an umbrella, whether for rain or sun, is worth it.
Get there early if you’re in a larger group; you can always find a place to squeeze in if you’re by yourself though (and even if you’re early, there might always be someone with a camping chair sitting down right in front of you).
Try to find a place with a screen, you really have no idea what’s going on otherwise and you see very little of the track. You cannot follow the race online on Sunday, the internet just doesn’t work.
Track: Much bigger than it seems on tv, to be expected but it’s still a surprise somehow. There are tunnels and bridges but they’re not always easy to see, so make sure to know the layout beforehand.
Events: Were short but a nice opportunity to see the drivers; and the crowds were not too big actually. But please don’t hold up your sign while the drivers are on stage, other people want to see them too and don’t magically grow 2 meters tall because you want Carlos to see your (super creative) “vamos Carlos 55” sign. He already knows you support him because you’re there.
There was a fan zone with other stuff to do as well which the track announced on their website beforehand, so check that.
Solo travelling: Totally fine safety-wise and you can leave your stuff without it getting taken so there’s an opportunity to walk around without bringing all your drinks and food.
Vibe-wise, at least this time, the vibe was just very different from a football match or concert, which is what one might expect from what is shown on tv. Maybe because there were so many breaks but maybe also because everyone is supporting different teams and drivers. I’m not saying that’s a negative thing, just want to mention it.
Vibe: Also, Alonso is a god to them and sainz is merely human, so there’s mostly cheering when Fernandinho goes by and very little (comparatively) for everyone else.
Unless you’re an extroverted person that can easily talk to strangers, I’d recommend bringing something for the breaks, otherwise they become pretty boring as the track doesn’t offer much more than merch stores. I brought a book, which was good.
I think if you’re not sure which race to go to, try to find one that is a home race for the team or driver you follow if you want great vibes.
Other stuff: If you’re there for f3/f2 bring earplugs!
The cheapest souvenir from the track might be their reusable cups you can get anywhere (2€).
Have dinner (plans) ready for when you get back; being outside all day in the sun with so many people around is exhausting (but fun) and I didn’t have energy to do anything when I got home so I wish I though of that.
You can bring a shopping trolley (I brought a foldable one) or small suitcase instead of a backpack and I so recommend doing that; especially if you plan on walking to the track.
If you don’t live in the area, so think about staying north of the track for the weekend or even camping by the track and freeing up an extra day for Barcelona specifically (or even go to Barcelona on Friday, fp1 an 2 aren’t the most exciting things) because you likely won’t actually be able to do much in Barcelona. Everyone on the train was exhausted at the end of the day.
If I can think of anything else I’ll add it and if you have any questions please ask :)
submitted by pazne to GrandPrixTravel [link] [comments]
Commute: I went there by train and had a bit of a longer commute due to my stay with a friend in Barcelona falling through last minute.
Getting to the track was easy on all three days and the trains weren’t too full, even on Sunday because everyone got there at different times.
Getting back was somewhat fine on Friday but I would honestly recommend walking to Granollers and taking the train from there (the R11 even skips Montmeló completely).
On Sunday all the trains on that route were running late though, so if you need to get somewhere quickly, I’d walk to Parets de Vallès instead.
Shuttle busses from the train station weren’t actually much quicker and you still had to walk quite a bit. I’m only mentioning this because I don’t think it would be a good option for people who have trouble walking.
The trip was 2,40€ and you had to pay in cash.
The lines were fine on Friday and Saturday but were really long on Sunday.
Getting back to train station I didn’t see any buses but the roads were taken over by people walking away from the circuit anyway, so I’m not sure that would have been any quicker or easier.
Cars also took a long time to leave the parking lots.
Outside the track: There were merch and food tents outside the train station, as well as, small supermarkets. If you wanted to get drinks or food, this was the place to get them.
Food & drinks: As I mentioned above, if you didn’t bring your own food and non-alcoholic drinks; which were allowed, you could buy lots of things outside the train station; sandwiches (half a baguette; 4-5€), sausages, Hot Dogs, fries, chips, sweets, fruit, cold water and drinks, beer, sangria, tinto de verano (2-4€).
Right by the track there were also tents but the prices were super high (9€ for beer, 500ml).
Inside, they had non-alcoholic beer and beverages (coca cola 4€ for 500ml) sandwiches (>6€) paella, snacks, fruit cups (4€). They also had at least one fully vegetarian food vendor.
There were several areas with tables and benches were you could eat (any food).
Merch: Super expensive inside the track (starting at 60€ for a cap); more affordable outside the track in the fan zone by the train station (starting at 30€).
There were outlet stores, however, for caps they only had Vettel caps for Ferrari, for example, and they were still 30€.
GA: I now have a hatred for camping chairs. Friday and Saturday were fine and most people with chairs stayed at the top of the GA hills but on Sunday, when space was already so limited, people sat in the middle of the hill basically making metres of space behind them unusable because they were blocking the view.
Though in the end it didn’t matter too much because, where I was, people were standing all qualifying and throughout the entire race. I’m not sure if that was the same in all the GA sections, though.
Bring a towel, the ground is dirty. Also, bring an umbrella, whether for rain or sun, is worth it.
Get there early if you’re in a larger group; you can always find a place to squeeze in if you’re by yourself though (and even if you’re early, there might always be someone with a camping chair sitting down right in front of you).
Try to find a place with a screen, you really have no idea what’s going on otherwise and you see very little of the track. You cannot follow the race online on Sunday, the internet just doesn’t work.
Track: Much bigger than it seems on tv, to be expected but it’s still a surprise somehow. There are tunnels and bridges but they’re not always easy to see, so make sure to know the layout beforehand.
Events: Were short but a nice opportunity to see the drivers; and the crowds were not too big actually. But please don’t hold up your sign while the drivers are on stage, other people want to see them too and don’t magically grow 2 meters tall because you want Carlos to see your (super creative) “vamos Carlos 55” sign. He already knows you support him because you’re there.
There was a fan zone with other stuff to do as well which the track announced on their website beforehand, so check that.
Solo travelling: Totally fine safety-wise and you can leave your stuff without it getting taken so there’s an opportunity to walk around without bringing all your drinks and food.
Vibe-wise, at least this time, the vibe was just very different from a football match or concert, which is what one might expect from what is shown on tv. Maybe because there were so many breaks but maybe also because everyone is supporting different teams and drivers. I’m not saying that’s a negative thing, just want to mention it.
Vibe: Also, Alonso is a god to them and sainz is merely human, so there’s mostly cheering when Fernandinho goes by and very little (comparatively) for everyone else.
Unless you’re an extroverted person that can easily talk to strangers, I’d recommend bringing something for the breaks, otherwise they become pretty boring as the track doesn’t offer much more than merch stores. I brought a book, which was good.
I think if you’re not sure which race to go to, try to find one that is a home race for the team or driver you follow if you want great vibes.
Other stuff: If you’re there for f3/f2 bring earplugs!
The cheapest souvenir from the track might be their reusable cups you can get anywhere (2€).
Have dinner (plans) ready for when you get back; being outside all day in the sun with so many people around is exhausting (but fun) and I didn’t have energy to do anything when I got home so I wish I though of that.
You can bring a shopping trolley (I brought a foldable one) or small suitcase instead of a backpack and I so recommend doing that; especially if you plan on walking to the track.
If you don’t live in the area, so think about staying north of the track for the weekend or even camping by the track and freeing up an extra day for Barcelona specifically (or even go to Barcelona on Friday, fp1 an 2 aren’t the most exciting things) because you likely won’t actually be able to do much in Barcelona. Everyone on the train was exhausted at the end of the day.
If I can think of anything else I’ll add it and if you have any questions please ask :)
2023.06.05 20:54 Cootie_Mac Suffering from food boredom, love a restaurant with a patio. Tell me your spots!
My husband and I live in the north hills and have formed this awful habit of just always driving to McKnight to go out to eat. We really need to start branching off in other directions and hitting other spots. As mentioned, I love places with patio/outdoor seating.
EDIT: wanting and willing to drive to other areas in/around the city!
submitted by Cootie_Mac to pittsburgh [link] [comments]
EDIT: wanting and willing to drive to other areas in/around the city!
2023.06.05 20:42 subredditsummarybot /r/Hockey's top highlights for the week of May 29 - June 04
Monday, May 29 - Sunday, June 04
submitted by subredditsummarybot to hockey [link] [comments]
Top Videos
Other Posts
Top Comments
Awarded Posts
| score/comments | awards | title & link |
|---|---|---|
| 1,990 - 176 comments | 1 Silver, 1 Gold, 1 I'll Drink to That | [Sportsnet] HILL SAYS NO |
| 2,291 - 463 comments | 1 Heartwarming, 1 Crab Rave | The Dallas Stars have been eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs after losing to the Vegas Golden Knights in 6 games |
| 2,576 - 388 comments | 1 Gold | [bee dumb day] you know what? the Minnesota Wild organization doesn't want to acknowledge pride month, but you know who does? Jon Merrill does. |
Awarded Comments
2023.06.05 20:39 Additional-Abies-229 Best Movie Theater
With Oppenheimer coming out soon and not any true IMAX theaters in Cleveland, what's the next big theater to watch? Maybe Cinemark XD or the fake IMAX in regal?
submitted by Additional-Abies-229 to Cleveland [link] [comments]
2023.06.05 20:08 catman5092 If you support Lisa Brown and can donate, please do so, thank you. We need to close the fundraising gap that Woodward has......
an e mail I got this morning:
The current Mayor has a significant fundraising advantage, and we need to close that gap quickly
For the last 4 years, a handful of wealthy developers along with a couple of special interest groups have flooded our local elections with money to prop up the status-quo and defeat candidates committed to progress and accountability. They are gearing up to do it again this election.
I believe in our grassroots campaign. We are listening to voters on their doorstep from Southgate to North Hill who believe there is a better way of governing our city. But we need your help to ensure our positive vision of a better way continues to break through the noise and negativity of the other side. Help us close the fundraising gap! I am so grateful for your investment of talent, time, and treasure in our campaign to make Spokane a better place to call home.
www.lisabrownformayor.com
submitted by catman5092 to Spokane [link] [comments]
The current Mayor has a significant fundraising advantage, and we need to close that gap quickly
For the last 4 years, a handful of wealthy developers along with a couple of special interest groups have flooded our local elections with money to prop up the status-quo and defeat candidates committed to progress and accountability. They are gearing up to do it again this election.
I believe in our grassroots campaign. We are listening to voters on their doorstep from Southgate to North Hill who believe there is a better way of governing our city. But we need your help to ensure our positive vision of a better way continues to break through the noise and negativity of the other side. Help us close the fundraising gap! I am so grateful for your investment of talent, time, and treasure in our campaign to make Spokane a better place to call home.
www.lisabrownformayor.com
2023.06.05 19:06 Pretty_Language_393 Critical mission underway, report to your officers!
Urgent orders from the capital:
Attack: (North)Castle Eitrivatnen
Defend: (West)Crow's path, (West)Hardhills.
Hold: (East) Samurai border.
Messages from Command~
News from the city-
After rumours of a draft begun to circulate certain nobles have begun to invest heavily into the war, this is a generous donation and all knights will be grateful for the extra boots and cloaks. After several scout groups in the North East were caught off guard by the extreme weather, these supplies could not be more necessary.
In the East, Samurai have overrun our hold on the Dolo Plains, many knights were taken prisoner and are believed to be held in Defensor. Friends of these soldiers have been told any attempt to form an unwarranted rescue mission will be branded deserters and held accountable. Plans for their return are already being discussed.
Lastly, Reports from Shamdon's spine state an ongoing conflict, the army there have managed to hold strong against the raging fire the Vikings hurl their way, yet are requesting cavalry to finally secure the territory and bring forth victory. Currently it's believed that this battle may shape the upcoming war.
That will be all for this war report, may your swords be sharp and your shields strong.
submitted by Pretty_Language_393 to forhonorknights [link] [comments]
Attack: (North)Castle Eitrivatnen
Defend: (West)Crow's path, (West)Hardhills.
Hold: (East) Samurai border.
Messages from Command~
"We have a monumental advantage at retaking our castle from the Viking rabble thanks to scouts that discovered a hidden passage! Today we venture into this territory with swords in hand to get back what is ours, and tomorrow we press further into the hills, no mercy will be given and no prisoners will be taken!"
