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< updated calendar > The Fortuna calendar has been updated in the "Other" lore section! This includes a document which displays the calendar for you to see, making it much easier to understand.
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Welcome to the world of Fortuna, a land of fantastic proportions. This is an original fantasy roleplay that takes place in a world developed over nearly a decade of work and collaboration. We aim to encourage all participants to have a hand in the stories of the characters here, and the world around them. Your choices are key - so make them with pride. You decide who wins the wars, you decide who becomes King, the world is ours, and together we will bring it to life!
Post by Leigh Haskell on Jan 29, 2017 10:12:19 GMT -7
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[attr="class","wavesundtext"] Leigh's eyes flashed to Wight as her hands slowly moved to her head. Why wasn't he doing any magic? He could get them out of there in a second but-- He looked concerned. There was something wrong, and he wasn't going to be able to do any magic. Maybe the room was warded against it. Or maybe the keg was empty... Either way -- it was gonna be her turn to save the day.
If she could go another five or six feet back, she could get a good enough angle to take him down, something she couldn't do from here. She could probably out-pull him, and out-shoot him if she could... But five or six feet behind her was the pool, and if her powder got wet she'd be fucked for using a weapon. Her eyes flicked over to Nicole for a moment, trying to decide something as her hand finally touched her scalp.
"One at a time -- slowly -- with your left hand, take your weapons and put them on the ground. Kick them away from you. You first, hook-hand," She was usually first. They were concerned she'd be able to do things more quickly with one hand, and so they'd train the gun on her. Focus on her for a second. She slowly lowered her left hand, hook still raised, and pulled free her dagger first. She dropped it on the ground, and kicked it towards the way they wanted to go. Then, she pulled out her pistol -- "Use only the thumb and the index finger!" The guard commanded -- and dropped that, doing the same thing. Then the pistol she'd stolen off one of the guards.
"If you want the hook off, you're gonna have to come help me unscrew it," She deadpanned, putting her hand back to her head, "Thing likes to stick a little." As the guard cursed her out and considered what to do about the hook, Leigh took the moment to whisper to the other two-- "When I move. Run-- (She flicked her eyes to Mal) and shoot. (she flicked her eyes to Nicole) Don't fuck up."
As soon as she had finished whispering, and the guard was commanding that Nicole remove Leigh's hook, Leigh tossed a fake elbow into Nicole's face (alright, she did graze the girl a little, but she needed a reaction, and was still pretty annoyed with her) and tumbled backward, landing in the water as soon as the first shot rang out to target her. It skinned her shoulder and she grunted... But it would be fine. She swam from the cloud of blood in a circle, in a zig-zag, staying under the water in the way she could thanks to her Tide Elf ancestry, and when she finally popped out, it was to shout an insult at the flustered guard, and toss a ball at him. He'd been aiming to shoot at the running Wight, but he missed as Leigh shouted and the ball flew past his head.
He turned his gun back to her, attempting to catch her as she moved faster than expected in the water. She was waiting for the tell-tale sound of a thick, heavy rifle shot before she'd stop with the distraction. She was waiting to hear it fill the room before she'd stop finding shit to throw at the guard, before she'd stop narrowly avoiding killshots. As soon as she heard it, she'd jump out of the water and snag her stuff (if Mal hadn't already) and they'd be out.
Post by Nicole Vanros on Jan 31, 2017 17:20:32 GMT -7
Leigh had to have been waiting for the chance to hit Nicole. At least her elbow didn't make Nicole's nose bleed. Leigh told Nicole what to do, and it had to be done. She could shoot the guard without having to kill him. While the guard shot at Leigh, Nicole took her rifle, and pulled the trigger. Click. Of course it was empty. The guards must have taken all the ammunition out as soon as they took it from her. Why couldn't they have been as stupid as the other guards and left some bullets in like they did with Leigh's pistol?
Leigh's pistol. Leigh had dropped both her pistol and the one she stole. Nicole darted along the ground and reached Leigh's pistol. "Stop!" The guard fired at Nicole, striking at the ground. The pistol spun around, but it stayed in its place. Nicole picked it up, took the stolen pistol as well, and ran back to Wight. The guard was picking through a pouch for more bullets to reload his pistol. Nicole shut one eye, and pulled the trigger on Leigh's pistol. The guard screamed as the bullet pierced his wrist. He bent down on his knees, trying to pick up the bullets he dropped, but Nicole was standing next to the edge of the pool.
