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Commander_Xillian

Elements of Disharmony 17

Jul 2nd, 2012
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  1. >That easy?
  2. >You cast your head to the side, looking across the parlor table at your newest ally.
  3. “Just like that?”
  4. >He shrugs
  5. >”Why, is there a catch? That’s a lot of bits you’re offering for a simple job.”
  6. >You swear your luck was fucking with you.
  7. >You re-adjust your new robes, finely tailored by Rarity.
  8. >Your cowl, thankfully, concealed your skull from sight.
  9. >No need to cause a panic; you were well-aware how disconcerting a skeleton could be when it got up and started talking.
  10. >The unnatural darkness that sat within your cowl didn’t obscure your features so much, thanks to your own Element.
  11. >Instead, the man across from you saw an old man’s face sitting within the robes.
  12. >It smiled out at him, and nodded.
  13. “A few things, but you’ll find them well worth the compensation.”
  14. >You sipped your tea as Rarity returned, the drink spilling into your robes and bleeding through the stain-resistant fabric thanks to a few choice enchantments.
  15. >”Alright. Sounds like a good job. Where will I find this man?”
  16. “A house in the Everfree. You’ll find it sparsely guarded, though there may be a few Automatons.”
  17. >You rise, bowing to Rarity as you leave.
  18. “It’s been a pleasure, M’lady. I hope we can do this again some time.”
  19. >She scoffs and rolls her eyes playfully.
  20. >”Oh, I would hope so, it was indeed a pleasure. Take care, Mayzard.”
  21. >As you leave, you allow the illusionary face to fade to smoke in the darkness of your hood, your green eyes burning deep in the darkness of your red robes.
  22. >You notice a few raised voices from inside as Rarity discovers the tea stain left on your seat.
  23. >A lack of internal organs made drinking tea a mess.
  24. >You chuckle to yourself as you head to your waiting spot.
  25.  
  26. >This was it.
  27. >You had waited at this simple desk for most of the day.
  28. >Your attention never wavered from that chair across from you.
  29. >Hours, and hours, and hours.
  30. >Ah, that would be the door downstairs opening.
  31. >You reach under the desk and pull out a small talisman, a necklace, adorned with Rarity’s cutie-mark, although decidedly lacking its color.
  32. >You set it on the table just as the door opens and the marked “Kidnapper” enters the room, not noticing you at first as he looks about the room, checking for traps and witnesses.
  33. >When he finally does notice you, he pauses.
  34. >You raise a skeletal hand and with a motion of a finger, the door slams shut behind him, locking.
  35. “Thank you for coming on such short notice. Please have a seat, Mister Anonymous.”
  36. >He doesn’t reply, staring into your eye sockets, each blazing with green Witch-Fires.
  37. >”You…”
  38. >You cock your head to the side
  39. “Me.”
  40. >”You’re a…”
  41. >You tilt your head to the other side.
  42. “I am a…?”
  43. >His eyes go wide and he slams his back against the door.
  44. >”Oh nine hells, it’s a Skeletal-Wizard.”
  45. >You chuckle.
  46. “Yes, yes. Indeed I am, although the term we prefer is ‘Lich’. Now, please, take a seat. I have a proposition for you.”
  47. >He looks at the offered seat and gingerly sits down, though you can tell he’s none too happy about it.
  48. >You clasp your hands before yourself and lean forwards.
  49. >"So, what? Going to offer me my life in exchange for..?"
  50. >You chuckle
  51. "Nothing so sinister. No, I offer you a hundred times my previous offer if you chose to accept this next job."
  52. >He eyes you nervously.
  53. >"And if I refuse..?"
  54. >You tilt your head slightly, looking innocent.
  55. "I pay you for a job well done and you go home."
  56.  
  57. >He's up in a flash
  58. >"Then I refuse! Now would you kindly let me out?"
  59. >With an exaggerated sigh, you wave your hand, and the door clicks.
  60. "Yes, yes, of course. The money shall be wired to you by tomorrow. Just the money though."
  61. >He doesn't pause as he makes his way to the door.
  62. >He must have missed your subtle cue.
  63. >As he opens the door, you add what you know will be enough.