News from the city-
After rumours of a draft begun to circulate certain nobles have begun to invest heavily into the war, this is a generous donation and all knights will be grateful for the extra boots and cloaks. After several scout groups in the North East were caught off guard by the extreme weather, these supplies could not be more necessary.
In the East, Samurai have overrun our hold on the Dolo Plains, many knights were taken prisoner and are believed to be held in Defensor. Friends of these soldiers have been told any attempt to form an unwarranted rescue mission will be branded deserters and held accountable. Plans for their return are already being discussed.
Lastly, Reports from Shamdon's spine state an ongoing conflict, the army there have managed to hold strong against the raging fire the Vikings hurl their way, yet are requesting cavalry to finally secure the territory and bring forth victory. Currently it's believed that this battle may shape the upcoming war.
That will be all for this war report, may your swords be sharp and your shields strong.
2023.06.05 18:43 TheScribe_1 [The Book of the Chosen] - Chapter Thirteen - Bridge Over Swift Water (Part I)
Series Page - Read 10 weeks ahead on Patreon - Read the story so far on Royal Road
*
Chapter Thirteen - Bridge Over Swift Water (Part I)
‘Almost there, Wil.’
The pony snorted, eyeing the bottom of the low hill distrustfully. Ren rolled his eyes.
‘Stop complaining.’ he told animal, patting his flank, and looked back over his shoulder. The emerald grass of the South Realm was laid out behind him in the midday sun like the face of a great green canvas, folding around gentle hills and low valleys, laced with brushes-strokes of silver water. Cottages, farmsteads, thickets full of ash and birch and oak. An endless (or so it seemed to Ren) collection of slow-moving, slow-talking life. They had been riding most of the morning; the farm was a long way behind them, and though the thought filled Ren with a giddy kind of excitement, even he had been hard-pressed to tell the dif-ference between it and the half-dozen other farmsteads they’d passed on their way. There was another rider coming his way across the grass, flicking sparkling dew into the air behind him. The sun was hot today, and Ren could see sweat gleaming on his forehead.
‘Come on, Trin!’
‘She’s going as fast as she can!’ Trin replied, panting. Beneath him, Pol snorted steam, grumbling. Ren smiled, turning back to the hill.
‘Let’s go, then.’ he said to Wil, tightening his grip on the saddle. He shook the reins and the pony snorted, lurching forward. Ren leaned into the slope, putting one hand on the pommel of his saddle, and the hill began to slide past him. The sun was warm against his cheeks, and Wil's hooves beat at the dirt, sinking softly into the turf. Halfway there. The pony began to slow, but Ren squeezed his heels gently against the beast's flanks, clicking his tongue.
‘Almost there.’
Ren closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the air streaming gently past his cheeks, listening to the rhythmic beat of the pony's breath, the drum of his hooves against the soft loam. He remembered, not for the first time that day, why he was so fond of riding.
Then they were there, and the sunlight burst over the hilltop, sweep-ing across the fields to the north, setting the pale line of the Swiftwater aflame as it streaked across the grass. Beyond, the grasslands tumbled on, interminable, towards the sea, or the edge of the world; whichever came first. Ren sat there, quietly, contemplating the world beyond the grasslands on his panting steed, until Trin pulled up beside him a few minutes later. Pol snorted irritably. She was a little smaller than Wil, a ruddy brown in colour, and rather plump around her flanks. Both she and her rider were panting alarmingly.
‘Well that's a sight.’ Trin murmured in spite of himself, breathing hard. Ren smiled, tracing the line of the Swiftwater from east to west, squinting into the brightness. There was a thick swathe of trees squat-ting against the far bank, dark and brooding.
‘There!’ he said suddenly.
‘What?’ Trin asked, confused.
Ren pointed. Directly north of them, there was a small building pressed against the south bank of the river, dipping its toes in the crys-tal waters. A trail of smoke rose from its roof, swept this way and that by the breeze, dissolving in the midday air. Beside it, a narrow stretch of stones bridged the frothing water, disappearing into the shadows of the trees on the far bank.
‘The mill?’ Trin frowned. ‘I thought you didn’t like Ted?’
But Ren barely heard him. His eyes were fixed on the river. How far was it? A mile? Two, more like. He lifted the reins expectantly. Not far. Just a short canter across the fields. They'd be back before dark, still, and his grandparents would be none the wiser.
‘Wait... You mean the bridge? Your grandfather said-’
‘Yah!’
Ren shouted suddenly, snapping his reins, and Wil lurched forward down the slope. For a moment the rush of air filled Ren's eyes with wa-ter, dissolving Trin's red face into a ruddy blur, then they were away. Wil whinnied happily, wind streaming through his pale mane, and Ren clung tight to the saddle, watching as the grass raced by, savouring the rush of the wind on his face, the tug of it in his hair. He snatched a glance back over his shoulder. Trin was hurrying after him worriedly, doing his best to coax Pol into a reluctant gallop as he clung, ungainly, to the saddle. Ren looked back at the river, the mill, the bridge, and de-cided his friend would be fine without him.
They were at the foot of the hill in moments, and Wil set about eat-ing up the fields in great hungry bounds, hooves whirring over the grass. He remembered his grandfather's lessons, and let himself move with the pony, sighing into the saddle. He listened to Wil's hot breath steaming into the autumn air, the solid thump of his heart vibrating through his back. Ren had always thought there was a deep calm in the rhythm of riding. The speed of it. He found himself smiling. The mill was not far now. He dare not look back over his shoulder again, lest he fall, but he knew Trin was somewhere behind him, struggling to keep pace. He was starting to make out the cottage ahead, leaning lopsidedly against its great wooden wheel, churning frothing, foaming water through spokes big as men. Couldn’t see anyone though. Not that it mattered. Wil's steps drummed against the ground, and the river drew closer. Closer. Until the mill was beside them. Behind. Ren barely looked up as they shot past it, bound for the bridge beyond.
‘Whoa.’
He pulled hard on Wil's reins. The beast dug in his hooves, and they skidded to a halt a few feet from the start of bridge-stones. The water whipped by, rumbling. It was suddenly, eerily quiet, without the sound of the wind in his ears. He listened breathlessly for a few moments, staring at the shadows of the trees on the far bank, then glanced back over his shoulder. Trin was still a fair distance away across the fields, swaying unsteadily in his perch. He never had been a great rider. Ren turned back to the wooded far bank, watching the leaves shifting in the breeze, shadows shifting through thick boughs. He slid slowly from the saddle, and his boots landed on the soil with a faint thud, wet earth squelching softly underfoot. Wil snorted quietly, and he put a hand on the pony's nose.
‘Stay, Wil.’
The river was foaming around the stones of the bridge, and a fine spray was floating over the walkway, shifting and turning like mist. Ren took a step. He looked over at the far bank, and hesitated in spite of himself. The trees were taller than he had thought, their shadows deeper. Darker. An open doorway. Licks of silver flame.
He shook himself. He was being foolish. He glanced back at Wil, but the pony was stood obediently where he had left him, looking back at him with large, dark eyes. One step. Then another. Just a few more. His boots left the grass, and the stones pressed against the balls of his feet, hard and unyielding. He felt the spray of the river against his cheek, ice cold, and he almost shivered, blinking at the mist. The shad-ed trees seemed to shift and blur, trunks twisting. Another step.
‘Hey!’ Trin shouted behind him. Ren started, but did not turn back. ‘Where are you going?’
Ren ignored him.
‘Ren!’ Trin called. ‘Come back!’
This time he looked back. Trin had dismounted, red-faced and breathing hard, waving at him franticly from the bank. He was standing as close to the bridge as he could, without touching the stones, and Ren knew he wouldn’t follow him.
‘Just having a look!’ he called back, turning away from his friend again. The spray parted around him as he stepped forward, peeling back the grey blur from the faces of the trees. They seemed stark and black in the sudden clarity, and shadows moved through the branches, twisting and turning in the breeze. He was past halfway, now. Just a few more steps.
‘Ren!’
Ren barely heard him. The word was swept away in the rumble of the river, the soft sigh of the wind over the trees, creaking. His feet were still moving, gliding, floating over the stone. The wind was pick-ing up, and the shadows quickened, whirling through webbed branches.
‘Ren!’
His feet touched the grass, and he drew up short, suddenly still. Fro-zen beyond the spray, staring into the boughs. It seemed to him that the shadows were taking shape, black faces leering back at him from the dark, grins flashing in the dappled sunlight. A black mask. Silver flames. Gold eyes. The fortuneteller’s tent closed in around him, press-ing at his shoulders, and he almost fled, but realised he couldn’t move. The shadows drew closer, grinning as they came, reaching out to him, and something knotted in his belly, something cold as ice. The nightglass pendant was heavy around his neck. His head ached. Eyes blurred. Were those lights, in the trees?
‘Boy?’
There was a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back. He flinched away from it, frowning. But something caught his heel, sending him sprawling, tumbling. Back into the dirt. He hit the ground hard, and the breath went out of him in a gasp. Faces in the trees. He shook his head, blinking. He was on his back, half-blind from the sudden gleam of sun, and there was a dark figure leaning over him, light flooding over his shoulders. He squinted, half-dazed, at the axe-head gleaming in the man’s hand, and froze. Then he spotted the stack of firewood under his other arm, and exhaled hard, rocking back on his elbows.
‘Temur's teeth boy!’ the man exclaimed. He was wearing a thick, worn tunic, stained brown from use, and his boots were caked with wet grass. ‘Jumpier than a rabbit in a wolf den.’
Ren took a deep breath. His heart was slowing. He looked up at the trees again, but the sun seemed a little brighter now, and the shadows were nowhere to be seen. He exhaled hard, hesitating, then squinted up at the newcomer, blinking into the sun.
‘Ted?’
‘Well, fuck me.’ the miller grumbled, laying the firewood down at his side and running a gloved hand through his red hair. A face of deep lines, belly more than a little rounded, hair shot through with grey. The scar across the side of his neck had always made Ren shiver; long and puckered, tugging at the corner of his throat like a fishing line. ‘Derin's boy. What you doing out here?’
‘I… We’re just out for a ride.’
‘Your Grandda know you’re so far from home, then?’ the old miller asked him, raising an eyebrow. ‘Come on, let's get you up.’
Ted held out a hand, and Ren took it, letting the older man help him to his feet.
‘When d’you get so big, boy.’ the miller told him, grunting with ef-fort. ‘Still running off, then?’
'Sometimes.' Ren admitted, more than a little bashfully.
‘Sometimes, he says.’ Ted mumbled through his grin, scar tugging at his throat. ‘You eaten? Werla’s got some stew on the boil.’
Ren hesitated, glancing at the trees again, then back at the miller. ‘I could eat.’
Ted chuckled. ‘Come on, then. Wouldn’t take no for an answer, an-yways.’
Ren nodded politely, looking back over the bridge. Trin was almost hopping with anxious energy on the far bank, but he hadn’t yet worked up the courage to set foot on the stones. Ted frowned at the red-faced youth as he reached down to pick up his bundle of firewood.
‘What's got him so excited?’
Ren shook his head. ‘No idea.’
Ted raised an eyebrow at Trin. ‘South Realmers.’ he muttered, in an accent thick as farmer’s milk, tucking the wood underneath his arm and setting off over the bridge. Ren shot one last nervous look back towards the trees behind them, then followed close behind.
submitted by TheScribe_1 to HFY [link] [comments]
*
Chapter Thirteen - Bridge Over Swift Water (Part I)
‘Almost there, Wil.’
The pony snorted, eyeing the bottom of the low hill distrustfully. Ren rolled his eyes.
‘Stop complaining.’ he told animal, patting his flank, and looked back over his shoulder. The emerald grass of the South Realm was laid out behind him in the midday sun like the face of a great green canvas, folding around gentle hills and low valleys, laced with brushes-strokes of silver water. Cottages, farmsteads, thickets full of ash and birch and oak. An endless (or so it seemed to Ren) collection of slow-moving, slow-talking life. They had been riding most of the morning; the farm was a long way behind them, and though the thought filled Ren with a giddy kind of excitement, even he had been hard-pressed to tell the dif-ference between it and the half-dozen other farmsteads they’d passed on their way. There was another rider coming his way across the grass, flicking sparkling dew into the air behind him. The sun was hot today, and Ren could see sweat gleaming on his forehead.
