Post by Geneva on Jun 27, 2014 7:25:48 GMT
Pretty rough and I'm overtired as heck but I'm actually pretty pleased with this one. Hope you enjoy.
Grant was sat in a white room. He couldn’t quite remember how he had gotten there but here he was. Couldn’t remember much of anything really. But it was a calming place. He liked that. Calm was good.
“Hello, Grant.”
Grant blinked twice as he noticed the other person sitting across the desk from him for the first time. Had there always been a desk? Apparently. Thinking about it made his head hurt. No need for that here. Everything was so nice.
“Hello,” he responded, “Who are you?”
The figure across from him was an immaculate figure. Tall and thin yet regal and powerful all the same. She had fair skin, long dark hair and blue eyes that shone like stars. She was clearly very much more important than Grant was. Green robes garbed her slender body and her breathtakingly formed chest plate formed was a masterwork of what looked like carved ivory. He began to feel bad about the way he had addressed her. It clearly hadn’t been proper.
“I’m sorry,” he apologised while scratching the back of his head, “That was rude of me. Who might you be, ma’am?”
The lady smiled and Grant felt a warm, fuzzy feeling inside of him. He smiled back. She was amazing. Pretty, yes, beautiful in fact, but it wasn’t attraction he felt so much as awe. He felt his face flush even at the sight of her.
“That’s quite all right, Grant,” the lady spoke. Her voices reminded him of gentle wind chimes on a warm summer’s day with a slight breeze. “You have been perfectly polite.”
Grant tried to hide his grin but he could tell he was failing. It was all very embarrassing. The lady laughed and his heart leapt at the sound of it. The sound had an odd reverberation to it but it was more heavenly than the hymns he had heard in church as a child. He had even forgotten his question.
“Grant, I am very pleased to meet you,” the lady continued, “You are a very important person.”
“Me?” Grant scoffed, “I’m nobody.”
“That’s not true, Grant”, the lady said sagely, “Even now the lives of thousands lay in your hands.”
Grant frowned. How was that possible. Something seemed to be coming back to him. A memory, something important, but whenever he tried to grasp it the memory kept getting away from him.
“I don’t... understand.”
“Don’t worry, Grant,” the lady’s voice soothed him again and already the worry was far from his mind, “Everything will be alright now that you are here.”
“Really?” he asked, “But I’m a nobody.”
“No, Grant,” the lady spoke, “You are the most important person in the galaxy.”
Grant choked at his words. What could he say? It sounded ridiculous but somehow he knew the lady spoke the truth. It was overwhelming. How could he possibly be important to anyone let alone the entire galaxy? He tried to gather his thoughts but paused as he saw the lady’s face now stricken with worry.
“Grant,” she said, “We need your help. My people, we are dying.”
Grant felt a sudden sense of dread. Had the room gotten darker. It had seemed so bright before.
“We are in grave danger, Grant” she continued, “The entire galaxy is. We need your help. Please save us, Grant. You are the only one.”
“I...” Grant stammered, “How? I-I don’t even understand where I am. I-”
“Relax.” The word sounded almost like a command but immediately the darkness withdrew and the room was calm again. The lady’s face was once again serene. “I must show you something. Something no human has ever seen before and may never see again. I will show you eternity and you will understand everything once you have seen.”
Grant swallowed nervously. “I-I’m not worthy. I think you have the wrong person.”
“No, Grant,” the lady said, her eyes now blinding with white light, “You are the one!”
A blinding flash filled the room and suddenly Grant found himself disembodied. Around him he caught glimpses of beautiful architecture and landscapes, caught notes of music so beautiful it could have brought tears to his eyes, lives flashed before him in seconds. He saw people like the lady at work, at play, in the arms of their lovers; Children and elders; Poets and musicians. In an instant he knew the lives of millions and he felt at one with the universe itself. All of creation seemed to ebb and flow as he followed this race of magnificent people through their proudest moments. It was like nothing he had ever experienced.
