Seaside

Locales abroad of the city centers, from out of doors to the outer planes.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

TASBot nods slowly, scratching where his chin would be as he starts to speak. "Hmmm... I think I'm starting to get it. So that repulsion hex, it means that you experience no friction with anything and that you can't be hurt, right?" he says, considering the difficulty Hoshiki had in throwing him and how the resulting impact didn't even leave a scratch.

"In that case," the robot begins to speculate, his words becoming more drawn out and generally gaining the vocal quality one who is grinning widely might have, "you could go as fast as you wanted off of a good slope, right?"

"Think about it," he continues excitedly, moving closer to Aaron and Hoshiki. "No air resistance, no tripping over rocks, no crashing into snowbanks with surprise obstacles in them... that would be awesome."

After a moment, he shakes his head quickly and chuckles lightly. "Heh heh, but that's just me thinking out loud."
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick

Tags:
Hraithre
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 585
Joined: Aug 03, 2022 5:37 pm

Re: Seaside

Post by Hraithre »

[Empty Beach]

Hoshiki smiles at the conversation. Clearly, Aaron has not yet realized his immense potential as an indestructible practice target. The swordsman looks at TASbot and nods. "We might yet try that. But not today. Let's stay with wrestling for a while longer. You saw the technique. You have it committed to memory, right? Now it's your turn. Try it as many times as you need to, to get a hang of it. Aaron-kun, just keep doing what you did with me. You can put up a bit more resistance if it looks like things are getting too easy for TASbot-kun. Begin when you are ready."

He bows and then steps back, sitting on a nearby boulder to observe the training.
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

[Empty Beach]

Aaron shrugs, unenthusiastically dismissing TASBot's idea, "Meh... Its a lot easier to think about stuff like that when you don't have to deal with the reality of it, you know."

He nods towards Hoshiki as the two are given instructions, adjusting his jacket and holding his arms out slightly to allow for TASBot to lift him up from.
User avatar
Keeper
Moderately Powerful Moderator
Posts: 3505
Joined: Jul 04, 2022 11:31 pm
Location: Brinstar

Re: Seaside

Post by Keeper »

Off the Coast

The demon is lucky that Krayger reloaded after shooting the captain. He takes a moment to aim his gun at the demon and fire before stowing it to return to his slightly more frantic climb back to the deck of the ship.
Ironsmith
Poster from Beyond the Veil
Posts: 2996
Joined: Aug 01, 2022 12:46 pm

Re: Seaside

Post by Ironsmith »

[Off The Coast]

Bang!

Judging from the way the demon briefly goes limp before those screaming faces messily tear into him, Krayger managed to land a kill shot. The captain chuckles and eagerly claps his hands at this, applauding the show of marksmanship.

Frigate, meanwhile, finds himself maintaining an unsteady stalemate with the tentacles; he manages to cut off individual hands before they get a chance to grab him, but there are a lot of them and as soon as he peels away an appreciable amount of the outer layer, the mass of arms roil and a fresh wave comes out, a whole throng of new hands coming to grab him.

Meanwhile, on either side of the ship, another set of arm-tentacles rises out of the water; rather than go for any of the crew, they simply continue up into the air, forming a pair of abberant pillars in the darkness.
Who're you? ...Don't matter.

Want some rye? Course ya do!

Here's to us!
Who's like us?
Damn few,
And they're aaaaall dead.
User avatar
Earl of Purple
Transcendent Soul Poster
Posts: 2022
Joined: Aug 01, 2022 3:59 pm
Location: Amongst the Folk from the North
Pronouns: He/Him

Re: Seaside

Post by Earl of Purple »

Off the Coast

Ah, this is... considerably less than ideal. Frigate wants this thing dead, and does not wish to be grabbed and pulled overboard. The issue, however, is that there are many, many, many hands and Frigate has but one cutlass. If the tentacles go to grab the warforged's ankles, Frigate's unlikely to notice before it's too late- and he's realised this now, so he's starting to walk around the deck, trying to stay on the move and avoid the hands whilst continuing to work on truly disarming this horrific horror.
Avatar provided by Happyturtle. Still using it, after all these years.