‘Come on, Trin!’
‘She’s going as fast as she can!’ Trin replied, panting. Beneath him, Pol snorted steam, grumbling. Ren smiled, turning back to the hill.
‘Let’s go, then.’ he said to Wil, tightening his grip on the saddle. He shook the reins and the pony snorted, lurching forward. Ren leaned into the slope, putting one hand on the pommel of his saddle, and the hill began to slide past him. The sun was warm against his cheeks, and Wil's hooves beat at the dirt, sinking softly into the turf. Halfway there. The pony began to slow, but Ren squeezed his heels gently against the beast's flanks, clicking his tongue.
‘Almost there.’
Ren closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the air streaming gently past his cheeks, listening to the rhythmic beat of the pony's breath, the drum of his hooves against the soft loam. He remembered, not for the first time that day, why he was so fond of riding.
Then they were there, and the sunlight burst over the hilltop, sweep-ing across the fields to the north, setting the pale line of the Swiftwater aflame as it streaked across the grass. Beyond, the grasslands tumbled on, interminable, towards the sea, or the edge of the world; whichever came first. Ren sat there, quietly, contemplating the world beyond the grasslands on his panting steed, until Trin pulled up beside him a few minutes later. Pol snorted irritably. She was a little smaller than Wil, a ruddy brown in colour, and rather plump around her flanks. Both she and her rider were panting alarmingly.
‘Well that's a sight.’ Trin murmured in spite of himself, breathing hard. Ren smiled, tracing the line of the Swiftwater from east to west, squinting into the brightness. There was a thick swathe of trees squat-ting against the far bank, dark and brooding.
‘There!’ he said suddenly.
‘What?’ Trin asked, confused.
Ren pointed. Directly north of them, there was a small building pressed against the south bank of the river, dipping its toes in the crys-tal waters. A trail of smoke rose from its roof, swept this way and that by the breeze, dissolving in the midday air. Beside it, a narrow stretch of stones bridged the frothing water, disappearing into the shadows of the trees on the far bank.
‘The mill?’ Trin frowned. ‘I thought you didn’t like Ted?’
But Ren barely heard him. His eyes were fixed on the river. How far was it? A mile? Two, more like. He lifted the reins expectantly. Not far. Just a short canter across the fields. They'd be back before dark, still, and his grandparents would be none the wiser.
‘Wait... You mean the bridge? Your grandfather said-’
‘Yah!’
Ren shouted suddenly, snapping his reins, and Wil lurched forward down the slope. For a moment the rush of air filled Ren's eyes with wa-ter, dissolving Trin's red face into a ruddy blur, then they were away. Wil whinnied happily, wind streaming through his pale mane, and Ren clung tight to the saddle, watching as the grass raced by, savouring the rush of the wind on his face, the tug of it in his hair. He snatched a glance back over his shoulder. Trin was hurrying after him worriedly, doing his best to coax Pol into a reluctant gallop as he clung, ungainly, to the saddle. Ren looked back at the river, the mill, the bridge, and de-cided his friend would be fine without him.
They were at the foot of the hill in moments, and Wil set about eat-ing up the fields in great hungry bounds, hooves whirring over the grass. He remembered his grandfather's lessons, and let himself move with the pony, sighing into the saddle. He listened to Wil's hot breath steaming into the autumn air, the solid thump of his heart vibrating through his back. Ren had always thought there was a deep calm in the rhythm of riding. The speed of it. He found himself smiling. The mill was not far now. He dare not look back over his shoulder again, lest he fall, but he knew Trin was somewhere behind him, struggling to keep pace. He was starting to make out the cottage ahead, leaning lopsidedly against its great wooden wheel, churning frothing, foaming water through spokes big as men. Couldn’t see anyone though. Not that it mattered. Wil's steps drummed against the ground, and the river drew closer. Closer. Until the mill was beside them. Behind. Ren barely looked up as they shot past it, bound for the bridge beyond.
‘Whoa.’
He pulled hard on Wil's reins. The beast dug in his hooves, and they skidded to a halt a few feet from the start of bridge-stones. The water whipped by, rumbling. It was suddenly, eerily quiet, without the sound of the wind in his ears. He listened breathlessly for a few moments, staring at the shadows of the trees on the far bank, then glanced back over his shoulder. Trin was still a fair distance away across the fields, swaying unsteadily in his perch. He never had been a great rider. Ren turned back to the wooded far bank, watching the leaves shifting in the breeze, shadows shifting through thick boughs. He slid slowly from the saddle, and his boots landed on the soil with a faint thud, wet earth squelching softly underfoot. Wil snorted quietly, and he put a hand on the pony's nose.
‘Stay, Wil.’
The river was foaming around the stones of the bridge, and a fine spray was floating over the walkway, shifting and turning like mist. Ren took a step. He looked over at the far bank, and hesitated in spite of himself. The trees were taller than he had thought, their shadows deeper. Darker. An open doorway. Licks of silver flame.
He shook himself. He was being foolish. He glanced back at Wil, but the pony was stood obediently where he had left him, looking back at him with large, dark eyes. One step. Then another. Just a few more. His boots left the grass, and the stones pressed against the balls of his feet, hard and unyielding. He felt the spray of the river against his cheek, ice cold, and he almost shivered, blinking at the mist. The shad-ed trees seemed to shift and blur, trunks twisting. Another step.
‘Hey!’ Trin shouted behind him. Ren started, but did not turn back. ‘Where are you going?’
Ren ignored him.
‘Ren!’ Trin called. ‘Come back!’
This time he looked back. Trin had dismounted, red-faced and breathing hard, waving at him franticly from the bank. He was standing as close to the bridge as he could, without touching the stones, and Ren knew he wouldn’t follow him.
‘Just having a look!’ he called back, turning away from his friend again. The spray parted around him as he stepped forward, peeling back the grey blur from the faces of the trees. They seemed stark and black in the sudden clarity, and shadows moved through the branches, twisting and turning in the breeze. He was past halfway, now. Just a few more steps.
‘Ren!’
Ren barely heard him. The word was swept away in the rumble of the river, the soft sigh of the wind over the trees, creaking. His feet were still moving, gliding, floating over the stone. The wind was pick-ing up, and the shadows quickened, whirling through webbed branches.
‘Ren!’
His feet touched the grass, and he drew up short, suddenly still. Fro-zen beyond the spray, staring into the boughs. It seemed to him that the shadows were taking shape, black faces leering back at him from the dark, grins flashing in the dappled sunlight. A black mask. Silver flames. Gold eyes. The fortuneteller’s tent closed in around him, press-ing at his shoulders, and he almost fled, but realised he couldn’t move. The shadows drew closer, grinning as they came, reaching out to him, and something knotted in his belly, something cold as ice. The nightglass pendant was heavy around his neck. His head ached. Eyes blurred. Were those lights, in the trees?
‘Boy?’
There was a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back. He flinched away from it, frowning. But something caught his heel, sending him sprawling, tumbling. Back into the dirt. He hit the ground hard, and the breath went out of him in a gasp. Faces in the trees. He shook his head, blinking. He was on his back, half-blind from the sudden gleam of sun, and there was a dark figure leaning over him, light flooding over his shoulders. He squinted, half-dazed, at the axe-head gleaming in the man’s hand, and froze. Then he spotted the stack of firewood under his other arm, and exhaled hard, rocking back on his elbows.
‘Temur's teeth boy!’ the man exclaimed. He was wearing a thick, worn tunic, stained brown from use, and his boots were caked with wet grass. ‘Jumpier than a rabbit in a wolf den.’
Ren took a deep breath. His heart was slowing. He looked up at the trees again, but the sun seemed a little brighter now, and the shadows were nowhere to be seen. He exhaled hard, hesitating, then squinted up at the newcomer, blinking into the sun.
‘Ted?’
‘Well, fuck me.’ the miller grumbled, laying the firewood down at his side and running a gloved hand through his red hair. A face of deep lines, belly more than a little rounded, hair shot through with grey. The scar across the side of his neck had always made Ren shiver; long and puckered, tugging at the corner of his throat like a fishing line. ‘Derin's boy. What you doing out here?’
‘I… We’re just out for a ride.’
‘Your Grandda know you’re so far from home, then?’ the old miller asked him, raising an eyebrow. ‘Come on, let's get you up.’
Ted held out a hand, and Ren took it, letting the older man help him to his feet.
‘When d’you get so big, boy.’ the miller told him, grunting with ef-fort. ‘Still running off, then?’
'Sometimes.' Ren admitted, more than a little bashfully.
‘Sometimes, he says.’ Ted mumbled through his grin, scar tugging at his throat. ‘You eaten? Werla’s got some stew on the boil.’
Ren hesitated, glancing at the trees again, then back at the miller. ‘I could eat.’
Ted chuckled. ‘Come on, then. Wouldn’t take no for an answer, an-yways.’
Ren nodded politely, looking back over the bridge. Trin was almost hopping with anxious energy on the far bank, but he hadn’t yet worked up the courage to set foot on the stones. Ted frowned at the red-faced youth as he reached down to pick up his bundle of firewood.
‘What's got him so excited?’
Ren shook his head. ‘No idea.’
Ted raised an eyebrow at Trin. ‘South Realmers.’ he muttered, in an accent thick as farmer’s milk, tucking the wood underneath his arm and setting off over the bridge. Ren shot one last nervous look back towards the trees behind them, then followed close behind.
2023.06.05 18:43 TheScribe_1 [The Book of the Chosen] - Chapter Thirteen - Bridge Over Swift Water (Part I)
Previous Chapter - Read 10 weeks ahead on Patreon - Read the story so far on Royal Road
*
Chapter Thirteen - Bridge Over Swift Water (Part I)
‘Almost there, Wil.’
The pony snorted, eyeing the bottom of the low hill distrustfully. Ren rolled his eyes.
‘Stop complaining.’ he told animal, patting his flank, and looked back over his shoulder. The emerald grass of the South Realm was laid out behind him in the midday sun like the face of a great green canvas, folding around gentle hills and low valleys, laced with brushes-strokes of silver water. Cottages, farmsteads, thickets full of ash and birch and oak. An endless (or so it seemed to Ren) collection of slow-moving, slow-talking life. They had been riding most of the morning; the farm was a long way behind them, and though the thought filled Ren with a giddy kind of excitement, even he had been hard-pressed to tell the difference between it and the half-dozen other farmsteads they’d passed on their way. There was another rider coming his way across the grass, flicking sparkling dew into the air behind him. The sun was hot today, and Ren could see sweat gleaming on his forehead.
‘Come on, Trin!’
‘She’s going as fast as she can!’ Trin replied, panting. Beneath him, Pol snorted steam, grumbling. Ren smiled, turning back to the hill.
‘Let’s go, then.’ he said to Wil, tightening his grip on the saddle. He shook the reins and the pony snorted, lurching forward. Ren leaned into the slope, putting one hand on the pommel of his saddle, and the hill began to slide past him. The sun was warm against his cheeks, and Wil's hooves beat at the dirt, sinking softly into the turf. Halfway there. The pony began to slow, but Ren squeezed his heels gently against the beast's flanks, clicking his tongue.
‘Almost there.’
Ren closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the air streaming gently past his cheeks, listening to the rhythmic beat of the pony's breath, the drum of his hooves against the soft loam. He remembered, not for the first time that day, why he was so fond of riding.
Then they were there, and the sunlight burst over the hilltop, sweeping across the fields to the north, setting the pale line of the Swiftwater aflame as it streaked across the grass. Beyond, the grasslands tumbled on, interminable, towards the sea, or the edge of the world; whichever came first. Ren sat there, quietly, contemplating the world beyond the grasslands on his panting steed, until Trin pulled up beside him a few minutes later. Pol snorted irritably. She was a little smaller than Wil, a ruddy brown in colour, and rather plump around her flanks. Both she and her rider were panting alarmingly.
‘Well that's a sight.’ Trin murmured in spite of himself, breathing hard. Ren smiled, tracing the line of the Swiftwater from east to west, squinting into the brightness. There was a thick swathe of trees squatting against the far bank, dark and brooding.
‘There!’ he said suddenly.
‘What?’ Trin asked, confused.
