Chomp.

Radiant Honor

[I believe Radiant Honor walks in wherever the hell she wants.]

Radiant Honor

[*Z-snap*]

Radiant Honor

Quite often, Ms. Avery Chase can be found in her office at Cold Crescent. Its sleek desk, its high windows, its cabinets full of both weaponry and items for gamecraft: not all challenges are martial. On one occasion she presided over a four-day-long game of chess. One of the chess sets was broken, but that is why a conscientious Master of Challenges keeps extras.

Often enough, Mr. Erich Reinhardt can be found wandering the hallways of the upper floors, on his way in or out from a patrol. He does not live in the tower, but he was perhaps the most vocal proponent of keeping the sept open; he has not wavered in his committment to patrolling its borders.

And not very often, but occasionally, and often near the full moon, one or both of them may happen upon each other and see a familiar gleam in the other's eyes or hear a familiar edge in the other's voice, and they will decide it is high time they went on a hunt.

Tonight they tracked a bane all the way from downtown Denver to the south suburbs, past the Park Meadows Mall, the end of the light rail lines. It was dispatched readily, quickly, a snap here and there and no real burn of effort or energy. No real relief from the heaviness of rage behind the eyes, thudding in the skull.

Avery, all gleaming white fur still, stretches, shaking out her coat. It is thickening with winter, growing ever whiter -- if such a thing is possible. Her tongue lolls, and she prances over to Erich, butting her head into the side of his ribs.

Son of Rage

Erich, whose fur does not exactly gleam, but whose fur is indeed thick and thickening with winter, and whose fur is dappled and grey-black-white-brown-everything, and whose fur is, despite not being all-agleam, full and healthy and impressive armor against cold and enemy-teeth alike,

is butted and lolls his tongue out as well. He is smiling; you can see it, the corners of his maw turn up. He blinks slowly, contentedly, but not-quite because there: there is that gleam. It's in his eyes, hot and not yet sated. This month's moon was so full, so strange, so blood-red that he can't help but feel it still in his veins.

He scratches his claws on the ground. Leaves rakes there, marks. It's a primitive thing to do: dominance, victory, territory. He stops shy of pissing over it, though, thinking perhaps Avery would not appreciate that. Instead: he turns on his haunches, rubs past his friend, and puts his nose to the ground again. Sniffsniffsniffs in a widening circle: surely there is more.

chomp

The bane was dispatched readily, easily. The bane somehow dissolved itself into a puddle of shadow on the umbral ground. It is no longer, or rather it is slumber, and its viscous substance is slowly dissolving into this kind of nether-substance of which so many things in the umbra seem to be "made" of -

Avery bumps Erich.

- and that shadow-puddle starts to, well, bulge outward. Like something pushing on, or through a membrane. Like something crossing over - like something coming through.

The first part is a ragged maw, all needle-teeth and blooded, lolling tongue. Scissoring into existance and snarl-snapping and -

chomp

Head 1: + 6, Head 2: + 4; Tail 1: +6; Tail 2: +4

Dice: 4 d10 TN6 (1, 4, 4, 7) ( success x 1 )

Son of Rage

[+19 CUZ HAH I AM IN HISPO.]

Son of Rage

[o right a roll.]

Dice: 1 d10 TN6 (5) ( fail )

Radiant Honor

Avery, wagging her tail, notices the puddle. She dances backward from it, fur standing up a bit, ears folding back. She growls, a warning and a call to Erich, and her fur bristles, her ears twisting agressively forward to listen, to sharpen, to attend.

[Already in Hispo

-1WP for ResistPain

-1WP for Fangs of Judgement

-1G for Luna's Armor.

First roll is for Luna's Armor, then will come init!

Stamina + Survival]

Dice: 8 d10 TN7 (2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 5 )

Radiant Honor

[mmph.

now init! +10]

Dice: 1 d10 TN7 (2) ( fail )

chomp

Erich: 24

Avery: 12

Tail 2: 11

Tail 1: 10

Head 2: 8

Head 1: 7

chomp

Head 1: 1. BITE AVERY. 2. BITE AVERY.

Head 2: BITE ERICH. 2. BITE ERICH.

Tail 1: Umbralquake!

Tail 2: LASH Erich.

Radiant Honor

[1a.

1b.

R1.

R2. -- all bites on Head 1, Switching to Head 2, Tail 2, Tail 1, in that order.]

Son of Rage

[erm, RETROACTIVE FROM BEFORE :D

-1wp resist pain

-1gn luna's armor]

Dice: 9 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 9, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 5 )

Son of Rage

[1a. chomp head 1!

b. pin head 1 down for Avery's 1a/1b!

