Twilit Tears

((Perhaps unnerving, but many would also consider it heartening))

The Kerrins wrote:((Perhaps unnerving, but many would also consider it heartening))

((mainly unnerving because this kind of thing usually brings about reprisals. usually against civilians.))

Rundal dungeon entrance:

Wolfe watched as his troops levered the last of the rocks into place. Rundal was now almost completely sealed up, save for a small entrance, large enough for only one goblin to walk through at a time. Larger foes would have to stoop to pass through. up at Coill, a similar scene was being enacted under the critical eye of Silver, Commander the mercenary group "Wolves"



"Dunbarton fell because the enemies mustered before they could prepare." Wolfe said, half to himself and half to the men and women around him. "I will not have the same fate befall Emain Macha. So, I have sealed the dungeons up, leaving only a small, easily stopped entrance. 20 men are to be stationed at each of these entrances at all times, along with riders to ensure that adequate warning can be provided to allow reinforcements to arrive, should the enemy break through." the only ways any enemy can come at us in force now are either through Osna Sail, or along the narrow bridges leading to Sen Mag. And i am preparing a special surprise should they try to force the bridges."

"White!"
an thin, wirey elf detached himself from the group to stand by Wolfe's side.
"yes sir?"

"put up a notice on the board. As of now, I will hire anyone who wishes to fight for me. the pay is 10 gold per day, plus free room and board. potential recruits are to report to me or Silver at Emain Castle."

"i'll have it done immediately!"

"see that you do."

[[Good gravy, I take leave for a couple days and what happens? Back only five minutes and I need to make heads and tails of all this by tomorrow, on top of catching up with homework, commissions....auuuugh. Dang vacations. You take them to relax, and you come back to even more trouble than you left. Serves me right for pulling this right before I left though... XD; ]]

The Kerrins wrote:Important note to make, what are the actions of the NPCs?
Here are a few guesses of mine, feel free to correct if you disagree.

As far as NPCs went, I was intending for them to be among those who stayed in Dunbarton for a few reasons.

First and foremost, I try to keep NPCs as uninvolved with my plots as possible as I feel I don't have the right to be controlling them. It's rather difficult to perfectly play a character that isn't your own creation. (Plus, NEXON IS ALWAYS WATCHING.)

Secondly, considering the personalities portrayed in how they're programmed to interact with the players, I deemed them all to be a little too noble to just up and leave children under the influence of someone like Fenrir, so in that sense they may be ones remaining to provide reluctant support until something gives.

Third, I try to keep NPCs as close to home as possible so they don't make paradoxes in anybody else's plots.

That said, I was intending to keep them in Dunbarton. And if they need roles, these would most likely be them:

Considering the areas sealed off or under heavy guard, Stewart may be put out of the library if not imprisoned within it and the same goes with Kristell. If either is put out, the would be remaining within Dunbarton's walls - especially Kristell.

Manus would be tending to those injured in the first attack and afterward also placed under "house arrest". He'd be allowed to give medical treatment to whomever is authorized for it and do so under watch of Fenrir's soldiers.

Glenis, mess hall duty - for the town and soldiers.

Simon - tailoring duties, of course. Even disgruntled kids and fomors need shoes on their feet. Heck, the rallied ogres in the mix should keep him entertained for hours on that one.

Walter - business would go on as usual, though with certain items being removed from inventory. Off the top of my head, I'm thinking all musical instruments and candles (if he sells those. Forget.)

Aeria's a tricky one; but I'm going to say business stays open too. Musical books wouldn't be on sale though. If you can't sense the pattern by now, music is practically a banned thing in Dunbarton at the moment.

Austeyn and Eavan - still in town, but both buildings seized. They'd probably be in their homes or nearby doing important odd jobs under a watchful eye.

Aranwen - reluctantly training the Dark Knight children in archery, though only them. Seeing as the kids are still kids under the armor, at least giving them a chance of not being slaughtered again so easily (*coughJcough* ) would keep them alive long enough for another solution to be found, and considering Fenrir's own promises, he may the survival of children in mind as well. And if not this, she's simply doing the same duties as Austeyn and Eavan.

Nerys - weapons would be confiscated by the soldiers and she'd be stuck to repairs of arms and armors.



And as for the library, it would probably be best if all those inside DID vacate. The main reason for its capture was to trash it. All that perky magic surrounding it would need to go so some more reliable wards could be set up. Meaning, for this arc, the spells placed over Dunbarton's library have been disabled and/or removed until further notice. I'll be making a more proper post to express this later tonight or tomorrow when I have time.