Ren pointed. Directly north of them, there was a small building pressed against the south bank of the river, dipping its toes in the crystal waters. A trail of smoke rose from its roof, swept this way and that by the breeze, dissolving in the midday air. Beside it, a narrow stretch of stones bridged the frothing water, disappearing into the shadows of the trees on the far bank.
‘The mill?’ Trin frowned. ‘I thought you didn’t like Ted?’
But Ren barely heard him. His eyes were fixed on the river. How far was it? A mile? Two, more like. He lifted the reins expectantly. Not far. Just a short canter across the fields. They'd be back before dark, still, and his grandparents would be none the wiser.
‘Wait... You mean the bridge? Your grandfather said-’
‘Yah!’
Ren shouted suddenly, snapping his reins, and Wil lurched forward down the slope. For a moment the rush of air filled Ren's eyes with water, dissolving Trin's red face into a ruddy blur, then they were away. Wil whinnied happily, wind streaming through his pale mane, and Ren clung tight to the saddle, watching as the grass raced by, savouring the rush of the wind on his face, the tug of it in his hair. He snatched a glance back over his shoulder. Trin was hurrying after him worriedly, doing his best to coax Pol into a reluctant gallop as he clung, ungainly, to the saddle. Ren looked back at the river, the mill, the bridge, and decided his friend would be fine without him.
They were at the foot of the hill in moments, and Wil set about eating up the fields in great hungry bounds, hooves whirring over the grass. He remembered his grandfather's lessons, and let himself move with the pony, sighing into the saddle. He listened to Wil's hot breath steaming into the autumn air, the solid thump of his heart vibrating through his back. Ren had always thought there was a deep calm in the rhythm of riding. The speed of it. He found himself smiling. The mill was not far now. He dare not look back over his shoulder again, lest he fall, but he knew Trin was somewhere behind him, struggling to keep pace. He was starting to make out the cottage ahead, leaning lopsidedly against its great wooden wheel, churning frothing, foaming water through spokes big as men. Couldn’t see anyone though. Not that it mattered. Wil's steps drummed against the ground, and the river drew closer. Closer. Until the mill was beside them. Behind. Ren barely looked up as they shot past it, bound for the bridge beyond.
‘Whoa.’
He pulled hard on Wil's reins. The beast dug in his hooves, and they skidded to a halt a few feet from the start of bridge-stones. The water whipped by, rumbling. It was suddenly, eerily quiet, without the sound of the wind in his ears. He listened breathlessly for a few moments, staring at the shadows of the trees on the far bank, then glanced back over his shoulder. Trin was still a fair distance away across the fields, swaying unsteadily in his perch. He never had been a great rider. Ren turned back to the wooded far bank, watching the leaves shifting in the breeze, shadows shifting through thick boughs. He slid slowly from the saddle, and his boots landed on the soil with a faint thud, wet earth squelching softly underfoot. Wil snorted quietly, and he put a hand on the pony's nose.
‘Stay, Wil.’
The river was foaming around the stones of the bridge, and a fine spray was floating over the walkway, shifting and turning like mist. Ren took a step. He looked over at the far bank, and hesitated in spite of himself. The trees were taller than he had thought, their shadows deeper. Darker. An open doorway. Licks of silver flame.
He shook himself. He was being foolish. He glanced back at Wil, but the pony was stood obediently where he had left him, looking back at him with large, dark eyes. One step. Then another. Just a few more. His boots left the grass, and the stones pressed against the balls of his feet, hard and unyielding. He felt the spray of the river against his cheek, ice cold, and he almost shivered, blinking at the mist. The shaded trees seemed to shift and blur, trunks twisting. Another step.
‘Hey!’ Trin shouted behind him. Ren started, but did not turn back. ‘Where are you going?’
Ren ignored him.
‘Ren!’ Trin called. ‘Come back!’
This time he looked back. Trin had dismounted, red-faced and breathing hard, waving at him franticly from the bank. He was standing as close to the bridge as he could, without touching the stones, and Ren knew he wouldn’t follow him.
‘Just having a look!’ he called back, turning away from his friend again. The spray parted around him as he stepped forward, peeling back the grey blur from the faces of the trees. They seemed stark and black in the sudden clarity, and shadows moved through the branches, twisting and turning in the breeze. He was past halfway, now. Just a few more steps.
‘Ren!’
Ren barely heard him. The word was swept away in the rumble of the river, the soft sigh of the wind over the trees, creaking. His feet were still moving, gliding, floating over the stone. The wind was picking up, and the shadows quickened, whirling through webbed branches.
‘Ren!’
His feet touched the grass, and he drew up short, suddenly still. Frozen beyond the spray, staring into the boughs. It seemed to him that the shadows were taking shape, black faces leering back at him from the dark, grins flashing in the dappled sunlight. A black mask. Silver flames. Gold eyes. The fortuneteller’s tent closed in around him, pressing at his shoulders, and he almost fled, but realised he couldn’t move. The shadows drew closer, grinning as they came, reaching out to him, and something knotted in his belly, something cold as ice. The nightglass pendant was heavy around his neck. His head ached. Eyes blurred. Were those lights, in the trees?
‘Boy?’
There was a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back. He flinched away from it, frowning. But something caught his heel, sending him sprawling, tumbling. Back into the dirt. He hit the ground hard, and the breath went out of him in a gasp. Faces in the trees. He shook his head, blinking. He was on his back, half-blind from the sudden gleam of sun, and there was a dark figure leaning over him, light flooding over his shoulders. He squinted, half-dazed, at the axe-head gleaming in the man’s hand, and froze. Then he spotted the stack of firewood under his other arm, and exhaled hard, rocking back on his elbows.
‘Temur's teeth boy!’ the man exclaimed. He was wearing a thick, worn tunic, stained brown from use, and his boots were caked with wet grass. ‘Jumpier than a rabbit in a wolf den.’
Ren took a deep breath. His heart was slowing. He looked up at the trees again, but the sun seemed a little brighter now, and the shadows were nowhere to be seen. He exhaled hard, hesitating, then squinted up at the newcomer, blinking into the sun.
‘Ted?’
‘Well, fuck me.’ the miller grumbled, laying the firewood down at his side and running a gloved hand through his red hair. A face of deep lines, belly more than a little rounded, hair shot through with grey. The scar across the side of his neck had always made Ren shiver; long and puckered, tugging at the corner of his throat like a fishing line. ‘Derin's boy. What you doing out here?’
‘I… We’re just out for a ride.’
‘Your Grandda know you’re so far from home, then?’ the old miller asked him, raising an eyebrow. ‘Come on, let's get you up.’
Ted held out a hand, and Ren took it, letting the older man help him to his feet.
‘When d’you get so big, boy.’ the miller told him, grunting with effort. ‘Still running off, then?’
'Sometimes.' Ren admitted, more than a little bashfully.
‘Sometimes, he says.’ Ted mumbled through his grin, scar tugging at his throat. ‘You eaten? Werla’s got some stew on the boil.’
Ren hesitated, glancing at the trees again, then back at the miller. ‘I could eat.’
Ted chuckled. ‘Come on, then. Wouldn’t take no for an answer, anyways.’
Ren nodded politely, looking back over the bridge. Trin was almost hopping with anxious energy on the far bank, but he hadn’t yet worked up the courage to set foot on the stones. Ted frowned at the red-faced youth as he reached down to pick up his bundle of firewood.
‘What's got him so excited?’
Ren shook his head. ‘No idea.’
Ted raised an eyebrow at Trin. ‘South Realmers.’ he muttered, in an accent thick as farmer’s milk, tucking the wood underneath his arm and setting off over the bridge. Ren shot one last nervous look back towards the trees behind them, then followed close behind.
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*
Chapter Thirteen - Bridge Over Swift Water (Part I)
‘Almost there, Wil.’
The pony snorted, eyeing the bottom of the low hill distrustfully. Ren rolled his eyes.
‘Stop complaining.’ he told animal, patting his flank, and looked back over his shoulder. The emerald grass of the South Realm was laid out behind him in the midday sun like the face of a great green canvas, folding around gentle hills and low valleys, laced with brushes-strokes of silver water. Cottages, farmsteads, thickets full of ash and birch and oak. An endless (or so it seemed to Ren) collection of slow-moving, slow-talking life. They had been riding most of the morning; the farm was a long way behind them, and though the thought filled Ren with a giddy kind of excitement, even he had been hard-pressed to tell the difference between it and the half-dozen other farmsteads they’d passed on their way. There was another rider coming his way across the grass, flicking sparkling dew into the air behind him. The sun was hot today, and Ren could see sweat gleaming on his forehead.
‘Come on, Trin!’
‘She’s going as fast as she can!’ Trin replied, panting. Beneath him, Pol snorted steam, grumbling. Ren smiled, turning back to the hill.
‘Let’s go, then.’ he said to Wil, tightening his grip on the saddle. He shook the reins and the pony snorted, lurching forward. Ren leaned into the slope, putting one hand on the pommel of his saddle, and the hill began to slide past him. The sun was warm against his cheeks, and Wil's hooves beat at the dirt, sinking softly into the turf. Halfway there. The pony began to slow, but Ren squeezed his heels gently against the beast's flanks, clicking his tongue.
‘Almost there.’
Ren closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the air streaming gently past his cheeks, listening to the rhythmic beat of the pony's breath, the drum of his hooves against the soft loam. He remembered, not for the first time that day, why he was so fond of riding.
Then they were there, and the sunlight burst over the hilltop, sweeping across the fields to the north, setting the pale line of the Swiftwater aflame as it streaked across the grass. Beyond, the grasslands tumbled on, interminable, towards the sea, or the edge of the world; whichever came first. Ren sat there, quietly, contemplating the world beyond the grasslands on his panting steed, until Trin pulled up beside him a few minutes later. Pol snorted irritably. She was a little smaller than Wil, a ruddy brown in colour, and rather plump around her flanks. Both she and her rider were panting alarmingly.
‘Well that's a sight.’ Trin murmured in spite of himself, breathing hard. Ren smiled, tracing the line of the Swiftwater from east to west, squinting into the brightness. There was a thick swathe of trees squatting against the far bank, dark and brooding.
‘There!’ he said suddenly.
‘What?’ Trin asked, confused.
Ren pointed. Directly north of them, there was a small building pressed against the south bank of the river, dipping its toes in the crystal waters. A trail of smoke rose from its roof, swept this way and that by the breeze, dissolving in the midday air. Beside it, a narrow stretch of stones bridged the frothing water, disappearing into the shadows of the trees on the far bank.
‘The mill?’ Trin frowned. ‘I thought you didn’t like Ted?’
But Ren barely heard him. His eyes were fixed on the river. How far was it? A mile? Two, more like. He lifted the reins expectantly. Not far. Just a short canter across the fields. They'd be back before dark, still, and his grandparents would be none the wiser.
‘Wait... You mean the bridge? Your grandfather said-’
‘Yah!’
Ren shouted suddenly, snapping his reins, and Wil lurched forward down the slope. For a moment the rush of air filled Ren's eyes with water, dissolving Trin's red face into a ruddy blur, then they were away. Wil whinnied happily, wind streaming through his pale mane, and Ren clung tight to the saddle, watching as the grass raced by, savouring the rush of the wind on his face, the tug of it in his hair. He snatched a glance back over his shoulder. Trin was hurrying after him worriedly, doing his best to coax Pol into a reluctant gallop as he clung, ungainly, to the saddle. Ren looked back at the river, the mill, the bridge, and decided his friend would be fine without him.
They were at the foot of the hill in moments, and Wil set about eating up the fields in great hungry bounds, hooves whirring over the grass. He remembered his grandfather's lessons, and let himself move with the pony, sighing into the saddle. He listened to Wil's hot breath steaming into the autumn air, the solid thump of his heart vibrating through his back. Ren had always thought there was a deep calm in the rhythm of riding. The speed of it. He found himself smiling. The mill was not far now. He dare not look back over his shoulder again, lest he fall, but he knew Trin was somewhere behind him, struggling to keep pace. He was starting to make out the cottage ahead, leaning lopsidedly against its great wooden wheel, churning frothing, foaming water through spokes big as men. Couldn’t see anyone though. Not that it mattered. Wil's steps drummed against the ground, and the river drew closer. Closer. Until the mill was beside them. Behind. Ren barely looked up as they shot past it, bound for the bridge beyond.
