Crypts of Chaos

[Ancient History]

The Final Battle, Part 14
The Matrix now rumbles in Thingol's tentacles, multiple glowing cracks showing through as power continues to pour forth from it the crystal eye, and in response the world continues to shrink, now no more than 125 feet in diameter; the wall of nothing swallowing the last of the Blues.

Cadwyn tries to throw the cube into the beam, but suddenly his metal hand refuses to meet his commands, reforming into a spiked guantlet holding the glowing cube, the swirling runes within seeming to pulse in time to some unheard beat.

'Xochitl's wind sweeps the black rod against sphere surrounding Thingol, and with a green flash the barrier collapses.

The worm howls as Tek's lightning blasts through it, one charred tentacle falling off completely, and the Erinyes forgo their ropes and move in to slash and gouge at the worm's flesh, ripping wounds farther open and digging in. The trumpet archon joins in as well, aiming at the eyeless head.

A flash comes from the south, and the remaining Mauve Ones fall dead. Standing atop the ruined wall of the pyramid is Madoc, her horse-like head bound in some sort of bridle, and on her back sits a naked figure.

She is human enough, or once was, and every inch is criss-crossed with scars or tattoos, blending together in a tapestry that bespeaks some arcane pattern beyond immediate understanding, and there are parts of her skin that gleam like metal and others like crystal; her hair flows down to her feet and is every color of human hair you have ever seen, and many more besides. Her eyes, however, and purest silver, and seem to flow and shift and flash like mercury at the bottom of a deep dark pool, and there is an empty cube-shaped space in her chest, between her breast, as though a chunk of flesh had been perfectly excised from there. Manacles hang from her wrists, and as she sees you her mouth creeks into a crooked smile.

"Once I heard the temple's bells,
An' raided shrines for their lore,
An' on and on I wanted more,
Greedy, greedy Jack o'Spells.

"Damned by the gods in heavens and hells,
I walked the earth unceasing,
I first level, never increasing,
Cursed, cursed Jack o'Spells.

"A dark secret no-one tells,
Apprentice in a thousand classes,
Slowly slowy my power masses,
Clever, clever Jack o'Spells.

"The divine spark within me dwells,
Ascended to the divine realm,
Scared the bastards at the helm,
God of Chaos, Jack o'Spells.

"My trickery mere legend excels,
Gelded the god of fertility,
Imprisoned for eternity,
Become the Mad God, Jack o'Spells.

"So to myself expel,
Saviors, warriors, heroes all,
Brought you here at my call
Thanks a lot, says Jack o'Spells.

"The prison now Thingol dispels,
Your part is done,
Your races run,
Now stand aside, for Jack o'Spells."

[JigokuBosatsu]

Berry frowns and stabs Thingol.

[Avoraciopoctules]

Xilraxochitl leans against the wall, looking very relaxed. "Okay, I'm cool with this. You've even paid for the job satisfactorily. I better not end up hearing too much more shitty poetry, though."

She blows the dispelling rod into her hand, and begins to make bets with her zombie recruits on which plane they'll all end up on. After a little thought, she has all Bad Pharaohs inductees join hands, in the hopes that will help them stick together.

[Whatever]

Cadwyn thrusts forward with his whiplike right arm, to plunge his hand, metal, Cube, and all, into the beam. But at the last moment, he hesitates. "I should destroy this." Then, with his left hand, he waves the Godblade feebly in her general direction, "I should destroy you. But I just want to go home. Vouchsafe me that, and I'll not interfere. For I have one card yet to play, and I will use it if I must."

[Red_Rob]

Ng'Thagai is going to try to parry Berry's blow with his club.

"This world is gone already, look around! I do not want to live on this scrap of reality, better to let things run their course."

[JigokuBosatsu]

"Giving him the oblivion he wants. He got us this far, I can't leave him floating in some void."

[Prak]

Tek reaches out with his telekinetic force to Godblade, Hexblade, the dagger and the matrix, "I wonder what happens if I drink a mad god?" He muses aloud, before violently thrusting the four magic items at the mad god, points first.

[Ancient History]

The Final Battle, Part 15
With a sudden surge, the sphere of nothingness contracts again, to perhaps 50 feet in diameter. Essentially nothing exists beyond the black meat walls of the pyramid.

The Mad God is briefly shadowed for a moment as the dying worm attempts to crush her with its bulk, but the insane deity digs her heels into Madoc's side and deftly moves out of the way of the falling flesh, then proceeds toward Thingol. Laughing at 'Xochitl and Cadwyn, she sings.

"Thingol plays a deeper game,
And I won't be imprisoned again,
So don't worry about this sitch,
Jack o'Spells needs to choke a bitch."

Despite Ng'Thagai's attempt to parry, Berry's dagger
Thingol barely lets out a grunt as Berry's Hexenblade buries itself in his thigh, golden blood spilling from the wound, golden tears beginning to trickle from his eyes, but his concentration holds.