Ciao~

Well, good thing I never got around to having Harkins fix his wards. O_o

Also, J likely won't be a problem as far as Dunbarton is concerned. He's being as good as his word about the 'don't come crying to me' bit on that. Harkins, on the other hand? Well, him and Gorgoron are the characters I have that're most likely to do something stupid in this RP, surprisingly enough.

In this one case:
Krystel: Noble soul:Yes
Foolish: No
Anyone who has done g1 will know that she is not likely to willingly stay in a fomor-owned town
anyone who has done g3 will know that she is also capable of making a quick getaway, for which many characters are thankful

Once it is clear that her presensce is solving nothing, I doubt anyone could stop her from leaving.


Perhaps as another note, when something as major as a city being taken occurs, it cannot help but cause a reaction by all NPCs. If I thought I could do it, I'd try thinking up the reactions of the Emains, the Chonals, and the Bangors

On the contrary, she's one of the people Fenrir wouldn't be letting go even if she'd chose to.

In Kristell's case, what she is is the reason I said she'd especially be staying in Dunbarton. Being a fomor and ex-succubus to boot, Fenrir is naturally going to want to keep her under a watchful eye. Not to mention being one, she's probably heard a good deal about him or at least who he's claiming to be. If I was able to KILL NPCs, she'd be at the top of the hit list due to knowing too much. (Or that could link into those going through G1. XD )

As for reactions of major NPCs in other towns, I haven't had intentions to influence them in any way other than them having common knowledge of events that can't be ignored - the kidnappings, the attacks etc. The main focus of this plot was placed on the players' actions, not theirs. If people do intend to play them in any way, for this plot at least, please keep them in or very close to their respective towns.

Funny really, how the exact reason why I say she'd leave is the reason why you say she can't.
I've noticed that in people's plots, everyone always seems to underestimate the capacities of the NPCs
Chicol wasn't able to hold her down in g3....although if she is a specific target.....


Well, I think perhaps the best solution to this discussion is for someone to flip a coin
Heads:You got her
Tails:She managed to get away

PS:Shhh, no spoilers

((did Bangor fall, or was the attack driven off. because Wolfe's next few actions will largely depend on what happened there))


Emain Castle main hall

groups of well dressed people mulled around the hall, Chatting about the latest developments, the military buildup, and the price of goods. these were Emains top merchants. Wolfe had summoned them to the castle to discuss "important buisness, and they were nervous that he might seek to cut into their profits.

"i suppose you wonder why I summoned you all here?"

Wolfe entered with a flourish, his stylish black and blue robe clashing with the sword strapped to his side.

one of the merchants coughed nervously.

"as a matter of fact, m'lord we do"

Well then, I shall be short and to the point" Wolfe crossed his arms over his chest.

"all shipments of all goods to Dunbarton must cease immediately."

there was an instant uproar. Wolfe quickly patted the air in front of them, as he had more to say.

"if you're worried about profits, have no fear. with all the troops and camp followers pouring in, the need for your goods here has never been higher. Also, I am Considering a route through Sen mag, and from there to Bangor and Iria. Should this route be feasible, heavily guarded caravans will begin moving as soon as possible. I did not say you must not sell at all, I merely said you could not sell in one place."

"but what about the citizens In Dunbarton!?" said one of the merchants "Dunbarton doesn't have the food output to feed both them and the army that's occupying it!"

"arrangements are being made to see that they get food through rather unorthodox means as we speak. those of you who will be involved in said means will be notified when the time comes. But for the moment, there is a steadily growing number of people who would like to buy things camped in the fields and lodged in the city. I would ask you to see to their needs until you are notified otherwise."

((There was an attack on Bangor? Assume that Rebecca was there

Stupid work commitments.....))

[[Coin flipped, decision stands; and no, there wasn't an attack on Bangor. Not of my doing anyways. owo; Been too busy with upstarts thinking they could singlehandedly bring down Fenrir's hold on Dunbarton.]]

Harkins: I w-was spying, technically s-speaking. B-besides, you'd be s-surprised what survives fires...

((Yeah, Harkins is currently researching ways to either keep a soul-streamer from reviving when killed, or simply sealing someone away for an excessively long period of time...Like, until time collapses in on itself and becomes a temporal signularity, annihilatiing all things long.)

[[...okay fine, I didn't attack Bangor YET. XD Ah, and a little story update...]]

The air about Dunbarton still gave him that odd, burning sensation, but Fenrir wasn't paying it any mind. What he found more interesting were the events that he was witnessing in patrolling Dunbarton's walls in the early morn. Giving absent-minded salutes to the soldiers stationed along them, he eyed the quiet roads suspiciously. They were too quiet. Aside from the sporadic little rebellions and one-man armies that were quickly driven away, he'd seen no activity along the main roads. Probably trying to starve us...