“We were a peaceful people.” The lady’s voice resounded in his head. “Pure. Free.”
Crowds of people dancing. Great statues and buildings. Entire worlds that travelled through space itself. It was breathtaking.
“But then,” the lady spoke, “a great darkness came.”
Where once there was light there now came dark. Grant recoiled in terror as the images warped and changed. Children running in fear. Screaming faces. Machines... horrible machines. Tearing. Gnashing. Wailing. Death. Death. Death. Their pain was too much. Grant tried to screamed but could not. He had not body to scream with. He watched as a million lives ended one after another in front of him. Each as horrific as the last. And amidst it all, a great hungry face. A monster whose laughter pierced his mind like shrapnel. And then, finally, silence. The screams ended, the killing ceased and a lone ship drifting through space was all that remained. Before he knew it he was back in the white room trembling.
“Horror... horror... no... Please, stop... make it stop.”
It took Grant a moment to realise it was his own words he was hearing. His mouth was dry, his face tired. He put a hand to his head and pulled it away to find loose white hairs among his fingers.
“We are dying, Grant. But you can save us.” The lady was there; looking at him with a dire look now. A pleading one look.
“H-how?” Grant cried out desperately. He realised he had been crying. “I can’t. It’s too late. All those people. The children... I couldn’t save them...”
“No, Grant. But you can save the rest.”
Grant sat silently. It was impossible. After what he had seen there was no way he could make a difference. He was so small.
“What can I do?” he asked finally.
“You can stop them,” the lady said. Her eyes bore into his. Marvellous eyes like sapphires. “You can stop the ones that want us to suffer.”
“Who? Who would want that?” Grant asked.
The lady looked down forlornly. “I am sorry. I will show you.”
“No!” Grant managed, “No, no more!”
But it was too late. There he was above monstrous factories that choked the air with black smoke. Horrible creatures, half man, half machine, stumbled around each other as men in black coats barked orders – their words so guttural compared to the voices of the other race. Metal behemoths rumbled in formation and cannon fire filled the air as a billion battles seared Grant’s mind at once.
Monkeys, terrible monkeys that butchered and burned everything in their path. Ignorant and ungracious they travelled from world to world bringing death and pain. And another face, a different one this time; The face of a corpse that cried tears of blood. Grant felt it’s pain and recoiled. It saw him. The face saw him and recognised him. It’s voice called out, the voice of a weak, old man. “My children... They know not what they do. Please, forgive them.”
Grant snapped back to the room with a spasm. “No more...” he pleaded, “Please.”
“I am so sorry, Grant...” The lady was weeping, “I wish it could be another way. That you didn’t have to see. But you are our only hope.”
“I understand,” Grant managed between gasps of air, “Please, just tell me what I can do.”
“You will know what to do, Grant. You are the chosen one.”
Grant’s image blurred and the room began to fade. He braced himself for another vision but none came. Instead his mind was filled with the memories of the great race he had seen before. The children he had grown up with, the friends he had watched over, the people he had to save. And then everything went black
...
“-want us to do that now, sir?”
Grant’s head ached. He managed to open his eyes but the light that greeted them stung. Around him he could hear the fire of heavy artillery.
“The missile, sir, it’s loaded and ready. You want us to fire it now?”
Officer Grant steadied himself, drew his pistol and shot his corporeal clean between the eyes.
“Filthy monkeigh.” He spat.
He turned to see his crew of three looking at him stunned before shooting two of them dead in quick succession. The third harped and howled in its horrible tongue before he shot it in the back as it tried to run away. Grant turned to the controls of the Deathstrike missile launcher and smiled even as he heard the other guardsmen around him rally to the where they had heard the gunfire. He adjusted the co-ordinates deftly like he had so many times in the past. He knew his own home base’s position after all. With a beaming smile he finalised the launch and watch the missile shoot into the sky.
“I did it,” he hooted at the sky even as he raised his pistol to his head, “I saved the galaxy!”