  64. "It's a shame, and here I thought you wanted that curse gone."
  65. >He stops dead, not a muscle moving.
  66. >You can practically see his mind whirling.
  67. >He spins around wordlessly, looking at you in some mixture of horror and shock.
  68. "Was there something else?"
  69. >You ask as innocently as possible.
  70. >"What did you say?"
  71. >His breath is a whisper
  72. "Oh, that I shall have the money-"
  73. >He cuts you off immediately
  74. >"No, after that."
  75. >You lean over your folded hands.
  76. "Your curse. Your Lycanthropy."
  77. >Hook, line, and...
  78. "I can cure it."
  79. >He slowly closes the door as he moves slowly towards the chair again.
  80. >As he sits, he looks you in your eye sockets.
  81. >"What's the job?"
  82. >Sinker.
  83. >You lean back, and prepare to give him the whole of it.
  84. "There is a problem in an alternate world, an entity known as Discord has gotten loose and threatens to destroy the ponies who reside there."
  85. >You slide the medallion over to him.
  86. "You may not recognize this, but this little trinket is unique in the multiverse. It is called an 'Element of Harmony', a powerful tool that can undo evil magic."
  87. >You rise, and begin to pace.
  88. "However, it has been corrupted. This particular one belongs to the Rarity of another world."
  89. >The thief nods
  90. >"Aaand.. You want what?"
  91. >You turn to him
  92. "Take it."
  93. >"What?"
  94. "Take it. In your hand."
  95.  
  96. >Gingerly, he picks it up.
  97. >He examines it for a few moments before looking up at you.
  98. >He raises an eyebrow questioningly, but looks down as you gesture to the element.
  99. >His eyes go wide as it begins to glow before releasing a flash of blinding light.
  100. >Blinking away the lights, he looks down at the newly transformed Element.
  101. "Hmm, interesting. I would never have expected that."
  102. >He looks at you sideways, before pulling the many-lensed goggles closer for inspection.
  103. >"Well. Uhm. That's... neat."
  104. "If you don't want it, you can always relinquish the-"
  105. >"No...!"
  106. >He pulls them close at the mention of giving them up.
  107. >You disregard his further musings into their purpose and gather your arcane power as you prepare to jump planes.
  108. "The pay will be transferred to Rarity’s account in due time. She shall hold onto it for you."
  109. >"Whoa, wait, don't I get-"
  110. >With a flash, you tear the Thief from the mortal world and cast him across dimensions back to your world.
  111. >With a motion, the room begins to rapidly decay, falling apart as time takes its toll at an accelerated rate.
  112. >You watch for a moment as the cleanup takes place, and with a nod of satisfaction, depart as well.
  113. >With a surge of energy, the spell swallows you whole, teleporting you back to your reality.
  114. >That was far easier than you had expected, a far-cry from what you've had to do up until now.
  115. >Hopefully, this wouldn't be jinxed.
  116. >As you return to reality, you notice three things.
  117. >First, your golden relics and trophies are missing
  118. >Second, the Thief is looking casual as ever, looking around just as bewildered as you
  119. >Third, his pants are practically flamboyant, they have that much stuff stored inside them.
  120.  
  121. SURVIVAL ANON PERSPECTIVE
  122. >The crash of mortar and stone springs you from your sleep quickly.
  123. >You're up in a flash, cloak around your shoulders with a snap of cloth, bow in your hand and your quiver being buckled as you exit your dormitory.
  124. >You find the mage-giant slam his way into the vestibule, sword and gun drawn and ready, as the skeleton guy seemingly appears from nowhere.
  125. >Both of these… “people” creeped you out; you'd much prefer having Shermanator present.
  126. >At least he was somewhat normal, unlike these freaks that defied death and the natural order, or was a magic knight from space, if his stories were any clue.
  127. >"What is the problem? Are we under attack?"
  128. >You shake the sleep from your body and quickly get your bearings
  129. "I think it came from this level. Where's Klepto?"
  130. >Chronicler this time
  131. >"Yes, and it came from the… 'Klepto's, room."