He smirked and shook his head. Simple tactic, but it had him admiring whoever came up with it. They had a good deal of patience to try something like that, much good it would do them. It was nothing a raid or two from Tir Chonail couldn't fix; and with all roads leading from Emain Macha and Bangor blocked by his troops, there wouldn't be that much help coming to cause trouble. Actually, with the blockades considered, he could have given them the same problems when necessary. The thought made him chuckle. Things really were getting interesting.

"The new barriers for the library are in place."

Checking behind him, Fenrir's eyes fell on Kurohi, who was looking almost as tired as he was. Neither of them had slept for what was going on two days now. Nodding in approval, he looked beyond the north wall where a small task force of goblins was dragging a stone slab with odd carvings engraved in it and a claymore jutting out of the center. "Good, right on schedule then." he said. "And the new prisoners?"

"Behaving, for the moment. You should've just let them leave with the rest of the troublemakers. It would've saved me a headache."

"They'd be safer with us, despite what they believe. For now at least. If the library's seals are finished, I'll have the equipment transported to the library shortly. How are things to the south?"

"It's just like we were told. There's still a decent force there to keep us at bay. They'll be ready to launch another attack soon as well. And as for what's been happening inside the walls--"

Fenrir waved a hand dismissively. "I've already taken care of that. All we need to do is keep on schedule if not ahead. We should be ready in--" He paused when stronger aura filled the air, causing him to shudder. Someone or something was angry - nothing new with all things considered; but this was a particular, nostalgic sensation he hadn't felt in ages. Trying to detect what caused it, his gaze finally turned south. The sky had darkened - judging by the distance, near or directly over Bangor.

Kurohi glared at him in annoyance. "Some other plan you didn't tell me about?"

"No...I didn't cause that."

Those in Bangor who were awake in the early hours to witness it would notice the skies directly Barri Dungeon seemed to have blotted out the sun entirely. It didn't last more than a few minutes and things seemed normal enough when the sky finally cleared, save for the figure that emerged from the dungeon. Even while covered in bandages and tattered, dusty robes, the elderly man that stepped from the dark entrance could easily be identified as undead by the strong, rotting stench that came from him. Glazed eyes searched the startled crowds, though no move was made to attack, even as guards may have come to see what the commotion was about. After a good look at the surroundings, the old undead snarled in frustration and opened his mouth to speak. Unlike the mindless living corpses that plagued the world on the other end of Barri's altar, this one seemed capable of speaking, though the words came slowly, softly and yet in a rasping, malicious tone. "Where is...Fenrir...Eir..."

While Jakelvin was approaching Dunbarton with his pack, he arrives to noticed something ominous from the south, a stench that is worse than the living. He halted the pack and turned to them and barks something. The pack along with Jakelvin quickly makes a retreat southward to Bangor.

Back inside the Library, Associate was still adamant about staying in the Library and continues to hide away from those who did entered.

Jinnhin remained in her cell, but somehow it has been some time since she contacted her friends and family through the ClayJinns. The only message she can get out was a reserved message to someone who knows something that the ClayJinns can identify. By then, Goren discovered her sending out a message. He barges into the cell with dominating rage.

Where was Zeea since she was dragged away by the guards, Gate?

[[One of the offices are being used as a prison. Kurohi's role, which I was mentioning the other night, was to place a barrier over Zeea's cell to secure her in case she got any ideas (i.e. transforming, burning the building down, etc.) Prison, foo.]]

Gatemo wrote:[[One of the offices are being used as a prison. Kurohi's role, which I was mentioning the other night, was to place a barrier over Zeea's cell to secure her in case she got any ideas (i.e. transforming, burning the building down, etc.) Prison, foo.]]

Where are the offices?

As soon as confirmation of the safe route to Bangor came through, Wolfe sent the first caravan rolling out the next morning. packed with food and goods, they would travel through sen mag, down through Bangor and port Ceann, and then to Iria. As soon as the Caravan had left, Wolfe went over to Silver, pouring over the papers the new recruits had handed in, and assigning them where she felt there talents were best suited.

"well Silver, how are we doing?"

"well sir, with the Wolves and other mercenary companies, plus loners drifting in, the paladins, and the civilian levies and militia, we're up to maybe about 2500 strong, give or take a few."

"ayah, very good indeed. now, we need to further strengthen our position Vis a Vis Dunbarton. for that, Bangor needs to be kept out of their hands. the ores from their mines are the only big source of iron on the continent, and i aim to make sure they supply only us."