The guard was on the balcony, and crouching. Nicole needed a clear shot, but needed to step into his own line of vision. The guard slid bullets into his pistol, but Nicole already had her fingers on the triggers of each pistol. "End of the line." Nicole pulled each trigger, and both bullets shot straight into the man's heart. The guard stumbled back, and dropped, once more out of everyone's sight. Nicole looked to Wight, then to the pool to find Leigh. "They'll have heard all that. We need a way out of here that they won't expect."
Post by Maldrem "Wight" on Jan 31, 2017 18:22:44 GMT -7
...
H e was moving the very instant Leigh sprung into action, crouching low and darting towards the steel grate as instructed. Whatever was about to happen here, he needed to make sure their escape was ready once Leigh worked the situation out. He didn't have the luxury of being to able to look behind him, not when he needed to move his fingers and tail swiftly and precisely to get the monster of a drainage gate unhinged. He trusted Leigh to have his back guarded. Nicole? He wasn't sure, but right now, he had to trust her as well. It was all they had to go on.
He heard the sound of gunshots, knowing that one of them had only narrowly missed him. He heard the sound of Leigh splashing around and had to assume she knew what she was doing because why was she in the pool? His tail dug at the latch on the grate and after several agonizing moments, the lock clicked undone and he yanked the thing up, exposing the large drainage tunnel that would drop into the sewers. Finally, he turned around to see if his allies were still alive and if he could do anything to help them.
What he saw actually surprised him. The most recent gunshot that had rung out? That had apparently been Nicole. The guard up on the balcony, who Maldrem could see clearly now from where he stood, was sporting a wrist that was oozing with blood. It looked like an artery might have been punctured - he'd probably bleed out soon, but he was still apparently more concerned with doing his job than fleeing and potentially saving his life while he had time. That was a mistake, because the moment his good hand had managed to get his reloaded pistol aimed again, Nicole was already prepared with two guns in hand. She echoed his own statement from earlier, and in the split second before she fired Maldrem could see the grim resignation on her face. She pulled the triggers, and like in slow motion, he could see how she hated to do it.
But she also seemed to understand now. She understood that sometimes you had to do the unsavory in order to survive.
The bullets hit the officer's heart and he went down, Maldrem finding himself incredibly impressed with her aim. And to her damn good credit, Nicole didn't even waste a moment grieving or falling apart over taking her first life; she was all business, survival, and pointed out very correctly that other officers would likely have heard the commotion. Leigh was climbing out of the pool already, and Maldrem's mind was whirling with what to do. Leaving through the drain would be too obvious now, they'd be followed for sure. Unless...
He looked around the room quickly, knowing time was of the essence, and spotted what he was looking for: there, towards the corner of the room, was another vent. This one was smaller than the main network that ran through the building, but was still conceivably large enough to fit some slim-bodied escapees. Maldrem stepped away from the drainage grate and drew one of his daggers from his belt, having never disarmed thanks to Leigh's lovely distraction earlier. Gritting his teeth, he raised it to his own arm. He made a swift cut, carving deeply enough for serious blood flow but not enough for dire injury. His blood ran down his arm and dripped onto the floor in an obvious splatter, and he began running towards the vent, leaving a trail behind him. Springing up the wall, he allowed a bloody hand print to smack against it, smearing a bit, and then unlatched the opening to the vent.
"Okay," he said. "Hopefully that'll convince 'em." He ripped off a piece of his clothing and wrapped it around his wound, preventing any further bleeding, then ran back over to the drainage tunnel where the ladies were waiting for him. "Down we go, you two!"
He waited for them to hop in before he followed, grabbing on to the metal grate and the picked lock with one hand so that it would close above him as he fell. Now hanging from the metal bars, with one (non-bloodied) hand, he used his tail to reattach the lock and latched it close. He jumped down after the other two, and just as he was falling he could hear one of the doors to the pool room bursting open somewhere, officers filing in. Maldrem landed down in the sewer tunnel and stepped out of the light provided by the grate to stand quietly in the shadows, where Leigh and Nicole were already crouched and still. The three listened, Maldrem's heart beating wildly in his chest as he tried to overhear the chatter.