Moral of the story: There's a reason you only get a 6+ Deny the Witch save against Mind War.
Grant was sat in a white room. He couldn’t quite remember how he had gotten there but here he was. Couldn’t remember much of anything really. But it was a calming place. He liked that. Calm was good.
“Hello, Grant.”
Grant blinked twice as he noticed the other person sitting across the desk from him for the first time. Had there always been a desk? Apparently. Thinking about it made his head hurt. No need for that here. Everything was so nice.
“Hello,” he responded, “Who are you?”
The figure across from him was an immaculate figure. Tall and thin yet regal and powerful all the same. She had fair skin, long dark hair and blue eyes that shone like stars. She was clearly very much more important than Grant was. Green robes garbed her slender body and her breathtakingly formed chest plate formed was a masterwork of what looked like carved ivory. He began to feel bad about the way he had addressed her. It clearly hadn’t been proper.
“I’m sorry,” he apologised while scratching the back of his head, “That was rude of me. Who might you be, ma’am?”
The lady smiled and Grant felt a warm, fuzzy feeling inside of him. He smiled back. She was amazing. Pretty, yes, beautiful in fact, but it wasn’t attraction he felt so much as awe. He felt his face flush even at the sight of her.
“That’s quite all right, Grant,” the lady spoke. Her voices reminded him of gentle wind chimes on a warm summer’s day with a slight breeze. “You have been perfectly polite.”
Grant tried to hide his grin but he could tell he was failing. It was all very embarrassing. The lady laughed and his heart leapt at the sound of it. The sound had an odd reverberation to it but it was more heavenly than the hymns he had heard in church as a child. He had even forgotten his question.
“Grant, I am very pleased to meet you,” the lady continued, “You are a very important person.”
“Me?” Grant scoffed, “I’m nobody.”
“That’s not true, Grant”, the lady said sagely, “Even now the lives of thousands lay in your hands.”
Grant frowned. How was that possible. Something seemed to be coming back to him. A memory, something important, but whenever he tried to grasp it the memory kept getting away from him.
“I don’t... understand.”
“Don’t worry, Grant,” the lady’s voice soothed him again and already the worry was far from his mind, “Everything will be alright now that you are here.”
“Really?” he asked, “But I’m a nobody.”
“No, Grant,” the lady spoke, “You are the most important person in the galaxy.”
Grant choked at his words. What could he say? It sounded ridiculous but somehow he knew the lady spoke the truth. It was overwhelming. How could he possibly be important to anyone let alone the entire galaxy? He tried to gather his thoughts but paused as he saw the lady’s face now stricken with worry.
“Grant,” she said, “We need your help. My people, we are dying.”
Grant felt a sudden sense of dread. Had the room gotten darker. It had seemed so bright before.
“We are in grave danger, Grant” she continued, “The entire galaxy is. We need your help. Please save us, Grant. You are the only one.”
“I...” Grant stammered, “How? I-I don’t even understand where I am. I-”
“Relax.” The word sounded almost like a command but immediately the darkness withdrew and the room was calm again. The lady’s face was once again serene. “I must show you something. Something no human has ever seen before and may never see again. I will show you eternity and you will understand everything once you have seen.”
Grant swallowed nervously. “I-I’m not worthy. I think you have the wrong person.”
“No, Grant,” the lady said, her eyes now blinding with white light, “You are the one!”
A blinding flash filled the room and suddenly Grant found himself disembodied. Around him he caught glimpses of beautiful architecture and landscapes, caught notes of music so beautiful it could have brought tears to his eyes, lives flashed before him in seconds. He saw people like the lady at work, at play, in the arms of their lovers; Children and elders; Poets and musicians. In an instant he knew the lives of millions and he felt at one with the universe itself. All of creation seemed to ebb and flow as he followed this race of magnificent people through their proudest moments. It was like nothing he had ever experienced.
“We were a peaceful people.” The lady’s voice resounded in his head. “Pure. Free.”