‘Whoa.’
He pulled hard on Wil's reins. The beast dug in his hooves, and they skidded to a halt a few feet from the start of bridge-stones. The water whipped by, rumbling. It was suddenly, eerily quiet, without the sound of the wind in his ears. He listened breathlessly for a few moments, staring at the shadows of the trees on the far bank, then glanced back over his shoulder. Trin was still a fair distance away across the fields, swaying unsteadily in his perch. He never had been a great rider. Ren turned back to the wooded far bank, watching the leaves shifting in the breeze, shadows shifting through thick boughs. He slid slowly from the saddle, and his boots landed on the soil with a faint thud, wet earth squelching softly underfoot. Wil snorted quietly, and he put a hand on the pony's nose.
‘Stay, Wil.’
The river was foaming around the stones of the bridge, and a fine spray was floating over the walkway, shifting and turning like mist. Ren took a step. He looked over at the far bank, and hesitated in spite of himself. The trees were taller than he had thought, their shadows deeper. Darker. An open doorway. Licks of silver flame.
He shook himself. He was being foolish. He glanced back at Wil, but the pony was stood obediently where he had left him, looking back at him with large, dark eyes. One step. Then another. Just a few more. His boots left the grass, and the stones pressed against the balls of his feet, hard and unyielding. He felt the spray of the river against his cheek, ice cold, and he almost shivered, blinking at the mist. The shaded trees seemed to shift and blur, trunks twisting. Another step.
‘Hey!’ Trin shouted behind him. Ren started, but did not turn back. ‘Where are you going?’
Ren ignored him.
‘Ren!’ Trin called. ‘Come back!’
This time he looked back. Trin had dismounted, red-faced and breathing hard, waving at him franticly from the bank. He was standing as close to the bridge as he could, without touching the stones, and Ren knew he wouldn’t follow him.
‘Just having a look!’ he called back, turning away from his friend again. The spray parted around him as he stepped forward, peeling back the grey blur from the faces of the trees. They seemed stark and black in the sudden clarity, and shadows moved through the branches, twisting and turning in the breeze. He was past halfway, now. Just a few more steps.
‘Ren!’
Ren barely heard him. The word was swept away in the rumble of the river, the soft sigh of the wind over the trees, creaking. His feet were still moving, gliding, floating over the stone. The wind was picking up, and the shadows quickened, whirling through webbed branches.
‘Ren!’
His feet touched the grass, and he drew up short, suddenly still. Frozen beyond the spray, staring into the boughs. It seemed to him that the shadows were taking shape, black faces leering back at him from the dark, grins flashing in the dappled sunlight. A black mask. Silver flames. Gold eyes. The fortuneteller’s tent closed in around him, pressing at his shoulders, and he almost fled, but realised he couldn’t move. The shadows drew closer, grinning as they came, reaching out to him, and something knotted in his belly, something cold as ice. The nightglass pendant was heavy around his neck. His head ached. Eyes blurred. Were those lights, in the trees?
‘Boy?’
There was a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back. He flinched away from it, frowning. But something caught his heel, sending him sprawling, tumbling. Back into the dirt. He hit the ground hard, and the breath went out of him in a gasp. Faces in the trees. He shook his head, blinking. He was on his back, half-blind from the sudden gleam of sun, and there was a dark figure leaning over him, light flooding over his shoulders. He squinted, half-dazed, at the axe-head gleaming in the man’s hand, and froze. Then he spotted the stack of firewood under his other arm, and exhaled hard, rocking back on his elbows.
‘Temur's teeth boy!’ the man exclaimed. He was wearing a thick, worn tunic, stained brown from use, and his boots were caked with wet grass. ‘Jumpier than a rabbit in a wolf den.’
Ren took a deep breath. His heart was slowing. He looked up at the trees again, but the sun seemed a little brighter now, and the shadows were nowhere to be seen. He exhaled hard, hesitating, then squinted up at the newcomer, blinking into the sun.
‘Ted?’
‘Well, fuck me.’ the miller grumbled, laying the firewood down at his side and running a gloved hand through his red hair. A face of deep lines, belly more than a little rounded, hair shot through with grey. The scar across the side of his neck had always made Ren shiver; long and puckered, tugging at the corner of his throat like a fishing line. ‘Derin's boy. What you doing out here?’
‘I… We’re just out for a ride.’
‘Your Grandda know you’re so far from home, then?’ the old miller asked him, raising an eyebrow. ‘Come on, let's get you up.’
Ted held out a hand, and Ren took it, letting the older man help him to his feet.
‘When d’you get so big, boy.’ the miller told him, grunting with effort. ‘Still running off, then?’
'Sometimes.' Ren admitted, more than a little bashfully.
‘Sometimes, he says.’ Ted mumbled through his grin, scar tugging at his throat. ‘You eaten? Werla’s got some stew on the boil.’
Ren hesitated, glancing at the trees again, then back at the miller. ‘I could eat.’
Ted chuckled. ‘Come on, then. Wouldn’t take no for an answer, anyways.’
Ren nodded politely, looking back over the bridge. Trin was almost hopping with anxious energy on the far bank, but he hadn’t yet worked up the courage to set foot on the stones. Ted frowned at the red-faced youth as he reached down to pick up his bundle of firewood.
‘What's got him so excited?’
Ren shook his head. ‘No idea.’
Ted raised an eyebrow at Trin. ‘South Realmers.’ he muttered, in an accent thick as farmer’s milk, tucking the wood underneath his arm and setting off over the bridge. Ren shot one last nervous look back towards the trees behind them, then followed close behind.
2023.06.05 17:49 The_Alloquist [A Lord of Death] - Chapter 59 (Efrain)
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The hinterlands of Karkos were beautiful, in their own way. Efrain of course preferred the older, denser forests, not least because they tended to be far more interesting magically, but he couldn’t deny the charm of the low rolling hills. It didn’t take the company long before they found a road cutting between sunken fields and began to file two by two toward the distant mountains.
The earth was soft with the first rains, and Efrain noted that Tykhon sunk its webbed feet into it with obvious relish. Had he been designed for wet environs, then? A ridiculous image of the large creature swimming in the blue-green waters of the Emyaka came alive. Then Efrain the mount’s perfect willingness to throw itself into the waterfall on the giant’s spine.
The soldiers, having started the trek earlier in the morning, looked grey with fatigue. At the sight of the fields and mountains however, they’d perked up, and now were chatting casually as they made their way between the sparse trees. Efrain came to ride alongside the Niethe captain as they picked their way across.
“End’s almost in sight,” Efrain said.
“Almost,” she agreed, “though I have no fondness for the mud, so I hope that we get onto proper cobbles soon enough.”
“There should be a proper road or two, somewhere around here,” he said, “we’re still among the outer farms.”
To his surprise, it did not take them very long at all to find the broader, well trodden dirt of a road. Two hundred years of expansion and development had clearly widened the reach of Karkos. They were making a fine clip then on the dry, well packed earth, weaving between flooded patties of still-growing rice and great expanses of mature green-yellow rye. Peasants, labouring in the fields, often looked up and shaded their eyes, gawking at the sudden appearance of the soldiers. A few ran toward houses in the distance, even as some soldiers professed loudly that they were here in peace.
“War’s left a scar on this place?” Efrain said, not recalling any major conflict.
“They were spared the worst of it, unlike Ennen’Alla,” said Damafelce, “they fell in line quickly after that. Most of their conflicts are with pirates out to the south and east. They keep them well suppressed to please Angorrah, and to keep their own money flowing.”
“That must earn them some token good will at least,” Efrain said, craning his head to try and get a look at the city, and failing.
“Indeed,” Damafelce snorted, gripping the reins of her horse tighter.
Efrain decided not to press the point any further, but rather shift to the subject.
“So then, where are you going to house all these men? I hardly think any one inn will suffice for a hundred… hundred and fifty? Men.”
“They’ll make do somehow. We are knights of Angorrah after all,” she said, gesturing to a standard, “most of the cowards will come to heel. Those who aren’t know better than to try a row.”
“You sound like you have an axe to grind with them,” Efrain said dryly.
“It’s in the past,” Damafelce said, “I’m simply laying out the situation, as I see it.”
“Fair enough,” Efrain said, “have you ever been on a boat before?”
“Many times. How do you think I got here?” she said, giving him an odd look.
Efrain decided to leave off as they marched past a thicket of what looked like hazel. The woman had given him enough to mull over, even if she didn’t realise it. It was the better part of noon when they reached the inner farms, marked by a transition to smaller, well maintained fields, and larger buildings.
They broke for a brief lunch, there on the road, not bothering to clear a spot, or some to even dismount. Efrain, atop Tykhon, was approached by Naia, chewing on some kind of meat ration.
“Well, lord Efrain,” he said, swallowing the last of it, “we’re finally here, at little quicker than I’d hoped. I suppose old memories stirred me on.”
“Uh-huh,” Efrain said, neglecting to mention that this was a narrowing of the window they’d agreed upon the previous day.
“In any case, we are to meet with the leaders of the city. Riders I sent just returned bearing word. I would like you to be there as my guest, if you wouldn’t mind,” he said.
“Of course,” Efrain said, not bothering to second guess the commander.
“Damafelce,” he said, with a feigned pitiable expression on his face, “I regret to inform you that you’ll be in charge of supervising the soldiers and their accommodations.”
“You’re joking?” Damafelce said, looking unimpressed, “First you leave me in charge of a siege, now I’m cleaning their mess?”
“Precisely.”“If you’re not careful, I’m going to become general before you,” she said, holding up her hand in what was presumably some obscene gesture.
“Not if you don’t learn to delegate,” he said with a laugh, before turning back and trotting toward the front of the line.
“Does that mean I can shove my work off to others like you?” she called, before rolling her eyes.
“I see you two get along well,” Efrain said.
“If by ‘get along’, you mean he leaves me all the boring work,” she snorted.
“Well, it’s always useful to have someone to blame if things go wrong,” Efrain said, “the church’s been doing it to me for the past five centuries.”
That got him a laugh from Damafelce, and a promise to be more mindful of the less fortunate like himself. Within ten minutes, they were riding along, and soon came to a copse before a cobble bridge spanning a shallow river. Beyond lay a proper road, cut stones marching off into the distance. Still a distance away, they could see the outer wall of Karkos, wrapped in sea mists. Naia wheeled on his horse, and made for the troops to gather before him.
“All of you are here as representatives of Angorrah and the church,” he said, “keep to yourselves, answer questions when asked, and no insults, no drunkenness, and for Lost’s sake, if I hear that you start a quarrel with our hosts, I’ll have you pilloried in the central square for the whole city to stone you. Understood?”
A broad yell of assent rose among the assembled tropes, and they set off across the bridge and cobbles. The sun had arced low over the sky, and was starting to paint the mountains in red and purple when they finally arrived, following the curve of the road. It pushed through the farmlands and curled around and out towards the sea, where large beaches of white sand met the turquoise waters. It then moved back and wound its way up a sequence of small but steep hills, before coming untoward the main gate.
The city had indeed greatly increased in size since Efrain had last been to the peninsula. This outerwall was not only relatively new, but twice the height of the old one and made of stone, rather than log palisades. On top, guards armed with bows and dressed in colourful yellow and black surcoats came to point and speak about the newcomers.
The heavy gate was lifted, a drawbridge set across what looked to be a natural river that coursed just outside the walls. At the forefront, there was a company of guards in plate and mail, bearing the standards of several of the great houses of the city, for no single one claimed dominion over the defence. The captain of the guard, a reedy man whose thickness of face was disguised by a considerable moustache, rode forward to herald himself and the city's defence.
“We have been expecting you, commander Naia,” he said, “the council of the wise would meet you within the city. We have prepared appropriate accommodation for your numbers, outside the city walls.”
Naia nodded, clearly having expected it.
“In that case, I will dispatch a contingent of soldiers to escort their men to their lodgings on the beach, if you don’t mind,” said the captain, gesturing for a couple men to come forward.
“Of course,” Naia said, “Captain, this is my right-hand, Damafelce. She’ll be overseeing the soldiers while I am in the city. Any complaints of their behaviour, should I not be available, should be addressed to her, and she will deal with the offenders.”
