[Main IC] MnM 3e - Geneforge: the Created

[kenseido]

Chips
HP: 1, Condition: Bx2

Mind's message causes Chips to pause. In response, the bandit facing Chips turns to flee. Chips, in turn, jumps up against a tree and cuts part of some hanging vines with his blade hand and pushes off against the tree to land in front of the bandit. He lowers himself bringing the vine close to the ground. The bandit seeing the impediment, leaps over trying to avoid it.

This is exactly what Chips was expecting. In response, he quickly pulls the vine up and loops it around the bandit's leg, causing him to crash to the ground. Taking advantage, Chips moves in and ties up the bandit's two arms as he desperately tries to reclaim his fallen weapon.

Chips then brings his weight down on to the bandit to keep him from struggling free.

[Doctor Malsyn]

The Mind
HP: 0, Fatigued

The hesitation was curious, but the Mind reasoned that it may've had misgivings considering what'd happened with the previous servile. An understandable reluctance, yet one must comply with orders. Both from one's Shaper, and their designated. This was their plight as Creatures."Your assistance is appreciated. A brain unweighted by physical injury from the body will be of significant help in identifying further threats to our safety."

Carefully it approached, it's tendrils flicking out towards the servile's head almost involuntarily. "You will need to comply. You will not experience immense psychological discomfort if you do not resist. If it befits my Shaper, your assistance may have further ramifications for your continued existence past this moment." Then, for the comfort of Chips it added, "Do not scream."

Instructions given, it worked to sync it's neural pathways to the servile's own. Soon it would learn what needed to be learnt.

Consume Thoughts: DC 16 Will (cumulative, effortless)
Power Check (As Needed): 26 (A natural 20 if that matters)
("What is the exact path you took to get here? How many more of your kind were left behind? What was the object the other servile used to escape?")

[mrdent12]

Craze
HP: 1
CND: -1 toughness

With the main bandit leaving, the rest would sure to flee. Craze didn't feel inclined to allow that. For one of the fleeing bandits, he swopped down and got a chunk of it's ear, but it still fled. Weaving through the trees, Craze goes for another pass and this time getting the neck of the bandit. Crazes beak rips into the bandit and slows causes it to bleed out until it is no more.

[Tony Jones]

Meat Shield
Hero Points: 5; Luck Points (Base 2): 0; Condition: Fine

By the time their vision recovers from ... whatever the bandit leader had done ... Chips, Mind and Craze seem to have everything in hand.

As their body quickly heals from the minor injuries they have taken, Meat Shield uses some vegetation to wipe the Servile blood from their claws, then examines the bodies of the dead bandits for clues or anything useful, before moving over and looking around the area where the bandit leader threw down their crystal, hoping to find any fragments of it.

If they do find any they take them over to the Shaper for him to have a look at.

[Sakuro]

The Shaper doesn't move much. He watches as the remaining bandits are dealt with, then lowers his Thorn Baton to his side. Quietly he stares off to the north, as though seeing something beyond the obscuring foliage. Then, as Mind begins their interrogation he helmeted head turns to observe.

The Servile pinned under Chips squirm and struggles, but the shapeshifter has them adequately restrained. When Mind communicates with hm, the bandit begins shouting angry defiance.

"You won't get away with this! This is our woods! We'll ..."

... while the others head the Servile continue to shout, for mind the sound fades away as they plunge tendrils of menacing psionic power into the Servile's head. They feel anger. A hollow sense of betrayal. Fear for what the future will bring. Fear of the Shaper. A weight presses down upon them. Frustrating. Limiting. There is pain from the weight and from injuries.

Mind pushes through the pain, past it, to deeper depths. Forestry. Traps maneuvered around. An unmarked path memorized leading the a ruin deep within the forest. The deeper Mind goes the harder the pain is to ignore. The more it becomes their pain. The more real it is.

Mind, make another Power check if you want to try to get another question answered. But at this point you will be at risk of suffering from Feedback. It'll be DC 20 Will. Failure follows the degrees set out by Lethal Damage.

The Servile begins to scream after Mind plunges their psychic tendrils into the bandit's head. You all know they eat thoughts. Meat Shield suffered the horrible experience for a time. It is an unenviable situation to be in ... and perhaps an uncomfortable scene to observe. But your Shaper watches. Almost as though he is making himself.

For Meat Shield, who begin searching the bloody, cut up, and broken bodies of the Servile bandits, it is incredibly distracting. If not outright unnerving. The bloody gore, and general state of the bodies doesn't make searching them easier. Searching the battle site for remnants of the object that the bandit leader threw at the ground isn't any easier. A lot happened. A lot of movement. A lot of killing. Then the object hit the ground and everything twisted and folded in on itself. It's hard to remember where everything was ...

Meat Shield, make two Investigation checks. One for the bodies and another to look for remains of the object that the bandit leader used to escape. Anyone with Investigate, other than Chips and Mind (they're busy) may make a Team check to assist.

[Tony Jones]

Meat Shield
Hero Points: 5; Luck Points (Base 2): 0; Condition: Fine

Meat Shield cringes a little as the Servile starts to scream, and turns their attention to the searches they are making, at least partly to distract themselves from the terrible noise...

Meat Shield Investigation roll: The bodies: 1D20+2 = [6]+2 = 8

Meat Shield Investigation roll: The Crystal: 1D20+2 = [15]+2 = 17

[Sakuro]

Meat Shield roots about the corpses, mostly getting messier in the process. They notice the obvious things: a pouch on the belt with some bronze coins. Their weapons, a sword, a dagger, and some javelins. Each of them has leather armor, though after the fight the armor has been damaged enough that it would need major repairs. Their clothes are a mixture of old musty mismatching articles. One even has a footwear that doesn't match.