Don't run now, my eggs are hatching.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

"Alright," TASBot says, getting into position behind Aaron and readying himself to attempt the manoeuvre. He has a feeling this technique is going to be quite difficult, given he's a little shorter than Hoshiki and - to his knowledge - a little less strong, to boot.

"Gonna give this my all," the robot says to himself, narrating his own thoughts as he puts his metal arms under Aaron's just as Hoshiki did. It takes a moment for TASBot to work out how exactly to move his arms to produce the intended result, but once he's figured it out, he quickly generates enough force to push the man upwards and twists his body, like Hoshiki did, to turn the move into a throw.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

[Empty Beach]

Due to the way the repulsion field works, applying more force would cause it to push back more. Hence, it'd be just as easy for TASBot to lift Aaron as it was for Hoshiki.

Thrown back once again, Aaron quickly rights himself. He grins, giving a thumbs up to TASBot, "Good, you got it. I'll make it harder, then."

Aaron tenses up, his muscles becoming more rigid and the field being given more downward force.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

TASBot nods in response to Aaron's thumbs up. "Bring it on," he says as he quickly moves towards Aaron to once again try to throw him.

This time, as expected, it's more difficult for the robot. After a few awkward failed attempts, TASBot stops for a moment, keeping his arms in contact with (the forcefield around) Aaron's, before giving a small grunt of effort as he once again executes the throwing maneuver.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

As TASBot lifts, Aaron tries pulling his arms up to reduce points where he can be gripped, though it was impossible to be completely vertical due to anatomy.

He gets up again, stretching his arms for a moment before letting them fall to his side, remaining passive as TASBot continues his throws.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

This time, TASBot steps back slowly, seeming to be thinking about something. In truth, he's feeling like he more or less has the throwing technique down, and is wondering if he can somehow use momentum to make the action itself easier for him.

After a few moments of this, the robot suddenly changes to a ready stance, before dashing into Aaron and immediately initiating the throw. Whether that itself is any faster or harder is up to how the forcefield works, but TASBot seems quite satisfied with it.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
User avatar
Keeper
Moderately Powerful Moderator
Posts: 3505
Joined: Jul 04, 2022 11:31 pm
Location: Brinstar

Re: Seaside

Post by Keeper »

Off the Coast

"Shut up." Krayger snorts at the captain before planting his foot on the deck and launching his hammer at one of the great tentacles. It flies far quicker than it has any right to, lighting crackling. It was made to slay dragons, and something of appropriate size is before it.
An impact, should it occur, would be quite forceful.
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

Gold wrote: Jun 22, 2023 6:27 pm [Empty Beach]

This time, TASBot steps back slowly, seeming to be thinking about something. In truth, he's feeling like he more or less has the throwing technique down, and is wondering if he can somehow use momentum to make the action itself easier for him.

After a few moments of this, the robot suddenly changes to a ready stance, before dashing into Aaron and immediately initiating the throw. Whether that itself is any faster or harder is up to how the forcefield works, but TASBot seems quite satisfied with it.
"Huh? Wai-" Aaron tries to warn TASBot, but is unable to do so in time as the mechanical arms reach for him. While it'd be one thing to grab Aaron normally, using momentum would only work against TASBot. Upon coming into contact with the forcefield, he'd feel an action of equal kinetic energy push back at him at opposite velocity. This may push him back or cause him to lose his balance completely, but would otherwise only hurt as much as if he was hitting himself.

The difficulty of the throw remained the same afterwards.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

TASBot lets out a surprised yelp as he's shoved back by the retaliating force of the repulsion field. He slides on his feet across the rocks, almost losing his balance but catching himself at the last second.

After that, he rubs his head sheepishly for a moment, before recollecting himself and stating "Okay... that didn't go as I'd planned. But that's fine - I just need to be more careful."