The captain nodded, not showing any surprise that a Niethe woman was of such import. Damafelce quickly smothered any sourness on her face at the prospect, and wheeled around, leading the bulk of the soldiers away. What was left were Efrain, the two paladins and their charges in a wagon, Naia and two of his captains.
“You’ll have to dismount and leave your creatures here,” said the captain, gesturing to a series of stonework stalls, seemingly built into the hill, “they will be well kept, I assure you. Only…”
His eyes fell upon Tykhon, who regarded him impassively.
“I must apologise, for I have never seen such a beast,” he said.
“Oh, he’ll be harmless,” Efrain said, sliding off his back, “though I don’t think the stables would be the best place for him.”
There was a trick with animals, particularly intelligent ones and magical attuned creatures, of which Tykhon was both. They might not be able to understand such abstract concepts like ‘north’, but direction was on the table, if articulated properly. Efrain used the memory of the white sand beaches to the south, and like lightning, Tykhon shot away, off the road and down toward the beach. The captain was left, mouth open as he watched the mount disappear down the hill.
“I’ve sent him to the beach,” Efrain said, “I think he’ll enjoy it there. No harm will come of it, unless someone should unwisely try to hunt him, though he’ll probably rather run than fight.”
“I’ll inform the patrols,” said the man, looking with not inconsiderable concern at the beaches in the distance.
“Well,” Naia said, also disgruntled at the haste of Tykhon, “now that that’s sorted, we’d best not keep the committee waiting. After you captain.”
The guard dismounted, and they passed by spearmen guarding the open gate. What they emerged out to was a cacophony - multistory buildings of brick and timber were packed closely together, open shop fronts bustling with people. All parted as the guard cleared a path, and stared at the visitors that walked behind them. The ringing of blacksmith hammers, the hawking of street-merchants and artisans, the strumming of various instruments and songs of the bubbly Karkosian language carried between the warm light of paper lanterns.
Soon, the street curved downwards to match the slope of the hill, the shops becoming a series of stepped counters and balconies. Out before them stretched the expanse of the cities, the buildings becoming larger, more colourful and more ornate as they approached the intersection with the sea and rose up the side of the mountains. In the centre of the street was a great wooden platform on wheels, and attached to a great series of pulleys and ropes passing along wooden posts, packed with crates and boxes. Behind it was a tower, with stacks of stones threaded through with the rope, presumably a counterweight of some kind.
Past that was the Karkos that Efrain remembered, built directly on three shallow lagoons that were sheltered somewhat from storms.
Still, even that was changed, the buildings, mostly stepped pyramids of stone, and the canals that surrounded them were now monstrously large, dripping with plants and vibrant stonework. High bridges and suspended streets of wood clung to their side, allowing boat traffic to cross beneath. He could even see, between the gaps of tall, multi storey towers built on top of the surrounding ziggurats, the Grand Square, where he’d often gone for recitations of poetry and plays. There was a familiar warm feeling in his heart - it was good to be back, even with such changes as they were.
“The committee wishes to meet you in the grand square,” said the captain, “it is some distance to the canal. I understand you have been travelling for some days now, we may take down the lift if you so wish.”
The assembled group agreed that they would be grateful for the chance to rest their legs, and they were ushered onto the platform. At the captain’s signal, they began to gain speed with the rest of the goods, controlled only through the tautness of the thick ropes. Efrain examined the cables as the wheels turned, sending them down inexorably to the end of the road, where it sank below the blue waters.
As they trundled down, Naia and the city captain began speaking in hushed Karkosian. Efrain leaned back against a stack of crates, pretending not to understand the conversation like Naia’s captains, who were visibly annoyed.
“Who is waiting for us?” asked Naia, “it’s been some years since I’ve been in the city.”
“The selected houses for the committee range commander,” said the captain, “most are of established blood, though there is an upstart. The houses of Perlago, Bramste, Frane, have elected to send representatives. Asssenda is an upstart house.”
“Only four?” said Naia, his brow furrowing, “what has happened? Why aren’t the other great houses there?”
“With due respect,” said the commander, “your message was rushed. Some of the house leaders might not have even received it. There are some that didn’t show for… other reasons, but they are largely consumed with the preparations for the Festival, commander.”
“Festival? What-” Naia said, before slapping his head, “by the gods. I completely forgot.”
The commander nodded, as Efrain tried to place his memory of the various festivals and feasts of Karkos. There were certainly several that fell broadly in the summer, but this had to be-
Oh.
“Oh dear,” said Naia, “this will… I had plans to commission a ship, perhaps several for the soldiers. We couldn’t hope to find one for days.”
“It’s unlikely, commander,” said the captain, “your timing was unfortunate.”
“If I had known, I wouldn’t have rushed,” laughed Naia, “the gods are intent on mischief it would seem.”
The captain of the guard laughed with him and agreed.
“Well, I suppose that is something we’ll have to discuss with the representatives,” said Naia, “after our trials, perhaps it would be good for the men to enjoy the Festival.”
“Of course, commander,” said the captain impassively as they continued down the hill.
There was scant conversation to eavesdrop upon as they made their way into the entrance of the launch, where the cobbles disappeared under the water. There were several, magnificently accented boats waiting for them, each piloted by large, powerful, and equally colourful polemen.
Efrain hopped from the platform’s edge onto the waiting boat, hardly disturbing it compared to Naia’s captain who clambered in after him. They pushed off the launch and turned into the canal, a corridor of intricately carved stone and multi coloured lanterns. As they picked up speed, Efrain noted the banners that were set out, large, thick, and, like everything else, intensely coloured. People on the bridges and walkways above stopped to turn and point at the travellers.
“Your name poleman?” asked Efrain in the formal Karkosian manner.
To his credit, the man betrayed only the slightest surprise that Efrain could speak the language fluently.
“Aman. How may I be of service?” he responded as he sent them forwards with another long stroke.
“I don’t mean to disturb your work, but I would like to know, if you have any knowledge, of course, of some of the city’s happenings.” Efrain said, happy that he could easily recall some of the more obtuse grammar, “It’s been some years since I’ve been in the city.”
“Of course,” said Aman, “that is wise. The houses come together for the festival, putting aside their quarrels. Only…”
Efrain waited patiently as they turned past another bridge, and moved to the south.
“There are two outstanding houses,” he said, looking around as if someone might be listening, “Madros and Carim, their dispute is most grievous.”
“Give it to me in brief, young man,” said Efrain, listening intently.
It seemed that two, he was assured, most venerable, sons of the two houses had gotten into a dispute that culminated in violence. The Madros son, first son of the family no less, had gotten a dire putrefaction that threatened his life. This naturally led to accusations of poisoned blades and dishonourable schemes, and an already fraught situation escalated. Apparently, the second son of Carim had hidden somewhere in the city, while the rest of the noble houses tried to calm the Madros.
“Still, the eldest houses have chosen not to intervene,” he said.
“Any particular reason why?” said Efrain.
“It’s not for this humble servant to know, but rumours run abound. Nothing certain,” said the man, keeping his eyes fixed on manoeuvring through the canals.
“I see, thank you,” said Efrain as they were propelled through an opening in a building that cut over the river. Servants were speaking in hushed tones as they passed the interior dock, loading barrels onto waiting boats. Finally, they emerged onto the grand square, a massive flat piece of interlocking masonry edged with bridges and steps. They were in the late stages of preparation, long sequences of covered tables and stalls spanned with ribbons and banners.
At the centre of the square there was a party of richly dressed individuals of various descriptions. All were heralded by bannermen carrying the standards of their houses. Efrain noted that it was mostly younger scions or older, presumably distant and less important members of the families that were represented.
As Naia’s party was assembled, they were introduced to the representatives of Karkos. Amicio Bramste, Veniz Peralgo, Audientore Frane, Keiren Assendra. The captain of the city guard, as well as the master of the docks were there, and one pudgy, bespectacled man, dressed in black. Unable to contain his excitement, the man rushed forward, stared directly at Efrain, and loudly proclaimed:
“Mentor Avencia, of the Belacore Academy! What a wonder and an honour to meet you, master Efrain!”
Naia stared at Efrain, the assembled nobles stared at Efrain, the paladins stared at him, the children, the master of the docks and the captain of the city guard. All looking as Efrain simply took the man’s hand.
‘Academy’? Efrain thoughts raced, ‘Belacore’ academy? What does that have to do with m- oh. Oh no.
[←Chapter 58] [Cover Art] [My Links] [Index] [Discord] [Subreddit] [Chapter 60→]
submitted by The_Alloquist to redditserials [link] [comments]
The hinterlands of Karkos were beautiful, in their own way. Efrain of course preferred the older, denser forests, not least because they tended to be far more interesting magically, but he couldn’t deny the charm of the low rolling hills. It didn’t take the company long before they found a road cutting between sunken fields and began to file two by two toward the distant mountains.
The earth was soft with the first rains, and Efrain noted that Tykhon sunk its webbed feet into it with obvious relish. Had he been designed for wet environs, then? A ridiculous image of the large creature swimming in the blue-green waters of the Emyaka came alive. Then Efrain the mount’s perfect willingness to throw itself into the waterfall on the giant’s spine.
The soldiers, having started the trek earlier in the morning, looked grey with fatigue. At the sight of the fields and mountains however, they’d perked up, and now were chatting casually as they made their way between the sparse trees. Efrain came to ride alongside the Niethe captain as they picked their way across.
“End’s almost in sight,” Efrain said.
“Almost,” she agreed, “though I have no fondness for the mud, so I hope that we get onto proper cobbles soon enough.”
“There should be a proper road or two, somewhere around here,” he said, “we’re still among the outer farms.”
To his surprise, it did not take them very long at all to find the broader, well trodden dirt of a road. Two hundred years of expansion and development had clearly widened the reach of Karkos. They were making a fine clip then on the dry, well packed earth, weaving between flooded patties of still-growing rice and great expanses of mature green-yellow rye. Peasants, labouring in the fields, often looked up and shaded their eyes, gawking at the sudden appearance of the soldiers. A few ran toward houses in the distance, even as some soldiers professed loudly that they were here in peace.
“War’s left a scar on this place?” Efrain said, not recalling any major conflict.
“They were spared the worst of it, unlike Ennen’Alla,” said Damafelce, “they fell in line quickly after that. Most of their conflicts are with pirates out to the south and east. They keep them well suppressed to please Angorrah, and to keep their own money flowing.”
“That must earn them some token good will at least,” Efrain said, craning his head to try and get a look at the city, and failing.
“Indeed,” Damafelce snorted, gripping the reins of her horse tighter.
Efrain decided not to press the point any further, but rather shift to the subject.
“So then, where are you going to house all these men? I hardly think any one inn will suffice for a hundred… hundred and fifty? Men.”
“They’ll make do somehow. We are knights of Angorrah after all,” she said, gesturing to a standard, “most of the cowards will come to heel. Those who aren’t know better than to try a row.”
“You sound like you have an axe to grind with them,” Efrain said dryly.
“It’s in the past,” Damafelce said, “I’m simply laying out the situation, as I see it.”
“Fair enough,” Efrain said, “have you ever been on a boat before?”
“Many times. How do you think I got here?” she said, giving him an odd look.
Efrain decided to leave off as they marched past a thicket of what looked like hazel. The woman had given him enough to mull over, even if she didn’t realise it. It was the better part of noon when they reached the inner farms, marked by a transition to smaller, well maintained fields, and larger buildings.
They broke for a brief lunch, there on the road, not bothering to clear a spot, or some to even dismount. Efrain, atop Tykhon, was approached by Naia, chewing on some kind of meat ration.
“Well, lord Efrain,” he said, swallowing the last of it, “we’re finally here, at little quicker than I’d hoped. I suppose old memories stirred me on.”
“Uh-huh,” Efrain said, neglecting to mention that this was a narrowing of the window they’d agreed upon the previous day.
“In any case, we are to meet with the leaders of the city. Riders I sent just returned bearing word. I would like you to be there as my guest, if you wouldn’t mind,” he said.
“Of course,” Efrain said, not bothering to second guess the commander.
“Damafelce,” he said, with a feigned pitiable expression on his face, “I regret to inform you that you’ll be in charge of supervising the soldiers and their accommodations.”
