| Hell of an Introduction... | ||
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| Summary: Someone comes to Twisted... and he's not alone. Sadly his traveling companions are anything but nice.     |
The other reason may have something to do with the horde of demons that are chasing him. Dorian literally has a devil at his heels. Many of them, in fact. Some are tall, hunchbacked creatures with long, spindly arms. Others are little more than green clouds of energy that are roughly shaped like humans from the waist up, with no discernable legs. And still others look like horrid, grotesque, humanoid creatures look as though they're walking on their hands, with their legs looped up and back over its arms. There's not a lot of space to run across this floating spit of land, though, and soon enough Dorian reaches the end. Skidding to a stop, he turns, facing the horde as it approaches. "...I don't suppose I could plead the ruin of my good looks and have you leave me alone?" No answer.. nothing but growls and roars. "...I thought not..." But just as he'd begun to summon fire for defense, suddenly... the ground falls out from under Dorian. He gasps and tumbles down, trying to grab onto something to slow his fall, but there's nothing there. Green fills his vision as he falls... The park is peaceful this evening. As the sun slips below the horizon, there are a few people enjoying the sunset. But that changes quickly when a green light sparks to life near the fountain. An emerald crystal grows in the air, and from it a beam of spooky green energy strikes into the air like a lightning bolt, splitting a green rift in the air. A man falls out of it, olive-skinned, black-haired, dressed in leather armor and a white cloak. He hits the ground, rolling for a short distance, finally coming to a stop. He doesn't get up immediately. However, he is not alone. The horde of demons that had been chasing Dorian also spill out of the rift in the air. As soon as he hears the horrible sounds the creatures make, he tilts his head up. And immediately he sees the frightened people. "...Kaffas," he hisses under his breath. He pushes himself to his feet, wincing slightly, and steps between the retreating parkgoers and the horde. "If it's me you want, then COME AND GET ME!" he calls out, to draw the horde's attention to him. And then he just swings his staff at the nearest demon. It's a nice, sturdy staff, with a large round orb at the end that will stand up to a heavy strike. Maybe he'll be able to buy enough time to let these people retreat before these demons rip him apart. Or possess him.
First, they scream their lungs out! Because you can't have a good demonic convergance without a whole mess of screaming. Then, the park goers all scramble in the other direction where the demons are coming from, taking the chance the brave man gives them by calling attention to himself. 'Are they fog demons? Are they Naga?' The panicking citizens ask themselves as they flee. Ultimately, it doesn't matter what these things are, once they've gotten a clear distance away from those grotesque horrors they know what they need to do. Someone call TASK!! A few phone calls later, the sound of police sirens will be heard in the distance as some TASK grunts that where in the near by area heed the call. Though they would be no match for these creatures by themselves and they probably know it. The reason why they are going there anyway? Why, the director of TASK happened to be in patrol too. There will be no tearing apart of demonic possession today. Not while Huitzilopotchli walks these streets. The heavens part and though the sun is fading into the horizon it still shines a beam of light directly in front of Dorian, falling a top the demon that was about to savage him. It is as if the sun itself is protecting the rogue wizard, as it scorches the demon to cinders and simultaneously heals any wounds Dorian might have. A gift from the heavens. Or rather, a visit from a god. From that very same beam of light, a massive warrior falls upon the dust of the obliterated demon. Turquoise skin, full of muscle, and wearing a helmet fashioned to look like an eagle's helmet. "Ximocahcahua!!!" He shouts in Nahuatl and raises his strong arms out, glowing lines like the sun running through his limbs. "Up the stair path.." The warrior speaks now in a more familiar language. "To the fire's edge." "I bid to the sun." The afternoon sun begins to glow brighter in the distance as if heeding the words of this tall turquoise skinned man. "SCORCH THIS LAND!!" And heed him it does, as it shoots a much stronger beam of light down upon the demons, as if it were this man's personal magnifying glass. The sun beams down directly where the rift is and scorches a multitude of the demons that are pouring into Twisted.
The sirens are an unfamiliar sound to him, and he turns his head to find out where the sound is coming from. Unfortunately that leaves him open to attack, and one of the Shades hisses and swipes a claw at the mage. It catches him in the side of the neck, tearing the skin there and tossing him aside. He falls, rolls, and stands again quickly, though he hisses what is obviously a curse under his breath and raises a hand to the injured area. But then something odd happens. The sky releases a beam of light that simply incinerates the Envy demon that had been trying to take a bite out of his leg. And that same beam heals Dorian too? the mage looks up. The light of Andraste perhaps? How else could such a thing be possible? And then the turquoise-skinned man literally drops down from above. Dorian takes a step back, fearing this might be some sort of demon too. But instead the man scorches a path through the horde of demons with a beam of light. All right then. Probably not a demon. He nods, and then casts a barrier around the turquoise-skinned man. It won't last long, but as long as it does, good luck hitting Kotal with anything. But Dorian can't just leave it at that. "I take it that means you aren't one of their guests then." It's not a question. He has a haughty sound ot his voice, but from the sounds of it, it's not aimed at Kotal. That's just the kind of tone his voice has. Also his voice is pitched lower, with strain borne of the situation. He doesn't seem to have noticed Minu yet. In all the commotion, it's easy to miss an owl flying in, even it it's got a basket in its talons. He does however notice Rayne. "A friend of yours, I hope," he says, the comment aimed at Kotal. And once he gets confirmation that the rainbow-haired woman is indeed on his side, Dorian casts a barrier around her as well. Much like Kotal's barrier, it won't last long, but while it does, good luck hitting Rayne.