Then, holding an open palm in a "halt" gesture towards Aaron, he calls out "Don't move - I'm ready this time." Immediately after, he rushes towards him. This time though, he slows almost to a complete halt right before making contact with Aaron, and only uses approximately as much force as he was using earlier to initiate the throw.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

[Empty Beach]

Aaron would be a bit surprised by TASBot's behavior, just enough so to freeze up anyways. Thus, the throw would be executed as per usual. Aaron dusts his clothes off as he gets up, tilting his head in wondering. "I'm... not sure how that was any different?" He shrugs, bending forward slightly and resting his eyes.
Hraithre
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 585
Joined: Aug 03, 2022 5:37 pm

Re: Seaside

Post by Hraithre »

[Empty Beach]

"It wasn't", Hoshiki interjects, leaving his resting spotr. "Stop! I think that's enough for now." He walks between TASbot and Aaron. "TASbot-kun, I think you've gotten as good of a handle of this technique as is possible this way", he says, facing the former, "the next step would be to try it on a more normal opponent, such as myself." He flashes a smile to the robot. "But before we continue that thought, I'd like to test something. Aaron-kun, is it true your curse protects you from all sorts of harm?" He turns and gives a questioning look to the younger man.
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

[Empty Beach]

"Well," Aaron muses, "I've never been hurt or felt anything before, so its probably like low-multiversal tier, at least. Who knows, maybe there's someone with the power to nullify all forms of protection?" He lets out a light nervous chuckle.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

TASBot almost starts to explain why he thought it was different, but stops after Hoshiki's interjection. Taking a few steps back and looking up at Hoshiki, he nods and admits "You're probably right. On both counts," with a more excited tone in his voice to the second sentence.

To Aaron, TASBot simply says "I guess that depends on how all-encompassing "all-encompassing" is," remembering the man's words from earlier.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
Hraithre
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 585
Joined: Aug 03, 2022 5:37 pm

Re: Seaside

Post by Hraithre »

[Empty Beach]

Hoshiki raises an eyebrow at Aaron's choice of words. Low multiversal? How would someone test for, nevermind conclude, that? "Well, if you are even close to right, it ought to be able to take anything I can throw at it. It is rare for me to find a situation where I can truly cut loose." He points at the bottom of the nearby cliff, a good fifty meters away. "Aaron-kun, could you go stand over there? TASbot-kun, stay behind me." He stretches his neck and cracks his knuckles.
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

[Empty Beach]

Aaron shrugs lackidaisically, walking over to where Hoshiki pointed to.

"Is this really a good idea? I'm 99% sure I can't be hurt at all, but a 1% chance to die instantly isn't exactly all that great."
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

TASBot moves behind Hoshiki, clearly feeling quite excited.

"This is gonna be awesome..." he says to nobody in particular, leaning over to get a better view of what's about to happen.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
Hraithre
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 585
Joined: Aug 03, 2022 5:37 pm

Re: Seaside

Post by Hraithre »

[Empty Beach]

Hoshiki flashes Aaron a smile that is meant to look reassuring, but probably just looks unnerving on his face. "It'll be fine! Really, if you're even close to correct, I am in greater danger than you are!", he shouts, "now brace yourself!"

He holds his right arm high and begins chanting. "Forger of the sky / Creator of clouds / Watcher on the edge of Heaven / Borrow me your axe / Let me hold the hammer / To strike a spark / To sound the thunder..."

A shadow falls on the beach as clouds that were mere white wisps a moment ago pool into a dark ball. The air grows heavier and smell of ozone fills tve air.

"Path of Destruction: Pale Lightning!"

Hoshiki points a finger at Aaron, and indeed, there is lightning striking down at the spot where the younger man stands, its bright light bisecting the scene and a deafening boom reflecting from the cliffside. But is it Aaron's 1% chance?
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

[Empty Beach]

As the dark clouds form over the atmosphere, Aaron clicks his tongue. "Ominious," he says. As the thunder reached his ears, he shouted, "GYAH!" The young man clutched around his ears and leaned forward, his heart racing. Notably, it was only the sound which affected him, the lightning itself having been reflected completely and appearing as a second strike traveling straight upwards into the clouds, as if light from a mirror.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

"Whoa..." TASBot watches the sky around the beach begin to change, almost transfixed by what he assumes to be Hoshiki's strongest technique.