“You’re joking?” Damafelce said, looking unimpressed, “First you leave me in charge of a siege, now I’m cleaning their mess?”
“Precisely.”“If you’re not careful, I’m going to become general before you,” she said, holding up her hand in what was presumably some obscene gesture.
“Not if you don’t learn to delegate,” he said with a laugh, before turning back and trotting toward the front of the line.
“Does that mean I can shove my work off to others like you?” she called, before rolling her eyes.
“I see you two get along well,” Efrain said.
“If by ‘get along’, you mean he leaves me all the boring work,” she snorted.
“Well, it’s always useful to have someone to blame if things go wrong,” Efrain said, “the church’s been doing it to me for the past five centuries.”
That got him a laugh from Damafelce, and a promise to be more mindful of the less fortunate like himself. Within ten minutes, they were riding along, and soon came to a copse before a cobble bridge spanning a shallow river. Beyond lay a proper road, cut stones marching off into the distance. Still a distance away, they could see the outer wall of Karkos, wrapped in sea mists. Naia wheeled on his horse, and made for the troops to gather before him.
“All of you are here as representatives of Angorrah and the church,” he said, “keep to yourselves, answer questions when asked, and no insults, no drunkenness, and for Lost’s sake, if I hear that you start a quarrel with our hosts, I’ll have you pilloried in the central square for the whole city to stone you. Understood?”
A broad yell of assent rose among the assembled tropes, and they set off across the bridge and cobbles. The sun had arced low over the sky, and was starting to paint the mountains in red and purple when they finally arrived, following the curve of the road. It pushed through the farmlands and curled around and out towards the sea, where large beaches of white sand met the turquoise waters. It then moved back and wound its way up a sequence of small but steep hills, before coming untoward the main gate.
The city had indeed greatly increased in size since Efrain had last been to the peninsula. This outerwall was not only relatively new, but twice the height of the old one and made of stone, rather than log palisades. On top, guards armed with bows and dressed in colourful yellow and black surcoats came to point and speak about the newcomers.
The heavy gate was lifted, a drawbridge set across what looked to be a natural river that coursed just outside the walls. At the forefront, there was a company of guards in plate and mail, bearing the standards of several of the great houses of the city, for no single one claimed dominion over the defence. The captain of the guard, a reedy man whose thickness of face was disguised by a considerable moustache, rode forward to herald himself and the city's defence.
“We have been expecting you, commander Naia,” he said, “the council of the wise would meet you within the city. We have prepared appropriate accommodation for your numbers, outside the city walls.”
Naia nodded, clearly having expected it.
“In that case, I will dispatch a contingent of soldiers to escort their men to their lodgings on the beach, if you don’t mind,” said the captain, gesturing for a couple men to come forward.
“Of course,” Naia said, “Captain, this is my right-hand, Damafelce. She’ll be overseeing the soldiers while I am in the city. Any complaints of their behaviour, should I not be available, should be addressed to her, and she will deal with the offenders.”
The captain nodded, not showing any surprise that a Niethe woman was of such import. Damafelce quickly smothered any sourness on her face at the prospect, and wheeled around, leading the bulk of the soldiers away. What was left were Efrain, the two paladins and their charges in a wagon, Naia and two of his captains.
“You’ll have to dismount and leave your creatures here,” said the captain, gesturing to a series of stonework stalls, seemingly built into the hill, “they will be well kept, I assure you. Only…”
His eyes fell upon Tykhon, who regarded him impassively.
“I must apologise, for I have never seen such a beast,” he said.
“Oh, he’ll be harmless,” Efrain said, sliding off his back, “though I don’t think the stables would be the best place for him.”
There was a trick with animals, particularly intelligent ones and magical attuned creatures, of which Tykhon was both. They might not be able to understand such abstract concepts like ‘north’, but direction was on the table, if articulated properly. Efrain used the memory of the white sand beaches to the south, and like lightning, Tykhon shot away, off the road and down toward the beach. The captain was left, mouth open as he watched the mount disappear down the hill.
“I’ve sent him to the beach,” Efrain said, “I think he’ll enjoy it there. No harm will come of it, unless someone should unwisely try to hunt him, though he’ll probably rather run than fight.”
“I’ll inform the patrols,” said the man, looking with not inconsiderable concern at the beaches in the distance.
“Well,” Naia said, also disgruntled at the haste of Tykhon, “now that that’s sorted, we’d best not keep the committee waiting. After you captain.”
The guard dismounted, and they passed by spearmen guarding the open gate. What they emerged out to was a cacophony - multistory buildings of brick and timber were packed closely together, open shop fronts bustling with people. All parted as the guard cleared a path, and stared at the visitors that walked behind them. The ringing of blacksmith hammers, the hawking of street-merchants and artisans, the strumming of various instruments and songs of the bubbly Karkosian language carried between the warm light of paper lanterns.
Soon, the street curved downwards to match the slope of the hill, the shops becoming a series of stepped counters and balconies. Out before them stretched the expanse of the cities, the buildings becoming larger, more colourful and more ornate as they approached the intersection with the sea and rose up the side of the mountains. In the centre of the street was a great wooden platform on wheels, and attached to a great series of pulleys and ropes passing along wooden posts, packed with crates and boxes. Behind it was a tower, with stacks of stones threaded through with the rope, presumably a counterweight of some kind.
Past that was the Karkos that Efrain remembered, built directly on three shallow lagoons that were sheltered somewhat from storms.
Still, even that was changed, the buildings, mostly stepped pyramids of stone, and the canals that surrounded them were now monstrously large, dripping with plants and vibrant stonework. High bridges and suspended streets of wood clung to their side, allowing boat traffic to cross beneath. He could even see, between the gaps of tall, multi storey towers built on top of the surrounding ziggurats, the Grand Square, where he’d often gone for recitations of poetry and plays. There was a familiar warm feeling in his heart - it was good to be back, even with such changes as they were.
“The committee wishes to meet you in the grand square,” said the captain, “it is some distance to the canal. I understand you have been travelling for some days now, we may take down the lift if you so wish.”
The assembled group agreed that they would be grateful for the chance to rest their legs, and they were ushered onto the platform. At the captain’s signal, they began to gain speed with the rest of the goods, controlled only through the tautness of the thick ropes. Efrain examined the cables as the wheels turned, sending them down inexorably to the end of the road, where it sank below the blue waters.
As they trundled down, Naia and the city captain began speaking in hushed Karkosian. Efrain leaned back against a stack of crates, pretending not to understand the conversation like Naia’s captains, who were visibly annoyed.
“Who is waiting for us?” asked Naia, “it’s been some years since I’ve been in the city.”
“The selected houses for the committee range commander,” said the captain, “most are of established blood, though there is an upstart. The houses of Perlago, Bramste, Frane, have elected to send representatives. Asssenda is an upstart house.”
“Only four?” said Naia, his brow furrowing, “what has happened? Why aren’t the other great houses there?”
“With due respect,” said the commander, “your message was rushed. Some of the house leaders might not have even received it. There are some that didn’t show for… other reasons, but they are largely consumed with the preparations for the Festival, commander.”
“Festival? What-” Naia said, before slapping his head, “by the gods. I completely forgot.”
The commander nodded, as Efrain tried to place his memory of the various festivals and feasts of Karkos. There were certainly several that fell broadly in the summer, but this had to be-
Oh.
“Oh dear,” said Naia, “this will… I had plans to commission a ship, perhaps several for the soldiers. We couldn’t hope to find one for days.”
“It’s unlikely, commander,” said the captain, “your timing was unfortunate.”
“If I had known, I wouldn’t have rushed,” laughed Naia, “the gods are intent on mischief it would seem.”
The captain of the guard laughed with him and agreed.
“Well, I suppose that is something we’ll have to discuss with the representatives,” said Naia, “after our trials, perhaps it would be good for the men to enjoy the Festival.”
“Of course, commander,” said the captain impassively as they continued down the hill.
There was scant conversation to eavesdrop upon as they made their way into the entrance of the launch, where the cobbles disappeared under the water. There were several, magnificently accented boats waiting for them, each piloted by large, powerful, and equally colourful polemen.
Efrain hopped from the platform’s edge onto the waiting boat, hardly disturbing it compared to Naia’s captain who clambered in after him. They pushed off the launch and turned into the canal, a corridor of intricately carved stone and multi coloured lanterns. As they picked up speed, Efrain noted the banners that were set out, large, thick, and, like everything else, intensely coloured. People on the bridges and walkways above stopped to turn and point at the travellers.
“Your name poleman?” asked Efrain in the formal Karkosian manner.
To his credit, the man betrayed only the slightest surprise that Efrain could speak the language fluently.
“Aman. How may I be of service?” he responded as he sent them forwards with another long stroke.
“I don’t mean to disturb your work, but I would like to know, if you have any knowledge, of course, of some of the city’s happenings.” Efrain said, happy that he could easily recall some of the more obtuse grammar, “It’s been some years since I’ve been in the city.”
“Of course,” said Aman, “that is wise. The houses come together for the festival, putting aside their quarrels. Only…”
Efrain waited patiently as they turned past another bridge, and moved to the south.
“There are two outstanding houses,” he said, looking around as if someone might be listening, “Madros and Carim, their dispute is most grievous.”
“Give it to me in brief, young man,” said Efrain, listening intently.
It seemed that two, he was assured, most venerable, sons of the two houses had gotten into a dispute that culminated in violence. The Madros son, first son of the family no less, had gotten a dire putrefaction that threatened his life. This naturally led to accusations of poisoned blades and dishonourable schemes, and an already fraught situation escalated. Apparently, the second son of Carim had hidden somewhere in the city, while the rest of the noble houses tried to calm the Madros.
“Still, the eldest houses have chosen not to intervene,” he said.
“Any particular reason why?” said Efrain.
“It’s not for this humble servant to know, but rumours run abound. Nothing certain,” said the man, keeping his eyes fixed on manoeuvring through the canals.
“I see, thank you,” said Efrain as they were propelled through an opening in a building that cut over the river. Servants were speaking in hushed tones as they passed the interior dock, loading barrels onto waiting boats. Finally, they emerged onto the grand square, a massive flat piece of interlocking masonry edged with bridges and steps. They were in the late stages of preparation, long sequences of covered tables and stalls spanned with ribbons and banners.
At the centre of the square there was a party of richly dressed individuals of various descriptions. All were heralded by bannermen carrying the standards of their houses. Efrain noted that it was mostly younger scions or older, presumably distant and less important members of the families that were represented.
As Naia’s party was assembled, they were introduced to the representatives of Karkos. Amicio Bramste, Veniz Peralgo, Audientore Frane, Keiren Assendra. The captain of the city guard, as well as the master of the docks were there, and one pudgy, bespectacled man, dressed in black. Unable to contain his excitement, the man rushed forward, stared directly at Efrain, and loudly proclaimed:
“Mentor Avencia, of the Belacore Academy! What a wonder and an honour to meet you, master Efrain!”
Naia stared at Efrain, the assembled nobles stared at Efrain, the paladins stared at him, the children, the master of the docks and the captain of the city guard. All looking as Efrain simply took the man’s hand.
‘Academy’? Efrain thoughts raced, ‘Belacore’ academy? What does that have to do with m- oh. Oh no.
[←Chapter 58] [Cover Art] [My Links] [Index] [Discord] [Subreddit] [Chapter 60→]
2023.06.05 17:16 Cleetamar Favorite Greenhouses around PGH
Please share your favorite small greenhouses, plant nurseries.
I'll go first! My absolute favorite is Fred Giger Nursery on Peoples Road in the North Hills. It's been family owned for several generations, the prices are super fair for the area and the variety is good. The family is kind, knowledge and passionate about plants <3 Important - They are cash or check only and the parking lot is tiny and off to the side of the nursery.
submitted by Cleetamar to pittsburgh [link] [comments]
I'll go first! My absolute favorite is Fred Giger Nursery on Peoples Road in the North Hills. It's been family owned for several generations, the prices are super fair for the area and the variety is good. The family is kind, knowledge and passionate about plants <3 Important - They are cash or check only and the parking lot is tiny and off to the side of the nursery.
2023.06.05 16:33 wsppan Today In Phishstory - June 5th
# Today In Phishstory - June 5th Brought to you by tiph-bot. Beep.
All data extracted via The Phishnet API.