R1. bite

R2. bite

same kill order as Avery!]

Radiant Honor

[retracting fangs of judgement, I was not thinking clearly.]

Son of Rage

[-2 dice]

Dice: 8 d10 TN5 (1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 6, 7, 9) ( success x 3 )

Son of Rage

[dam +2]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 4, 4, 5, 7, 7, 7, 8, 9, 9) ( success x 6 )

chomp

SOAK.

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (2, 3, 5, 6, 6, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 5 )

Radiant Honor

[1a. bite head 1. dex + brawl -2]

Dice: 6 d10 TN5 (1, 1, 7, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 6 ) Re-rolls: 2

Son of Rage

[-3; str specialty: sustained]

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (4, 4, 4, 7, 8, 8, 9, 9) ( success x 5 )

chomp

SOAK. EDITED.

Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (4, 4, 4, 8, 8, 9) ( success x 3 )

Radiant Honor

[Diff -2 for opponent being held; actual attack suxx = same!

DAMAGE]

Dice: 13 d10 TN6 (2, 4, 4, 5, 6, 6, 7, 7, 9, 9, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 9 )

chomp

SOAK.

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 5 )

Radiant Honor

[1b. dex + brawl -3 / diff -2]

Dice: 5 d10 TN3 (1, 1, 2, 3, 8) ( success x 2 )

Radiant Honor

[damage!]

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 9) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 5, 5, 9, 10, 10, 10) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Tail 2: LASH ERICH.

Dice: 8 d10 TN7 (3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 5 )

chomp

Damage!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 7, 8) ( success x 4 )

Son of Rage

[soak!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 7, 7, 8, 9, 9) ( success x 5 )

chomp

Tail 1: UMBRALQUAKE

Dice: 10 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 8, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 4 )

Radiant Honor

[dex + ath to stay standing!]

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 5 ) Re-rolls: 1

Son of Rage

[keep footing!]

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 8, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 5 ) Re-rolls: 1

Son of Rage

[soak 4!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 1, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 3 )

Radiant Honor

[soak 4 bashing!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 1, 2, 3, 3, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10) ( success x 3 )

chomp

Head 2: CHOMPPPP.

Dice: 7 d10 TN5 (3, 4, 8, 9, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 5 )

chomp

Damage!

Dice: 10 d10 TN6 (2, 3, 7, 8, 8, 9, 10, 10, 10, 10) ( success x 8 )

Son of Rage

[NO FEAR!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (4, 4, 4, 5, 6, 6, 8, 8, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 7 )

chomp

Head 1: change action. Shake off hold.

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (2, 2, 4, 4, 9, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 4 )

Son of Rage

[hold on!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 7, 8, 10, 10, 10) ( success x 7 )

Son of Rage

R1 CHOMP

Dice: 10 d10 TN5 (2, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 8, 9, 9, 9) ( success x 7 )

Son of Rage

[dam+6]

Dice: 15 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 5, 6, 6, 6, 7, 8, 8, 8, 8, 9, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 12 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 3, 4, 4, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 3 )

chomp

Head 1: x.x

Radiant Honor

[R1. Nomfing Head 2!]

Dice: 8 d10 TN5 (1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 5, 8, 10) ( success x 3 ) Re-rolls: 1

Radiant Honor

[damage!]

Dice: 9 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 4, 6, 6, 7, 7, 8, 10) ( success x 6 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 8, 9) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Head 2: CHOMP ERICH.

Dice: 7 d10 TN5 (2, 4, 4, 5, 5, 9, 9) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Damage!

Dice: 9 d10 TN6 (2, 4, 4, 4, 5, 7, 7, 8, 9) ( success x 4 )

Son of Rage

[soak!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (2, 2, 4, 5, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 5 )

Son of Rage

[R2: CHOMP HEAD 2!]

Dice: 10 d10 TN5 (2, 2, 2, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 9, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 8 ) Re-rolls: 2

Son of Rage

[dam +7]

Dice: 16 d10 TN6 (2, 2, 3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 5, 6, 6, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 5 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9) ( success x 3 )

Radiant Honor

[R2!]

Dice: 8 d10 TN5 (1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 9, 9) ( success x 5 )

Radiant Honor

[damage! I AM EATING YOU, HEAD 2. MUPPET HEAD.]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 5, 6, 9, 9, 9) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 5, 6, 8, 8, 8, 9) ( success x 5 )

chomp

Erich: 24

Avery: 12

Tail 2: 11

Tail 1: 10

Head 2: 8

Head 1: x.x

chomp

Head 2: 1. CHOMP ERICH. 2. CHOMP ERICH.

chomp

Tail 1: 1. LASH AVERY WTF DID YO?U DO TO MY HEAD.

chomp

Tail 2: LASH ERICH LEAVE MAH HEAD ALONE.