"...looks like this thing's still rusted shut," one of the voices from above drifted down, louder than the others. They must have been standing right next to the grate, and Maldrem thanked his lucky stars that he still had a drop of necromancy in him to rust the bars a little after he'd closed it. "The lock's still on and it doesn't look like it's been opened."
"We just confirmed that Doland emptied a few rounds before he went down, we checked his weapon. The blood is probably his handiwork."
"Back into the vents then... fucking rats, they are."
"Well with any luck one of 'em will die in there and the scent'll guide..." the voices trailed off as the footsteps walked away, dulling to distant background chatter.
Maldrem breathed a quiet sigh of relief, turned to his companions, and nodded for them to get moving. They marched silently for a short while, the sound of the running water in the tunnel accompanying them, until Maldrem was sure they must have been beyond the building limits.
"Good work back there," he said to Nicole as they kept moving, not having had the time to give her her due compliments sooner. He turned to glance at her, seeing her easily in the low light thanks to his Tiefling heritage, and hoped she could see the smile he offered. "I'm sure it wasn't easy for you. But you came through. We both owe you one. And I also owe you, Leigh," he added. He turned his attention on her now, turning to walk backwards for a moment so he could keep his eyes on them. "I was all tapped out back there. Too much magic tonight. Couldn't have gotten out of that without you."
Post by Leigh Haskell on Jan 31, 2017 20:20:01 GMT -7
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[attr="class","wavesundtext"] Nicole had done it. Much to Leigh's pleasant shock, the girl had finally realized that to save one's own hide, things could get dirty - and dirty she got. If Leigh hadn't been smarting so much from the graze offered by the earlier bullet, if she hadn't been soaking wet, if she hadn't been packed with adrenaline, she probably would have given the girl an 'I told you so' kind of smirk.
Instead, Mal went to laying out a false trail, and Leigh and Nicole filed into their pre-planned route. Once there, she took the moments Mal had offered them to wrap off her own wound with a chunk of her own shirt, and she turned on Nicole, her hand not being shy about reaching to the girl's waist. Her hand met metal, and she yanked it free, shoving it back into her own pants. Her pistol. Nicole could keep the shitty, government issue one.
"You owe me two bullets," She whispered in a hoarse voice. If Nicole knew her, she might have known that such a thing was a fantastic compliment coming from Leigh. As it was now, it was more likely coming across as a terse warning. She pushed the pistol into the back of her pants just as Mal slipped down with them and the thumping of boots met their ears. The three of them stood in silence until they were gone, and then moved through their escape route once more. This time, with a mild feeling of ease. Not so much to be overconfident... But it seemed almost like smooth sailing now.
And that had been the highest security prison on the continent. Downright boring.
She heard Mal's compliment, and could have easily offered one of her own - could have acknowledged that he had risked his hide to save her... But this was Leigh, and he knew that. She'd show her thanks in some other way. A way that didn't involve speaking. Instead, she squeezed out her hair and grumbled, "Hopefully that's all the excitement for today. I need a goddamn drink."
Post by Nicole Vanros on Feb 3, 2017 15:48:47 GMT -7
The sewers had to be the only way out, and while it wasn't pleasant, this was exactly what Nicole had to be prepared for. She climbed down with Wight and Leigh, while the guards bickered over what to do next. "You don't have to owe me anything," Nicole told Wight. "Just… get me out of here and let me in with your crew, and I'll call us even." She killed that guard. They warned her that some people would have to die, and she followed through on it. There was no use in complaining about it now. If there was anything they could do to repay her, it would be to prove that this was worth everything. She would have to kill to survive. Sparing Woodrow would only be to prove that she was better than him, but it would not work that way. The second that Nicole turned her back, Woodrow would take the opportunity to kill her. A fight with Markus Woodrow would be a fight to the death.
"You owe me two bullets." Leigh reached her hand around Nicole to grab her pistol back. Leigh's hand was quick. Almost too quick. At least she had the let Nicole keep the other pistol. Nicole patted the pistol. Hopefully it would still be enough for another shot.