Phish, Sunday 06/05/2022 (1 year ago) Ruoff Music Center, Noblesville, IN, USA
Gap Chart, Tour: 2022 Spring Tour
Set 1 : While My Guitar Gently Weeps , My Soul , Rift , Horn , Wombat , Evolve , Guyute , Limb By Limb , Mercury , The Moma Dance
Set 2 : Sand , Sigma Oasis -> Sand , Twenty Years Later > The Mango Song , Rise/Come Together , Free
Encore : Grind , Slave to the Traffic Light
Jamchart Notes:
Sand - Longest version this side of Big Cypress breaks away at 7:00 and never looks back, blending multiple bliss sections with darker-tinged synth/delay play (including a "Crosseyed" tease from Mike at 12:00) all within the first twenty minutes. Shortly before 22:00 a tidal wave of sound starts building as the jam crests in a series of massive peaks, after which a final easy-going segment serves as an effective exhale.
Show Notes:
The first Sand contained Crosseyed and Painless teases from Mike and an Albert tease from Trey. Mike teased Dueling Banjos in Slave to the Traffic Light.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Phish, Sunday 06/05/2011 (12 years ago) Riverbend Music Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Gap Chart, Tour: 2011 Early Summer Tour
Set 1 : AC/DC Bag > Punch You in the Eye > Bathtub Gin > Taste , Lawn Boy , Mound , Gotta Jibboo > Reba 1 , Fee 2 > Backwards Down the Number Line
Set 2 : Carini -> Tweezer > Free , Crosseyed and Painless -> Light -> Boogie On Reggae Woman > Julius , You Enjoy Myself
Encore : Loving Cup > Tweezer Reprise
1 No whistling. 2 Trey sang verses through megaphone.
Jamchart Notes:
Fee - A serene outro, similar to 7/29/03. > into "Backwards Down the Number Line."
Show Notes:
Reba did not contain the whistling ending. Trey sang the verses of Fee through a megaphone.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Phish, Friday 06/05/2009 (14 years ago) Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, Wantagh, NY, USA
Gap Chart, Tour: 2009 Early Summer Tour
Set 1 : Wilson , Buried Alive , Kill Devil Falls , AC/DC Bag , I Didn't Know , My Friend, My Friend , Ya Mar , Theme From the Bottom , Boogie On Reggae Woman , Split Open and Melt
Set 2 : Down with Disease 1 -> Twist > Piper > Backwards Down the Number Line , Free , Twenty Years Later 2 > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Slave to the Traffic Light
Encore : A Day in the Life
1 Unfinished. 2 Debut.
Show Notes:
During I Didn't Know, Trey introduced Fish as "Little Junior Moses Brown Heaps DeWitt" and commented that he was going to "suck all of the moisture out of the air." During Ya Mar, Page teased It's Raining, It's Pouring. Trey teased Flat Fee prior to Disease, which was unfinished. Twist featured an Oye Como Va jam. This show marked the debut of Twenty Years Later.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Phish, Tuesday 06/05/1990 (33 years ago) Cat's Cradle, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Gap Chart, Tour: 1990 Tour
Set 1 : The Squirming Coil , Uncle Pen , Mike's Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove , Ya Mar , The Oh Kee Pa Ceremony > Suzy Greenberg , Take the 'A' Train > David Bowie , Lawn Boy > Possum
Set 2 : Sweet Adeline , Divided Sky , Caravan , Dinner and a Movie > Bouncing Around the Room , My Sweet One , The Lizards , You Enjoy Myself > The Ballad of Curtis Loew , Good Times Bad Times
Encore : Hold Your Head Up > Whipping Post 1 > Hold Your Head Up , Golgi Apparatus
1 Fish on vocals.
Show Notes:
The Bowie intro contained 'A' Train teases from Trey. Whipping Post featured Fish on vocals and a What I Am (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians) tease.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Trey Anastasio Band, 2020-06-05 Stage AE, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/trey-anastasio-band-june-05-2020-stage-ae-pittsburgh-pa-usa.html
Tour: Not Part of a Tour
Show Notes: This performance was cancelled as a result of the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak.
Trey Anastasio Band, 2003-06-05 Chicago Theatre, Chicago, IL, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/trey-anastasio-june-05-2003-chicago-theatre-chicago-il-usa.html
Tour: TAB - The Dectet Summer 2003 Tour
Show Notes: Trey led the band marching through the crowd at the end of "Sweet and Dandy."
Mike Gordon, 2015-06-05 Charleston Music Hall, Charleston, SC, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/mike-gordon-june-05-2015-charleston-music-hall-charleston-sc-usa.html
Tour: Mike Gordon - Summer 2015 Tour
Show Notes: This show featured the debuts of Here Today and How Many People Are You as well as the Mike Gordon debuts of Looking for Clues and How Do I Know? Mike dedicated Spock's Brain to Leonard Nimoy. Mike teased Mystery Achievement in Looking for Clues.
Jazz Mandolin Project, 2004-06-05 The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/jon-fishman-june-05-2004-the-fillmore-san-francisco-ca-usa.html
Tour: Fish - Jazz Mandolin Project Summer 2004 Tour
Show Notes: This was an opening set for Vida Blue.
Page McConnell, 2007-06-05 9:30 Club, Washington, DC, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/page-mcconnell-june-05-2007-930-club-washington-dc-usa.html
Tour: Page McConnell Spring & Summer 2007 Tour
Show Notes: Page performed "Strange Design" solo on piano.
Vida Blue and The Spam Allstars, 2004-06-05 The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/page-mcconnell-june-05-2004-the-fillmore-san-francisco-ca-usa.html
Tour: Page - Vida Blue & Spam Allstars Summer 2004 Tour
Show Notes: Jazz Mandolin Project (w/ Fishman) opened. Before the start of the show, band namesake Vida Blue appeared on stage and threw some baseballs into the audience. Portions of this show were released on the Live at the Fillmore DVD.
Robert Randolph & the Family Band, 2008-06-05 Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, Wantagh, NY, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/robert-randolph-the-family-band-june-05-2008-nikon-at-jones-beach-theater-wantagh-ny-usa.html
Tour: Not Part of a Tour
Show Notes: Trey sat in for part of Robert Randolph & The Family Band's performance opening for Eric Clapton.
Leftover Salmon, 1999-06-05 Higher Ground, Winooski, VT, USA
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/guest-appearance-june-05-1999-higher-ground-winooski-vt-usa.html
Tour: Not Part of a Tour
Show Notes: The songs listed featured Mike on bass. Jeff Mosier also made a guest appearance during this gig, which was opened by Blueground Undergrass.
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All data extracted via The Phishnet API.
Phish
Gap Chart, Tour: 2022 Spring Tour
Set 1 : While My Guitar Gently Weeps , My Soul , Rift , Horn , Wombat , Evolve , Guyute , Limb By Limb , Mercury , The Moma Dance
Set 2 : Sand , Sigma Oasis -> Sand , Twenty Years Later > The Mango Song , Rise/Come Together , Free
Encore : Grind , Slave to the Traffic Light
Jamchart Notes:
Sand - Longest version this side of Big Cypress breaks away at 7:00 and never looks back, blending multiple bliss sections with darker-tinged synth/delay play (including a "Crosseyed" tease from Mike at 12:00) all within the first twenty minutes. Shortly before 22:00 a tidal wave of sound starts building as the jam crests in a series of massive peaks, after which a final easy-going segment serves as an effective exhale.
Show Notes:
The first Sand contained Crosseyed and Painless teases from Mike and an Albert tease from Trey. Mike teased Dueling Banjos in Slave to the Traffic Light.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Gap Chart, Tour: 2011 Early Summer Tour
Set 1 : AC/DC Bag > Punch You in the Eye > Bathtub Gin > Taste , Lawn Boy , Mound , Gotta Jibboo > Reba 1 , Fee 2 > Backwards Down the Number Line
Set 2 : Carini -> Tweezer > Free , Crosseyed and Painless -> Light -> Boogie On Reggae Woman > Julius , You Enjoy Myself
Encore : Loving Cup > Tweezer Reprise
1 No whistling. 2 Trey sang verses through megaphone.
Jamchart Notes:
Fee - A serene outro, similar to 7/29/03. > into "Backwards Down the Number Line."
Show Notes:
Reba did not contain the whistling ending. Trey sang the verses of Fee through a megaphone.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Gap Chart, Tour: 2009 Early Summer Tour
Set 1 : Wilson , Buried Alive , Kill Devil Falls , AC/DC Bag , I Didn't Know , My Friend, My Friend , Ya Mar , Theme From the Bottom , Boogie On Reggae Woman , Split Open and Melt
Set 2 : Down with Disease 1 -> Twist > Piper > Backwards Down the Number Line , Free , Twenty Years Later 2 > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Slave to the Traffic Light
Encore : A Day in the Life
1 Unfinished. 2 Debut.
Show Notes:
During I Didn't Know, Trey introduced Fish as "Little Junior Moses Brown Heaps DeWitt" and commented that he was going to "suck all of the moisture out of the air." During Ya Mar, Page teased It's Raining, It's Pouring. Trey teased Flat Fee prior to Disease, which was unfinished. Twist featured an Oye Como Va jam. This show marked the debut of Twenty Years Later.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Gap Chart, Tour: 1990 Tour
Set 1 : The Squirming Coil , Uncle Pen , Mike's Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove , Ya Mar , The Oh Kee Pa Ceremony > Suzy Greenberg , Take the 'A' Train > David Bowie , Lawn Boy > Possum
Set 2 : Sweet Adeline , Divided Sky , Caravan , Dinner and a Movie > Bouncing Around the Room , My Sweet One , The Lizards , You Enjoy Myself > The Ballad of Curtis Loew , Good Times Bad Times
Encore : Hold Your Head Up > Whipping Post 1 > Hold Your Head Up , Golgi Apparatus
1 Fish on vocals.
Show Notes:
The Bowie intro contained 'A' Train teases from Trey. Whipping Post featured Fish on vocals and a What I Am (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians) tease.
Listen now at Phish.in!
Trey Anastasio
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/trey-anastasio-band-june-05-2020-stage-ae-pittsburgh-pa-usa.html
Tour: Not Part of a Tour
Show Notes: This performance was cancelled as a result of the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak.
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/trey-anastasio-june-05-2003-chicago-theatre-chicago-il-usa.html
Tour: TAB - The Dectet Summer 2003 Tour
Show Notes: Trey led the band marching through the crowd at the end of "Sweet and Dandy."
Mike Gordon
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/mike-gordon-june-05-2015-charleston-music-hall-charleston-sc-usa.html
Tour: Mike Gordon - Summer 2015 Tour
Show Notes: This show featured the debuts of Here Today and How Many People Are You as well as the Mike Gordon debuts of Looking for Clues and How Do I Know? Mike dedicated Spock's Brain to Leonard Nimoy. Mike teased Mystery Achievement in Looking for Clues.
John Fishman
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/jon-fishman-june-05-2004-the-fillmore-san-francisco-ca-usa.html
Tour: Fish - Jazz Mandolin Project Summer 2004 Tour
Show Notes: This was an opening set for Vida Blue.
Page McConnell
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/page-mcconnell-june-05-2007-930-club-washington-dc-usa.html
Tour: Page McConnell Spring & Summer 2007 Tour
Show Notes: Page performed "Strange Design" solo on piano.
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/page-mcconnell-june-05-2004-the-fillmore-san-francisco-ca-usa.html
Tour: Page - Vida Blue & Spam Allstars Summer 2004 Tour
Show Notes: Jazz Mandolin Project (w/ Fishman) opened. Before the start of the show, band namesake Vida Blue appeared on stage and threw some baseballs into the audience. Portions of this show were released on the Live at the Fillmore DVD.
Other
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/robert-randolph-the-family-band-june-05-2008-nikon-at-jones-beach-theater-wantagh-ny-usa.html
Tour: Not Part of a Tour
Show Notes: Trey sat in for part of Robert Randolph & The Family Band's performance opening for Eric Clapton.
Setlist: https://phish.net/setlists/guest-appearance-june-05-1999-higher-ground-winooski-vt-usa.html
Tour: Not Part of a Tour
Show Notes: The songs listed featured Mike on bass. Jeff Mosier also made a guest appearance during this gig, which was opened by Blueground Undergrass.