Radiant Honor

[1a. Stay on Head 2.

1b. Kill it til it dies from it.

1c. +WP Seriously bite it. And if it dies or is dead (go Erich), move on to Tail 2 because it is meaner.

R1. Tail 2! EAT IT. Like lobster.]

Son of Rage

[dropping another 2 rage!

1a: spur claws on tail 1!

b. bite head 2!

R1/R2: bite head 2! then tail 2! then tail 1!]

Son of Rage

[spur claws: -1R

-2dice from splitting]

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 6, 6, 8, 10) ( success x 4 ) Re-rolls: 1

Son of Rage

[dam+3]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 6 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 4, 7, 7, 7, 8, 9) ( success x 5 )

Son of Rage

[chomp!]

Dice: 7 d10 TN5 (3, 4, 4, 9, 9, 9, 9) ( success x 4 )

Son of Rage

[dam+3]

Dice: 12 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 1, 3, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 8, 8, 10) ( success x 3 )

chomp

SOAK!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 2, 4, 4, 5, 6, 7) ( success x 2 )

Radiant Honor

[1a. Bite on Head 2 / -2]

Dice: 6 d10 TN5 (1, 1, 2, 4, 4, 6) ( success x 1 )

Radiant Honor

[are you... are you serious.]

Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (3, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 3 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (4, 7, 8, 8, 8, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 7 )

Radiant Honor

[Re-doing 1a since I botched it! -3!]

Dice: 5 d10 TN5 (4, 5, 7, 8, 9) ( success x 4 )

Radiant Honor

[PLEASE]

Dice: 10 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 3, 4, 5, 8, 8, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 5 )

Radiant Honor

[1b. -4!]

Dice: 4 d10 TN5 (1, 2, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 3 ) Re-rolls: 1

Radiant Honor

[you can have my slinky it is rainbow and has stars on it too]

Dice: 9 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 4, 5, 5, 8, 10, 10, 10) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 3, 5, 7, 7, 9, 9) ( success x 4 )

Radiant Honor

[1c. -5] +WP!

Dice: 3 d10 TN5 (1, 3, 6) ( success x 2 ) [WP]

Radiant Honor

[strength + 1 + 1 + suxx -1 maybe kahseeno likes math]

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 8, 10) ( success x 5 )

chomp

SOAK!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 2, 2, 6, 6, 7, 10) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Tail 2: what the fuck am I doing do Erich!

Dice: 7 d10 TN7 (1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 4 )

chomp

Damage!

Dice: 9 d10 TN6 (2, 5, 5, 5, 7, 8, 9, 9, 9) ( success x 5 )

chomp

Tail 1: LASH AVERY. +2 spur claws.

Dice: 7 d10 TN9 (1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) ( success x 2 )

Son of Rage

[soak!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 4, 6, 6, 6, 8, 8) ( success x 5 )

chomp

Damage!

Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (2, 4, 5, 5, 6, 6, 9) ( success x 3 )

chomp

HEad 2: CHOMMMP.

Dice: 7 d10 TN5 (4, 4, 5, 6, 6, 7, 8) ( success x 5 )

Radiant Honor

[SOAK]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 6, 6, 6, 7, 8, 9) ( success x 6 )

chomp

Damage! ERICH.

Dice: 10 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 2, 4, 4, 4, 5, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 3 )

Son of Rage

[soak again!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 6 )

Son of Rage

[R1: GRR KILL IT]

Dice: 10 d10 TN5 (1, 1, 3, 3, 3, 4, 6, 6, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 5 ) Re-rolls: 1

Son of Rage

[fine. fine. we send this one out to the old school:

HAIL KAHSEENO.]

Dice: 13 d10 TN6 (1, 4, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 7, 8, 9, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 8 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 3, 5, 5, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 3 )

Radiant Honor

[R1. only rage action!]

Dice: 8 d10 TN5 (1, 5, 6, 7, 7, 8, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 8 ) Re-rolls: 1

Radiant Honor

[HAIL!]

Dice: 14 d10 TN6 (2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 8, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 6 )

chomp

Soak!

Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 3, 4, 4, 6, 7, 8) ( success x 3 )

chomp

Head 2: x.x

Ergo: Tails: x.x

Ergo: BOOM

Dice: 14 d10 TN6 (2, 2, 4, 6, 6, 6, 6, 8, 8, 8, 9, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 11 )

Radiant Honor

[oh my fucking god. HAIL!]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 5, 6, 8, 8, 8) ( success x 4 )

Son of Rage

[HAIL KAHSEENO.]

Dice: 11 d10 TN6 (3, 3, 4, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 8 )

Son of Rage

[aww, kahseeno. you do love me :]]] ]

chomp

That membranous bulge resolves itself into this amorphous blob of a two-tailed, two-headed, needle-toothed monstrous thing with slimey purple fur and these crowning antlers and spiked, barbed tails and immediately they are in the thick of battle again. The first head Erich holds down for Avery and they tear into it together and then he tears it fucking off. Black blood like a geyser behind it.

The second head: hard, more solid, snarling, stinking breath while the tails rain down blows and Son of Rage sheds his claws into the tail attacking his Silver Fang companion and together they tear into the head -

which comes off, almost cleanly from the body, while the tails are still lashing. This time ther eis no spurt of black blood, no geyser, just this sort of terrible internal spasm before the whole.

thing.

explodes.

A searing, vomitous torrent of burning-acid-black.

--

They are both still breathing in the aftermath.

Though one:

barely.

Son of Rage

Well.

That was unexpected.

In the aftermath, Erich-wolf -- who was about to lunge in again, about to grasp something in his great teeth and just CHEW IT TO BITS -- stands there with his forepaws spread for balance, his ears pinned back, and his eyes wide as saucers.

Seconds go by before the shock passes. Then he gives one long protracted shake of his fur: head to toe, flinging off bits-of-monster that have caught in the density. He bounds a little, then, celebratory, yipping and yelping until

he realizes

Avery is not celebrating with him. That is when he begins to nose through the slop. That is when he finds her, his friend, his sister-in-arms, beloved-of-Falcon and respected-by-all: singed and acid-burnt, in a sorry state indeed. Erich-wolf noses her, whining in his throat. He puts a paw on her and pushes, awkwardly, and when she doesn't rouse immediately he turns, he twists a small something from his fur and crunches it in his teeth over the Silver Fang.

[-1Gn! Heal for 4!]

Radiant Honor

There is a period of the battle when Avery is bristling, thinking of the dishonor of a pretended defeat, and then a period when she is not thinking at all. She is instinct and reaction; strategy lives in her bones and her nervous system and requires no conscious thought to be put in action. Erich holds down the throat of their enemy and she bites at it.

Truth be told, she will reflect later that they could have done better. Been more clever, perhaps. Used tactics. But truth be told, she will also reflect later that at no point did she feel afraid, or concerned that Erich would turn his back on her, or leave her to fight one enemy while he fought another. She trusts him.

And that is a good thing.

Because at the end of the battle, she has nothing left but her life. Bear's gift guards her from pain, the searing and all-encompassing, mind-shredding pain she would feel, but she knows what is happening to her. She knows that her fur is burnt off in a split second; she knows that the skin underneath is charred to nonexistence in many places, knows that blood is trickling, burning, turning black in the crevices of areas that should never see light. She feels the ichor of the two-headed, two-tailed creature clinging to her, burning and burning and burning. Some part of her wants badly to roll on the ground, try and get it off, dry it off, scrub it off with the earth as her ally but whether she feels the pain or not, her consciousness is slave to her body.

It submits. She does not know that she twitches, or that she breathes; she is emptied out, and if she were aware enough to realize it, she would be grateful.

--

The first thing she feels after that is cleanliness, and she is grateful for that, too. A washing, even though the water is only a sprinkle. It feels like a flood. She breathes the suddenly clean air, unable for a few seconds to smell the carcass of the thing they just dispatched. Skin reforms, as though it was never gone; burnt and dried flesh flakes away, pushed off of her by the new skin she grows by the good grace of Gaia.

And a little slip of a Theurge that Avery is particularly fond of, even when she isn't being blessed by that Theurge's work.

Avery opens her eyes, glassy but clear, and saturated with blue color. She looks at Erich and determines that he is... all right, enough. She has regrown fur, and it thickens as she rolls to her paws, shaking out a bit. She leans toward Erich, sniffing at his muzzle. Finds a bit of gourd stuck in his fur and nudges it away, grooming him. Standing right beside him, close enough that they might look like pack, she looks past him at the black spot where the thing was, and where its pieces are.

She chuffs a breath. Her tail wags. She seems to be saying:

we did quite well, didn't we?

But this is followed by a nuzzle, a tucking of her head against his ruff for a moment. That seems to say something else. That something else is thank you.