Crowds of people dancing. Great statues and buildings. Entire worlds that travelled through space itself. It was breathtaking.
“But then,” the lady spoke, “a great darkness came.”
Where once there was light there now came dark. Grant recoiled in terror as the images warped and changed. Children running in fear. Screaming faces. Machines... horrible machines. Tearing. Gnashing. Wailing. Death. Death. Death. Their pain was too much. Grant tried to screamed but could not. He had not body to scream with. He watched as a million lives ended one after another in front of him. Each as horrific as the last. And amidst it all, a great hungry face. A monster whose laughter pierced his mind like shrapnel. And then, finally, silence. The screams ended, the killing ceased and a lone ship drifting through space was all that remained. Before he knew it he was back in the white room trembling.
“Horror... horror... no... Please, stop... make it stop.”
It took Grant a moment to realise it was his own words he was hearing. His mouth was dry, his face tired. He put a hand to his head and pulled it away to find loose white hairs among his fingers.
“We are dying, Grant. But you can save us.” The lady was there; looking at him with a dire look now. A pleading one look.
“H-how?” Grant cried out desperately. He realised he had been crying. “I can’t. It’s too late. All those people. The children... I couldn’t save them...”
“No, Grant. But you can save the rest.”
Grant sat silently. It was impossible. After what he had seen there was no way he could make a difference. He was so small.
“What can I do?” he asked finally.
“You can stop them,” the lady said. Her eyes bore into his. Marvellous eyes like sapphires. “You can stop the ones that want us to suffer.”
“Who? Who would want that?” Grant asked.
The lady looked down forlornly. “I am sorry. I will show you.”
“No!” Grant managed, “No, no more!”
But it was too late. There he was above monstrous factories that choked the air with black smoke. Horrible creatures, half man, half machine, stumbled around each other as men in black coats barked orders – their words so guttural compared to the voices of the other race. Metal behemoths rumbled in formation and cannon fire filled the air as a billion battles seared Grant’s mind at once.
Monkeys, terrible monkeys that butchered and burned everything in their path. Ignorant and ungracious they travelled from world to world bringing death and pain. And another face, a different one this time; The face of a corpse that cried tears of blood. Grant felt it’s pain and recoiled. It saw him. The face saw him and recognised him. It’s voice called out, the voice of a weak, old man. “My children... They know not what they do. Please, forgive them.”
Grant snapped back to the room with a spasm. “No more...” he pleaded, “Please.”
“I am so sorry, Grant...” The lady was weeping, “I wish it could be another way. That you didn’t have to see. But you are our only hope.”
“I understand,” Grant managed between gasps of air, “Please, just tell me what I can do.”
“You will know what to do, Grant. You are the chosen one.”
Grant’s image blurred and the room began to fade. He braced himself for another vision but none came. Instead his mind was filled with the memories of the great race he had seen before. The children he had grown up with, the friends he had watched over, the people he had to save. And then everything went black
...
“-want us to do that now, sir?”
Grant’s head ached. He managed to open his eyes but the light that greeted them stung. Around him he could hear the fire of heavy artillery.
“The missile, sir, it’s loaded and ready. You want us to fire it now?”
Officer Grant steadied himself, drew his pistol and shot his corporeal clean between the eyes.
“Filthy monkeigh.” He spat.
He turned to see his crew of three looking at him stunned before shooting two of them dead in quick succession. The third harped and howled in its horrible tongue before he shot it in the back as it tried to run away. Grant turned to the controls of the Deathstrike missile launcher and smiled even as he heard the other guardsmen around him rally to the where they had heard the gunfire. He adjusted the co-ordinates deftly like he had so many times in the past. He knew his own home base’s position after all. With a beaming smile he finalised the launch and watch the missile shoot into the sky.
“I did it,” he hooted at the sky even as he raised his pistol to his head, “I saved the galaxy!”
Moral of the story: There's a reason you only get a 6+ Deny the Witch save against Mind War.