"I'm… sorry for holding back so far. I don't know what you guys have had to gone through. I've been selfish, and whether I'm a soldier or a pirate, selfish is the last thing I want to be. I'd be happy to meet the rest of your crew, and your captain, but I can think of at least three different times you could have left me behind. I'm glad you didn't." She held out both her hands, one to Wight, and the other to Leigh. "I owe you guys more than just being a part of your crew. I want to be your friend."
Post by Maldrem "Wight" on Feb 5, 2017 7:03:27 GMT -7
Well isn't that just adorable
M al simply smirked at Nicole when she said her piece, and he had to admit, it was downright precious how sincere she was. She wanted to be their friend, and if that wasn't just almost ridiculous to hear. It's not as though pirates didn't make friends with one another, not at all. But the way they lived their lives, friends were something that generally had to be formed through repeated jobs with one another and a building up of trust. Hell, Maldrem had been on at least six or seven missions with Leigh by now, including this one, and he still wouldn't really call them friends. Trusted comrades, perhaps, but Leigh wasn't exactly the friendly sort.
But Nicole was sweet. Hopelessly naive somewhat, but she was already starting to come around with that, figuring out how things in life had to work. And she had come through for them when it counted. Being the generous and loving soul that he was, he'd extend an olive branch. He took her hand and offered it a brief shake, and then decided to pop a little kiss on it for good measure before letting go.
"Keep up the good work, sweetheart, and we just might get there. A pirate's friendship doesn't come easily," he answered, shrugging. He turned his back to keep walking then, not bothering to take note of whether or not Leigh shook the girl's hand (she probably didn't). "But hey, at least you're finally recognizing that we all got our circumstances. La Vida Fea does a lot of us pretty dirty. You'll learn that more and more as you go along. But that's exactly why we take back~"
He guided them further from there, their passage through the sewer channels fairly uneventful from that point. They took a couple of detours, juuuuust to be sure that if anyone suspected their real escape route the trio wouldn't be popping out at the most obvious location. This involved a few jumps over unsavory channels of water which almost resulted in some hilarious consequences (thankfully for Nicole, Mal was feeling merciful enough to catch her before she stumbled backwards on one jump and landed in sewage), and eventually they found themselves at Maldrem's previously-selected outage gateway, where the water drained out into the sea. The gateway was marked by several vertical bars in a circular opening, charmed with magic of some kind that helped to clean the water of most of the waste before it was deposited back into the sea. Maldrem had already unhinged one of those bars much earlier in the day with some heavier-duty tools, before staging the prison break, and he tugged that bar loose with ease to create an opening for the three of them to exit through. A mass of rocks was waiting just beyond the opening for them to step along.
"Beautiful people first~" he said with an exaggerated bow to Nicole and Leigh, holding his hands out for them to exit... and then he quickly stood back up and cut in front of them, dodging out of the gateway before either of them could get out. He cackled as they followed, replacing the bar once they were all back in the open air at last. It was well into the middle of the night by now, and Maldrem breathed in the scent of the evening sea gratefully.
He stepped down the rocks carefully, down to a pile of kelp that had amassed against them with the lapping of the waves. Or so it had appeared; pulling the kelp aside revealed a small row boat, anchored and bobbing gently. "Our chariot awaits," he said, gingerly stepping inside. "The grail should be anchored just beyond the horizon. So get those rowing arms ready."
Post by Leigh Haskell on Feb 5, 2017 10:53:19 GMT -7
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[attr="class","wavesundtext"] Ugh. Leigh rolled her eyes obviously at Nicole's 'declaration of trying harder and also being your friend'. Was this what soldiers were like in Acheron? She'd met a fair few in her day, and none had been quite so soft. Sure, it was very... Nicole of her to say, but Leigh couldn't handle sugary sweetness.
"You're gonna wanna tone that down 'fore you meet the Captain," She sneered, pushing Nicole's hand down with her hook. She didn't stab at her, of course, but the pointed end did lightly brush the back of the girl's hand... A warning. Being soft wouldn't get you anywhere on board the Grail.
They followed Wight through the rest of the way, and she could feel her stomach reeling. The prison had been dull on her senses for too long, and now the scent of sewage was imprinting itself on her flesh. She needed real air. Seawater. To breathe once more. And thankfully - that's exactly the exit Wight had picked.