Wolfe walked over to a map and pointed at the narrow pass between Dunbarton and the Gairech hills.

"i need Black to take 1000 men and and two engineer platoons, and make this spot impregnable. he'll be following the same route that the caravans are currently taking. as he goes, he is to do the same thing to Peaca and Fiodh dungeon as we've done to the dungeons here. one the fortifications are complete, 300 of his men will break of and go to fortify Bangor, and 100 will establish partols between here, there and Bangor. also, another 200 men will go along to fortify Sen Mag castle town, giving us another stronghold. this should leave you with, according to your estimates, 1300 men. can we hold Emain with that many?"

"well," silver said, "estimates put the force that hit Dunbarton at maybe 1800. even with double that number, that still gives him barely 3 to 1 odds in superiority. Not a recipe for success when pitted against a dug in and determined defender. the men left behind will want extra pay, of course."

"they'll get one and a half times the normal pay. now, see to the preparations."

"yes sir!" she said, pulling out the roster and checking off names she felt would be best. Wolfe left he there, knowing his plans were in the best of hands

((Sorry to point out a Major Plot Hole in Wolfe's plan, but Dunbarton is fully capable of supplying its own food

They have potatoes and cows))
((Also, the coin said Kristell is captured?))
((Furthermore, what sort of seals are on the library?))

Shade yawned slightly and took a step away from his observation post. Smiling at his decision to learn the art of lipreading, he quickly wrote a note pertaining the half of the conversation he was able to observe, and other notes

"F sealing Library
Moving equipment there((Shade will see what it is, unless you can name a seal able to block his method of observation))
Working to a schedule
Not responcible for Bangor, and unsettled by it

Elf in library a good hider
Kristell and Stewart imprisoned"

Praising Eugeal's thoroughness in the design of this place, Shade slipped the message into a bottle and placed it into a thin passage of water.
He wathed it flow quickly out of sight, knowing that someone could easily collect it without Fenrir ever knowing

((Supporting the civilian population, yes. supporting both them and the occupying army? highly unlikely. also, the wiki says emain exports large amounts of corn, indicating at least some need for importing food in Dunbarton. as to raiding Tir, that would be a short term solution at best. tir is entirely self sufficient, so the use all their food to feed themselves and the influx of soul streamers. there wouldn't be much you could take without causing starvation among the populance.))

[[A majority of said population scattered as I mentioned in previous posts, so that leaves a decent amount for the new "citizens" to feed off of for a while though supplies'll still decline, not to mention there's still Tir (and yes, it is a short-term solution at this point, do you think Fenrir cares though?).]]

[[Yes, Kristell is captured. She stays in Dunbarton for the plot, at the church, much like other major NPCs are staying near their spots. Deal with it, thankyou.]]

[[As I told Jake about they associate elf lurking in the library and Shade, they may be good hiders, but they shouldn't be able to keep it up for all the days gone by, at least and especially not perfectly. Mana and stamina are eventually going to run out and then it's just a matter of time before they're busted, arrested, killed, thrown out, whichever, whatever, by guards patrolling the place, or by Fenrir himself. Shade seems to be coming and going from what I can tell though, so that clears things up on his end at least, though still curious how he gets in with all the guards in place.]]

[[The seals are just elaborate barriers placed over the two side rooms, and deactivated by an item Fenrir and Kurohi keep on them, as well as a secondary option nobody's seemed to have made a connection with, which is also a reason why the new presence popped up in Bangor to interact with. (And come to think of it, I believe just two other players got close enough know about these items. Hint. Hint. Sheesh, I spoil you guys. That's all you get for free!)]]

[[And for future notice, please don't try running a train over things without me knowing what's going on. I came back yesterday to bit of a mess. I need to take this a little slower than usual since there's a lot of people involved so please don't rush it. Mabinogi's not going anywhere. (Sidenote, that applies to everybody. Seriously, I can't think with everybody tugging me this way and that all at once. XD)]]

[[And as for Wolfe's troops...I'll get back to that later. Not like a big move is gonna be made anyway. Will update things proper when I have a bit of breathing room.]]

**
With respect to all the seals in the library - all the active ones had been tampered with at some point - explains the new exit / clear view to the eastern mountains, as well as some blade damage and a few fresh scorch marks not associated with the new scenic view.

One of the blood stones has been revealed and the associated circle activated once already.
- side note: since celestial blood was spilled willingly the life drain part of the effect was reversed to effect similar to a life elixir of potency.
- for those not not remembering these stones. This set drains everything starting with mana/dark/light/powers and ending with stamina/life.
- Secondary role-play note: if a targets name is written in blood and they hit zero, they are trapped permanently as their bodies turn to dust - the circle uses the targets regen/healing ability to heal itself.