The black laughter of the Mad God echoes around the ruined pyramid as she slides from Madoc's back into Thingol's lap, snaking one thin hand up to his throat. Her eyes shift and move randomly. The dark cube-shaped hole within her chest begins to pulse and shift in time with the Chaos Cube in Cadwyn's metal hand.

The Frog of Wisdom glows at Tek's command. Berry's hands and arms twist as her two weapons turn and stab at the seated god - Berry feels another biothaumaturgical charge burn as the weapon in her right hand shifts and moves through probability space, phantom daggers hitting the Mad God at different points; the Hexenblade in her left arm simply cuts the Mad God's right nipple. At the same time, Cadwyn loses control of the Godblade, which goes flying and takes off a chunk of the Mad God's ear. However, Thingol's grip on the Matrix is too strong for Tek's divided telekinesis to force.

The Mad God growls at the wounds, mercury-eyes shifting to Berry.

"Bad move, heavy metal."

One hand still grasped to Thingol's throat, the Mad God smashes Berry with a hand-slam, strange energies twisting along the length of her arm and hand. The strike shatters Berry's faceplate, revealing the clockworks and meat beneath.
{Berry takes 20 points of damage, is stunned, and falls prone.}

[Whatever]

(Sorry to undo a bit of that, but Cadwyn would have had an Immediate action:)

With the first tug of force on the Godblade, Cadwyn mutters something halfway between a prayer and a curse. Clear wings, like those of a dragon, but almost insubstantial, briefly unfold from his back, breaking the spell's connection (Wings of Cover, making Cadwyn and whatever he's carrying an invalid target for Telekinesis. Tek can pick a different target instead, but there's not much else worth using against the Mad God.)

[JigokuBosatsu]

[Berry is now at -9. Say goodnight, Gracie.]

[Whatever]

Cadwyn holds Madoc close, so that she doesn't bolt into the Nothing. He reaches forward with the Godblade to behead Thingol, hoping to separate the elder's oversized cranium from his emaciated frame.

[JigokuBosatsu]

Black blood and oil seep out of Berry's ruined face as she gurgles on the floor of the pyramid.

[Avoraciopoctules]

"Recycle, Reduce, Reanimate!"
Xil blasts Berry with her Breath of Death.
"Sorry shawty, but you're out of the fight now."

Then glances at the summoned monsters, trying to figure out what their intentions are.

[Ancient History]

{Unfortunately, Berry is too close to Thingol/Cadwyn/Jack O'Spells for 'Xochitl to hit her and not them.}

[Avoraciopoctules]

[Move action to close and grab Berry, Swift action to hop back to the zombies, and Standard action to zombify.]

[Prak]

Tek focuses his telekinesis on the matrix, and wrenches again, trying to pull with all his might, to slam it into the Mad God's head.


(sorry Jess)

[Whatever]

(Wait, the Cube? Cadwyn was having trouble letting go of it, earlier.)

[Prak]

(whoops)

[Red_Rob]

Staring at Berry's crumpled form with disbelief Ng'Thagai is going to grab the Hexenblade from where it fell and swing it with full force into the patchwork woman, urging Max to sink his teeth into her in an attempt to distract her from the ancient Illithid.

[Ancient History]

The End
With a crack, the Matrix explodes. The Mad God looks up from felling Berry and yells "No!"

White lines of power zig-zag throughout the remaining space, and time itself seems to be broken for a moment. 'Xochitl grabs Berry. The Godblade slices down at Thingol's head. Ng'Thagai grabs the Hexenblade, still attached to Berry's arm, and strives to shove it at the Mad God. The Frog Glows, and Tek tries to force the Chaos Cube into the Mad God's head, the strange metal hand shifting forms of its own free will.

The end stretches out forever, the slow implosion of those final few feet of space taking an eternity...and just as you feel the ground leave your feet, and the air vanish from your lungs, and your sense of form dissolve so that you are only a point of consciousness floating in non-space...all the memories of your time in the Crypts come back to you. Replayed, reversed, every pain, every hurt, every joy, every evil cackle and mad plan, and over all that black echoing laughter...

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Grognar Ho-Tep and Xilraxochitl stand on the temple ball-court, before the assembled undead saurians. The God-Emperor stares down at them from her throne of bone. A champion stands before them, holding a sphere.

"Pitiful ball players, I am Nuitimatchali, commander of the Tlochtli Temple Guard. For generations, your puny empire has lived in peace with the Tlochtli. But now, for no reason, we challenge you to defend your honor on the temple ball court. Will no one meet our challenge? Have none of you pathetic mammals game? "

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Tek of the Devildrinker Clan does not shiver in the cold. The hunters-by-day will be upon her soon, so the nosferatu dives into the deeper caverns, where even they will not go...

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Ng'Thagai pets Maximillian, the stroking fur keeping the animal quiet as the as a woman like a broken statue carved of fire rises from the pool. "I am the Oracle of Pyrogathea. What quest has brought you here?" Then a blue nova explodes in her empty left eyesocket, and she smiles. "Wait...don't tell me. Let me guess."