He loosed the bars - pre-prepared of course - and then did something so Wight she almost found herself projectile vomiting. Beautiful people first, He had said, and she expected him to move quickly through. He didn't, though, and Leigh didn't move either. Nicole slowly took a step forward -- and Mal cut in front of her. "Get used to it," She leaned in and whispered in the other girl's ear, waiting for Nicole to step out next.
When Leigh finally broke away from the sewer, she wanted to cry. The taste of the sea, the smell of the sea, the sound of the sea - it was everything to her. She wanted to just dive in and submerge herself in it. She wanted to let it soak into her skin and wash everything else clear off her body. As it was, though, they could still be found. So she followed Wight to the boat, and locked her hands onto the near side of it, nodding for Nicole to follow Wight in. She'd run the boat in.
"Your last chance to back out, Princess," Leigh said as she bent to better prepare the run. She'd give Nicole a chance to run away and never look back. She expected it. It was one thing to wanna 'be friends' in the sewer when you still thought you were gonna die. It was another thing to be out in the fresh breeze of the outside world where North, East, South West -- all of it was a path just waiting for you. Leigh eyed Wight, signalling briefly that she was betting a gold coin on Nicole cutting out.
Post by Nicole Vanros on Feb 8, 2017 15:16:29 GMT -7
Wight was teasing as usual, but Leigh's warning was more harsh, scraping her hook against Nicole's hand. Of course, whoever their captain was, he would probably not be so playful. If he was the captain, he would have to have earned that title through something more than just friendship. Especially if he had escaped Markus Woodrow for so long. The commanders of Dirys and Liesdro's armies would not have time for small talk, and a pirate captain would be no different.
The sewers were rather quiet. Even if the guards had considered that they were underneath the sewers, they must have been too far behind to be a problem. Nicole followed the pirates as they jumped over some of the filthier channels of the sewage. Nicole's foot caught on a loose pile of… she didn't want to know what it was, but Wight had caught her before she could fall backwards. Gods, she couldn't even make her way out of a sewer without needing help. Nicole stood back up, nodding to Wight. "Thanks."
Near the end of the tunnels, Wight led them to a gateway, and with a bow, he offered to Nicole and Leigh, "Beautiful people first." Nicole glanced at Leigh. Wight was just flattering them, but Nicole was in a mood for a moment of competition. Before Nicole could take her first step ahead of Leigh, Wight was already leaping through the gateway.
"Get used to it," said Leigh. Nicole stepped through after Wight, and Leigh followed next. Outside, the night was cold, but fresh. This had to be the home stretch.
Wight pulled kelp away from rock, revealing a small rowboat. "Our chariot awaits. The Grail should be anchored just beyond the horizon. So get those rowing arms ready."
"Your last chance to back out, Princess." Leigh was giving Nicole another warning, but it sounded like she was hoping Nicole would take that chance. Even if she didn't go with them, what was she supposed to do, swim back to shore?
Nicole climbed into the rowboat. "I'm guessing the Grail is your ship. Come to think of it, you haven't really told me what your crew calls themselves. Or your captain's name. Well, whoever you guys are, I followed you both is far. I couldn't back out even if I wanted to. So, what are we waiting for? Let's get out of here."
Post by Maldrem "Wight" on Feb 8, 2017 19:03:49 GMT -7
And our performance draws to a close, alas~
P leased to see Nicole joining them in the boat, he simply took up a pair of oars as Leigh began to run them into the sea, hopping in as soon as they'd reached a reasonable depth (which didn't take long, considering they were already near deep waters). Nicole seemed to catch the hint and picked up a pair of oars as well, relieving Leigh of the need to row (which was always a sight to watch thanks to the hook).
"The man you're gonna meet, our captain, is a pretty fine piece of ass," he stated rather bluntly. Then he sighed dramatically. "Sadly, his only love appears to be money, so my heart shall forever break. Seems a pretty easy-going sort, most of the time. But don't let it fool you; he's the last pirate captain alive now, commanding an entire fleet of us, and he knows how to keep command. Name's Merlyn Astra, and he's the captain of The Defiled Grail," Maldrem explained with a sense of excitement. Indoctrinating a newcomer... there was something thrilling about it. "The last and greatest band of pirates on the seas. And you're about to be one of 'em. Congratulations."
The look in Nicole's eyes as she listened to it all was, if Maldrem had to guess, determined. Certain. He grinned.
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