The great clap of the thunder snaps him out of his awe, and after shaking off the weird tingly feeling he had right before the flash, he raises a hand towards Aaron and says "Hey! You okay, pal?"
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
Hraithre
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 585
Joined: Aug 03, 2022 5:37 pm

Re: Seaside

Post by Hraithre »

[Empty Beach]

"Interesting...", Hoshiki mutters as he begins to walk towards Aaron. He gestures at TASbot to tell it's safe to follow. "Did the sound spook you?", he asks when he gets closer. "You can hear me, right? Are your ears fine?" He is almost certain he knows the answers already, but it doesn't hurt to check. Gears are turning in the swordsman's head as he processes what he just saw. "There's a second test I'd like to perform, but you can take your time to catch your breath first."
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

[Empty Beach]

Aaron's arms weakly fall to the ground,
where he huffs. He had a distressed look on his face, tilting his head curiously as he looks at Hoshiki. "I can't hear anything right now! Uh," said Aaron, who suddenly rose his voice, "I GUESS I'M TECHNICALLY OKAY? IF YOU'RE ASKING THAT." He then straightened his posture, giving off the body language of someone completely unaffected if slightly nervous. It seemed that he was unused to ever having any cause for concern.
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

TASBot moves ahead of Hoshiki and towards Aaron, where he does a 'not so loud' hand gesture and begins to say "There's no need to yell, we can hear... " He stops after remembering that spoken language wouldn't be very useful to someone suffering from an auditory issue.

Quickly, he turns back to Hoshiki. "If he can't hear us right now, tell me what you want to tell him and I'll put it up on screen so he can read it," the robot explains, pointing to his own helmet-screen.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
Hraithre
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 585
Joined: Aug 03, 2022 5:37 pm

Re: Seaside

Post by Hraithre »

[Empty Beach]

Hoshiki rubs his chin. "I think Aaron-kun will be fine in a moment", he says, loud and clear, but he is not trying to beat Aaron's deafness by yelling. "I think... a thought occurred to me when I watched you spar, and this reinforces it. I would guess Aaron-kun's curse is calibrated to let through some amount of force, to make ordinary life possible. It only react violently when the forces striking it would be injurious. So, that is why we can lift and throw Aaron-kun when we move slowly and carefully... but the moment TASbot-kun tried to rush it, you could repelled. And that is why", he glances up to the sky, "the lightning strike was reflected upwards. There were other possibilities. I thought, it might've also go around and be conducted to the ground. That's why I opted to test it this way first. If I had struck Aaron-kun directly, entire force of my blow might've been reflected back on me!"

He coughs into his fist. "Which is, of course, what I'm going to try next."
User avatar
[brackets lover]
Coffin-Bound Aged Poster
Posts: 872
Joined: Feb 07, 2023 4:56 am

Re: Seaside

Post by [brackets lover] »

Assuming TASBot does indeed put everything Hoshiki said on his screen, Aaron would blink in confusion before suddenly figuring out to read it. After he gets through the whole of it, he squints his eyes at the middle of the speech before glaring back to Hoshiki. "You mean you thought that this was going to happen? And you didn't think to warn me?"
User avatar
Gold
Old Fart Poster
Posts: 361
Joined: Jul 16, 2022 6:16 pm
Location: Somewhere in Fort Knox
Pronouns: He/him
Contact:

Re: Seaside

Post by Gold »

[Empty Beach]

TASBot dutifully provides a running transcription of Hoshiki's words on his own screen. Once he's done, the robot adds "Ooh, quick question - can you smell anything through your barrier at all?" subtitling his own words with blue text to differentiate them from Hoshiki's.
TASBot TALBot Solenoid Changer
"You monster!" -Gold Elemental - The Order of the Stick
Post Reply