  132. >Sorcerer kicks open the door, revealing a massive hole in a dusty bedroom, out below the town of Ponyville.
  133. >"This is poor fortune indeed. Sorcerer, stay here. Protect the tower at all costs. Discord may use this to make a move. I want Shermanator on alert as well."
  134. >It... He? You think it was a he.
  135. >He turns to you now.
  136. >"String your bow, we go to the hunt. I shall teleport down to Ponyville proper, and begin a screen. I shall alert you the moment I see anything potentially interesting. I need you to track our quarry on foot."
  137. >The Sorcerer takes an aggressive stance, jabbing a finger into Chroniclers ribs.
  138.  
  139. >"I do not take orders from some Corpse-Taskmaster. Chaos does as-"
  140. >Chronicler literally silences the Sorcerer with a flash of light
  141. >"What chaos wills is my intent to undo, you blind fool. Now stay put and protect this tower from Chaos, or I shall see your beloved Derpy ripped in half by necrotic teeth. Do we have an understanding?"
  142. >You back away as heat boils off of the massive mountain of a mage, his sword-arm shaking.
  143. >"This time. You win, this time."
  144. >As the Sorcerer storms off, you hear Chronicler whisper, more to himself than anyone else,
  145. >"You think he would learn even defeat is advantageous to my ends."
  146. >He looks back at you
  147. >"In any case, Shadow’s Speed, Survivor. And good luck. Be careful with your quarry; it's... not wholly human."
  148. >That... wasn't cryptic and ominous at all.
  149. "Whatever it is,"
  150. >You nod
  151. "I'll find it."
  152. >You head back out of the room, avoiding eye contact with the literally alight Sorcerer as he slammed his door open through some form of magic.
  153. >You hear a crow’s call and spin around just in time to see a massive black bird, almost as dark as the night, grip the Skeleton and take him into the air.
  154. >Damned wizards and unicorns and spells and magic.
  155. >As you hurry down the spiral staircase down to the ground floor, you wonder just what could have demolished the wall like that.
  156. >And more importantly, how it got inside.
  157. >Only a fool would have assumed it busted inside through the hole and stole away your newest member.
  158. >There was no mortar or masonry on the floor, no signs of force applied from the outside.
  159. >Whatever grabbed the Thief, wanted out fast after it committed the act.
  160. >And it wanted out bad.
  161.  
  162. >You cross the threshold of the towers door and exit out into the night.
  163. >It doesn't take long to find the first signs of the target's tracks. However, you can't exactly get yourself around what you're seeing.
  164. >They're the only tracks, however, so it looks like you're stalking some canine creature.
  165. >...That can plow through stone masonry.
  166. >The things you did for your family...
  167. >No sense complaining any further. You tighten your grip on your bow and move into the darkness of the night.
  168. >It's not easy following these tracks in the pitch-black midnight. Thankfully, the moon is bright enough to spare just enough light for your eyes to do what they need.
  169. >Albeit, your skills with tracking were well-honed, but these situations made it difficult.
  170. >Finding your quarry was not a question of if, but rather when.
  171. >As you approach the wood line of the Everfree, you suspect this will take a good long while.
  172. >You pick your footing carefully as you enter the forest, and commit to the hunt.
  173. >You pull your cloak around you tighter, keeping yourself warm and concealed.
  174. >With a quiet rustle of leaves, you stalk the Everfree quickly and accurately, keeping on the trail of… whatever this thing is.
  175. >As you vault a freshly overturned log, however, you notice something.
  176. >Namely, that you are being followed yourself.
  177. >It wasn't easy, and you could be wrong, but you were certain you heard something off to your right, something not natural to the Everfree.
  178. >You quickly move through the underbrush before pulling your hood up and rolling into a small gnarled root cluster.
  179. >The ethereal cloth makes no sounds as you turn and watch for a pursuer.
  180. >For five minutes you wait, watching.
  181.  
  182. >Finally, tired of the wait, you slowly draw an arrow and maneuver your bow so that you may snap it up at a moment’s notice.
  183. >As you rise, you see it.
  184. >Looking in your general area, eyes searching for you, nose picking up your presence, is a massive wolf.
  185. >And this thing is huge....
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