The god of war senses that there's an enchantment being cast upon him and he turns to glare at the mage with mistrust to his gaze. Fortunately for Dorian, Kotal saw what the mage did when he arrived through that rift in the sky. A person that puts the safety of others over his own is a person that is deserving of Kotal's protection and therefore TASK's as well. The Aztec recognizes that there's a barrier being cast upon him and he shows that he has some magic of his own as well. "Skin of stone!" He calls and a totem pulsing with energy emerges from the ground, it sounds like this totem is sort of.. chanting. Whatever kind of magic this is it creates a similar effect to Dorian's barrier, except its putting it over everyone Kotal deems an ally. Minu, Rayne, Dorian and the approaching TASK officers and their vehicles all get a glowing purple barrier around them that mitigates attacks. "Stand back, citizen!" Kotal finally speaks and addresses Dorian directly. "You are under the protection of TASK now." Although the Aztec recognizes this mage is a warrior in his own right, he really oughta let his warriors do their job, at least for now. "She is indeed." The Aztec deity confirms Dorian's suspicions about Rayne's allegiance. "There will be time to explain after we've dealt with these wretches." Noticing now that Minu is entering the fray, Kotal raises his macuahuitl and waves it to get the attention of the two. "Secure the perimeter!!" He commands with a booming voice to his second and his assistant. "Do not let any of these demons get into the city!!" Already the other TASK officers are starting to spread out trying to form a containment circle. If any demons manage to approach Kotal or Dorian while the former was dealing out orders, they'll find themselves sliced in half by broad macuahuitl swings, kourtesy of the war god.
Wonderful. The 'splat' does at the very least surprise the hunchbacked Shade, causing the demon to flail its arms about and screech angrily. Dorian takes that moment to cast a gout of fire at the distracted demon. The smell of burning jello fills the air. It seems the wizard has more than protection spells at his disposal! Rayne's words get a raised eyebrow. Dorian doesn't see anyone else. Then again, that owl... that's who the rainbow-haired girl is probably talking to. Perhaps it's her pet? There's really no time to ask now. He watches Rayne for a moment, then his gaze turns to Kotal again for a moment, and then for the owl. It's as if he's taking stock of everyone on the battlefield. Probably wise, if he has fire spells, to mentally mark everyone's location. That way he doesn't set anyone on fire that he doesn't mean to.
"Pathetic." Is the Emperor's veredict of these creatures as he proceeds to cut a dozen of them with a single macuahuitl slash, their severed bodies strewn everywhere. He takes another step, and another swing, and another great swath of demons is felled with a single blow. Kotal sees Rayne take on the stragglers, and Minu distracts another long enough for the mage to cast a fire spell and burn it to cinders. Good! Time to finish these wretches off, thinks Kotal. "The Searing Blade!!" Says the Aztec raising his fist and another chanting totem arises. This one causes everyone's weapons to glow brightly, Rayne's swords, Dorian's staff, the TASK officers' weapons and even Minu's talons all empowered with the strength of Kotal himself. "Kill them all!" Commands the Emperor and the TASK officers open fire with a salvo of bullets, magic missiles and lasers at the creatures, all strengthened with the power of the god of war.
Suddenly Kotel's words register, and the staff Dorian has been using to fight glows with pure golden light. He can sense power when it's nearby. He may not be able to tell what kind, but he knows the feel of power when he's Dorian realizes his weapon is empowered, he realizes that it's probably going to be quite a bit more effective at bludgeoning. And so Minu and Kotal (as Rayne has run after the demon that went for the city) get a good demonstration of Dorian's physical fighting abilities. Mage (or wizard, whichever you prefer) he may be, but he's definitely no slouch in the fighting department. He's trained too, one can tell in the way he moves. The Envy Demon goes down under Minu's assault with a HEAD-ly weapon! And between the four of them it isn't long before the demons are dealt with. Thankfully the rift that had brought him and this horde of demons here had closed behind him, so no more will get in. And once the last of the demons has fallen, Dorian sighs. "...Well, that was something," he states. Then he looks to Kotal. "Thank you... the help was much appreciated." A pause, and he looks around. "This is definitely -not- where I was," he observes. "I have questions... but they'll wait 'till later." He smiles then, the tension seemingly gone. "Dorian Pavus, altus mage of Tevinter," he offers, a hand on his chest. Then he bows. "How do you do?" | |
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