Refer to the original post for info / clues on the other hidden but inactive power circles and their effects

For those wishing to throw a monkey-wrench into things with these circles - the very act of searching for them magically may activate any one of them for good or ill if you are really really lucky/unlucky - or just spilling/touching the correct activation material on the trigger could do it

**

[[Are these an explaination of the ones that were in place prior to the events here, or recently? O_o]]

**
Prior

since they are not active and hidden they are kind of useless most of the time

**

She didn't look threatening. A tired, dirty woman on a bedraggled old jade. Some of the citizens were leaving with a caravan leaving Emain for Sen Mag's castle town, and she was among them. She followed, as many did, behind a supply wagon, now falling back as her horse lagged behind, now spurring it to catch up with the group. Occasionally she would fall behind the entire group, other times she would urge her horse to the front of the line. The poor beast's head nearly dragged on the ground by the time they made it the short distance to Sen Mag. But, it appeared, the woman was not pleased with the town. She got back on her beast and headed on with a much smaller group of citizens and a much larger group of soldiers, towards Bangor and to Port Ceann.
~~~
Just within the narrow gap of the passage to Bangor, in the evening dusk, the horse stopped utterly in it's tracks and refused to move. The woman paid it no mind- she was intently studying the mining town. Her tiredness seemed to fall away, and she instantly seemed much younger. In a flash, the woman leaned forward suddenly and cut something from the horse's bridle. A lump of lead wrapped in leather dropped from under the horse's chin and the horse threw it's head back, reared, and wheeled sharply, breaking into a gallop and charging through the guards who uncertainly tried to get in the way. There was no mistaking it now. It was a war horse, a shire, and a fast one, at that. A few mounted guards spurred their own mounts and gave pursuit!

Katsuna had what she needed, now. All day she had been taking notes- where the caravans were going, how many soldiers there were and where they were being positioned. Although she did not have the final numbers, she could make a pretty good guess. She looked over her shoulder and directed Celrine to ride directly through the dragon ruins! It was a risky move- the scaffolding was not built to withhold horse and rider's weight, but the horse plunged ahead fearlessly. As she thought they would, most of her pursuers turned their horses to go around- giving her precious seconds of a lead. Only one reckless guard dared actually follow her across. As she neared the middle, she suddenly swung her arm out and knocked a lantern down as she passed. The lamp shattered and oil and flames spilled across the bridge, causing her pursuer's horse to begin rearing and plunging.

She had made it! The guards still giving pursuit were giving up and turning! She grinned in triumph... and then hissed in pain as a sharp searing pain stabbed through her right shoulder. She felt her horse moving out from under her as she began to fall back- and then with a sudden effort, pulled herself forward with a grunt, one hand grabbing a handful of her horse's mane as the other fumbled weakly for the reins. She looked up and saw, with a shock, what was being done. A strong barricade was being erected over the main road from Dunbarton to Bangor! The reason her pursuers had turned back was not because they were giving up, but because they were letting the platoons in change of it take over!

Katsuna did not, however, slacken her speed. Indeed, she slumped forward over her horse's back and Celrine increased speed as more arrows flew around them! The horse was trained for this maneuver, and took a ragged path, zigzagging among the storm of arrows while charging straight on! The barricade wasn't finished, and despite their best efforts to hit the target, the horse gathered itself together and pulled an amazing leap over the lowest part of the wall! Katsuna looked back, but they were out of sight before anyone could get out there after them. Turning to face forward, the woman pulled up her lathered horse into a more moderate pace. First, she would do something about this arrow stuck in her flesh. Then, she would report to Gatemo.

Gatemo wrote:Shade seems to be coming and going from what I can tell though, so that clears things up on his end at least, though still curious how he gets in with all the guards in place.

((I'd like to say he's just throwing around his Illusion skill that well, and he could well be able to pull it off.

However, the trick lies in much more mundane means.
As some might know, Eugeal spent quite a while in the library, and set up a complex system of observation and defense
Among other things, this included a secret area that was designed to be accessable without travelling through the town itself
This and a complex mirror-based observation station. Face it, Eugeal was a bit paranoid.
Stewart knows some of the arrangements, although he wouldn't tell unless you were to torture him while asking specific questions
I doubt such questions would be asked until it becomes clear that those outside are acting under more information than is to be expected

Also, he's not coming and going, he's staying in the secret area and sending messages outside
These messages are being sent to Jakevalin, and it is up to him who knows what is going on in Dunbarton))