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Within the drow passenger train, few give Jesrulla a second look. They mind their own business, and her form is fully concealed. Across from her, an adrogynous youth with a golden spider on her forehead fiddles with the hilt of a golden sword, the hilt of which is inscribed with a spider.

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Shojiro Anaka pauses on the antique road away from the empire, face pointed in the direction of the wilderness where the ghost people dwell. To one side of the road is a small shrine, and he pauses to pay his respects to whatever god or spirit may live there. He is surprised to see it is a small open-faced house or gravemarker of black marble, and on a shell in front of it appears a small amulet of a demonic spider, and sticking up from the broken earth the hilt of a fine sword with a red pearl in the handle.

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Olaf Abdulov wakes, and grabs the flask of vodka with his left hand. He finds there is a mouthful left, swigs it, and sits up to great the dawn as it shines through the cell window. Next to him, the stranger from last night lights up a cheroot. "Mornin' pardner. Sorry about the ruckus last night, but I don't hold to cutting up no whores."

Olaf shakes his head and tips the flask up so the last few drops hit his tongue. "Is no good. We must get out of here."

The scarred man smiles. "Well all right."

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Seiko Kai stops on the road leading from the monastery. At the foot of the mountain is a corpse, little more than a skeleton really, it's bones etched with strange blue tattoos.

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
"Rise...Aracanis Prime." The Decepticon raises his head, flexing his claws. The Fallen smiles down at his latest lieutenant, and points at the legions. "We have discovered a new source of energy that promises an almost infinite source of power. It is your task to secure it, or failing that destroy it, lest - Primus forfend! - our enemies be permitted to enjoy it." Aracanis turns, and a legion of warforged snap to attention. "Hail Aracanis! Hail Aracanis..."

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Chip Arxcos' grabs the guard's face and smashes him into the door - and straight through it. His enemy's brains oozing through his fingers, Chip looks up and finds himself in a woman's boudoir. The mistress lounges on her canopy bed, dressed in silk so sheer he can almost see through it. "Oh my," she says, licking her lips. "I do so love a man in uniform. There's only one thing better." She stretches out a hand to grab Chip's belt buckle and pull him closer. "A man out of uniform..."

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Kothre awoke, the innkeeper's daughter asleep on her arm. Pinned! She silently pondered her options, then decided to gnaw through the arm and escape undetected. Yes, that sounded good...and then the woman rolled over in her sleep, mumbled something, and licked Kothre's ear. Somehow, Kothre doubted she was going to escape anytime soon.

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Dreiden Baker paused, panting, and checked her charge. The steam gnome - or half-machine, Dreiden wasn't sure which - was stable, but unresponsive, and Dreiden fed a few more sticks of firewood into her boiler, keeping her hands away from the strange blades attached to the gnome's arms; the shattered faceplate stared at her lifelessly, on the cusp of life or death. The Chosen of Gond had said her appearance was preordained, and that only those at the Gnomeworks possessed the sacred tech to fix her, so that was where the temple leader had directed her to go. Now they were almost at the end of their journey...she could see the glow of the mountain's heart on the horizon, and overhead she marveled at the sight of a gyrocopter...she took it as a sign of Gond, and picked up the litter again to continue on.

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
It was there, just as his research had said it was. Archibald pulled the lever, and felt a thrill as the wall rotated, carrying him in to the secret alcove hidden in the vaults beneath the University Library.

He was in a bare alcove, lit from above by a glowing jewel or stone. Directly ahead of him a small table, at which sat a figure in a dark cloak with the hood drawn up to hide their features in shadow. On the table, attached with small adamantine nails, were three ivory boxes of cards, set up with springs so that someone may rapidly deal them out. There was a complex figure etched onto the board- some sort of complex geometric shape, with spaces for the cards. From the direction of the seated figure came a breath as from a musty tomb, and it is only with difficulty Archibald made out the words - "How many."

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Cadwyn Llewelyn heard the cry from the woods on the edge of the field, and followed Terrwyn's barks to where the centaur lass lay, heavy with foal. She looked as though she had been dropped from some height, and the child moved in her belly.

"It's alright Terrwyn, calm down." he said, reaching for his dagger. Cadwyn's blade slices through the layers of pink and bloody flesh, carving closer to the womb - the thrashing becomes more insistent and begins to rip as the creature inside senses the approach. Within a few minutes Cadwyn has the uterus laid bare, and a sharp point presses on it from within, stretching the elastic flesh until finally it breaks through - to reveal a small pointed, lizard-like snout with the flaring nostrils of a horse. Cadwyn helped her free.

"Your name will be Madoc, for you are a fortunate little one indeed." he said. "Now let's get you home."

Elsewhere, Elsewhen
Jack o'Spells looked up through the portal that Primus had hung before her, the dimensions soaring past. It was meant as torture, but she just laughed and flexed her muscles as far as they would allow. There was a crack in her prison now, she could feel it, and if she couldn't get out she could at least bring people in...whom would she choose this time? Her mad black laughter reached a higher pitch...