Moving on from the last of the bodies Meat Shield tries to remember where the object the bandit leader threw had hit the ground. But when he does he starts to feel dizzy and the world blurs a little. So he stops that and starts searching the surroundings. A glint of light reflecting off of something catching his eyes and he moves to it. A milky white crystal shard. When Meat Shield picks it up it becomes brittle and soft. As though wanting to break.

When Meat Shield approaches him, your Shaper turns to the long armed Creation. The crystal is held out, shown to the youth, remove his bug-faced chitin helmet. His dark eyes then dipped down to look at the fragile crystal shard. Though Meat Shield has done their due diligence in cleaning the gore from their hands, D'Tan still does not take the fragile object from them. Perhaps because of it's fragility.

"Magic infused crystal. It must have stored a mental disorientation effect. I cannot determine it's age by looking at it. The crystal may be something the Servile looted from Shaper stores. The alternative is troubling to think about."

[Doctor Malsyn]

The Mind didn't understand. It had specifically requested that the servile not scream. "Your noncompliance has been noted. I will no longer petition my Shaper to allow for your continued existence."

It could obtain more information. It should obtain more information. It needed to obtain more information. Yet, it's panoramic view could easily pinpoint the discomfort it's fellow creations were experiencing. The decision would ultimately made for their benefit regardless of circumstances, leaving the ultimate choice a hard one.

What saved it from its dilemma was the fruit of Meatshield's own investigation. A crystal, capable of storing such a psionic effect? The concept of this was a curious one. It wished to know more.

Withdrawing from the bandits mind, "I have procured a safe route to their place of origin. You may do with this Creature as you see fit."

Afterward it floated closer to the crystalline find, and mentally voiced its curiosity. "Shaper D'Tan. I wish to understand more about this crystal. Allow me to study its effects so that I may learn to recreate the attack employed against us."

[kenseido]

Chips
HP: 1, LP: 0; Condition: Bx2

Chips nods and quickly extends his blade hand again.

Without a word, he drives the blade through the base of the bandit's skull, killing him instantly.

He stands up and cleans off his blade hand. Moving over towards the Shaper, he continues to remain on guard.

The Leader will probably try to setup an ambush.

[mrdent12]

Craze
HP: 1
CND: -1 toughness

Craze looked upon the scene from a perch in a tree. it was...strange. The floating mind seemed to love brains which seemed off in some way. He couldn't put his claws on it though. What are we waiting for? The leader probably has a lot more...traps yes traps ahead of us., conveys Craze attempting poorly to mask his own desires. For a bird who couldn't carry much he still wanted to see it to hold it for just a little.

[Sakuro]

D'Tan's thoughtful inspection of the crystal held in Meat Shield sizeable ceased when the floating Mind approached with it's update and requestion. The young Shaper's eyes moved to the creation, then his head turned to follow the movement of his eyes.

"It is damaged beyond use, and the energies it stored have been released. You may study it, though it would be better to acquire one that is intact."

Mind may study the brittle shard of crystal, it's own memories, and those of it's companions as a means of creating an AoE Affliction Effect either as a Power Stunt or future PP investment. However, if you acquire an intact crystal with the effect that the bandit leader used to escape, I'll give you a free PP to be used exclusively on making such an Alternate Effect.

Your Shaper then looked between Craze and Chips. One urging haste. The other advising caution. The youth was quiet a moment, introspective. Then he shifted his eyes to Meat Shield.

"Since Mind has discovered their lair Pounce does not need to track the escaped Rogue. Take point."

[Tony Jones]

Meat Shield
Hero Points: 5; Luck Points (Base 2): 0; Condition: Fine

"There are some more coins, a sword, a dagger, and some javelins on the bodies," Meat Shield tells the others once they are done searching them.

They look disapprovingly at Chips as he kills the surviving bandit.

But they hold out the shard of crystal they found to Mind for it to take and examine if it wants to.

"Since Mind has discovered their lair Pounce does not need to track the escaped Rogue. Take point."

"Of course, o Shaper," nods Meat Shield obediently, and they lead off along the safe route that Mind took from the mind of the bandit, keeping their eye open for any dangers along the way...

Meat Shield Perception Check: 1D20+17 = [17]+17 = 34

Plus: Vision Counters All Concealment, Vision Counters Illusion, Danger Sense [Vision]), Immunity - 2 (Visual Sensory Afflictions)

[Doctor Malsyn]

The Mind
HP: 0, Fatigued

it takes hold of the crystal gently in it's telekinetic grip, turning it about slightly, before reaching out to one of the downed combatants for some form of satchel to wear across itself. With a slight application of it's abilities it would be kept secured, while the crystal would remain safely inside. It would perform the latter half of these tasks as it followed along besides it's Shaper, still keenly aware of the danger ahead.

[kenseido]

Chips
HP: 1, LP: 0; Condition: Fine

"I can carry the coins... for Craze,"

Adding the coins to the others, Chips readies himself to move out.

[mrdent12]

Craze
HP: 1
CND: -1 toughness

With the direction clear Craze gives an acknowledging caw at the coin collection. He wasn't the strongest, so anyone volunteering to carry the coins he wouldn't say no to. Flying ahead as commanded, he weaves between trees and thick cover just enough to get a good sense of what is coming plus any scents of possible danger approaching without exposing himself too much. A quick snack also would be nice.

Senses 3 (Extended Scent, Low-Light & Extended Vision)
Perception 30
Stealth 30