knightsoflegend | bermuda triangle ♔ hopelessly weighed down by your eyes of steel

[AND HOOK GOES DOWN. HARD.

But at least he has bleary moments of free thought before everything goes dark.

He uses those moments to not regret his actions at all. Oops.]

[Hey, guess who noticed that the spell broke.

Guess who doesn't care.

Is it Gold? It's Gold.

Moving on what he will totally say was adrenaline if asked, he moves to slam his cane into Hook's skull. It took him six seconds to collect himself after that last blow. Leave him alone. HIS FACE IS BLEEDING A LOT.]

[Charming doesn't know anything about magic, so he's not sure what's going on with his teammates. All he knows is that he's no good without his sword. Pushing himself up and running for his sword, he might make it in six seconds, but even if he does, he's sure not doing anything else...]

[ zatanna recovers herself and ignores gold beating on hook, rushing past him towards the stage, after her father. her eyes dart around the courtyard around them, at the veritable army charging towards them, surrounding them.

as she reaches the dais, she flings her arms around her mother's form desperately, as if hoping to shield her from what's happening around them. sindella looks weakly between her and her father, seeing but not seeing. ] Mother, please. We have to go!

[ she shot her father. she shot her father.

but emma doesn't have time to fixate on that, because as soon as clarity creeps into her mind, the clarity of seeing a crazed gold charge for hook does as well and emma runs to stop him, trying to get her arms up around his from behind him (attempted grapple! atk 15 vs gold's touch AC which i imagine is less than that bc it's 10+dex, provokes attack of opportunity against her def which is 17). ]

[This isn't the first time David's been turned into a puppet by magic, but he had hoped that the times before would be the last. Being put into a position where he's turned on his people without his consent is the easiest way to make him angry, but he can't focus entirely on that anger right now. He needs to focus on getting those people out.

With the armed people coming in on all sides, he knows what his mission is. It's still to protect the Zataras so he heads after them, climbing the stairs and keeping his fingers tight on his sword. He spots Giovanni's injury (wisdom check 15), but he seems to be fine so he turns his attention on Zatanna and Sindella's vacant stare. She needs help, but it isn't sure if it's help they can bring her here.]

Do you think we can take her with us?

[The question is more directed towards Giovanni than Zatanna -- she doesn't seem like she's in the place to be thinking tactically at the moment.]

[Gold in a fantastic attempt to wrench free crit fails, managing to twist around on his bad foot, which hurts like fuck (dmg 4). He'll be... Nursing his bruised ego all limp and spent now, okay.]

So it appears the spell's been broken, then.

Edited 2013-07-13 02:03 (UTC)

[ zatara glances at david, looking back down at sindella and his daughter, his eyebrows knit together in consternation. ] All these people... this city-- [ he gestures towards the on-coming masses ] these are not the homo magi. [ he shakes his head ] I remember now, the very reason Sindella had to return to them, the very reason they didn't want us together.

The magi are cursed: to fall in love with the first human they set eyes upon. That is why they are isolated here, why they withdrew themselves from the world... [ as zatanna lifts her eyes to stare at her father in shock, processing the ramifications of the pronouncement, he spells them out for her with a clearly heavy heart. ] ... That is how your mother came to give her heart to me, Zatanna. How we--

[ but there's no time to get into all that right now, and risa pipes up:

"If those aren't the homo magi, then who are they?" ]

[ it's zatanna who suddenly stares past her father at the approaching army, stricken by the realization. ]

All those who've disappeared here in the Triangle... enslaved just as you just were.

They guard this place. [ she sounds as if she's going to be sick, and turns to look desperately at the unresponsive woman in her arms again ] But my mother-- I don't understand--

[ it's at that moment that sindella starts to slowly turn her head, fixing her gaze first on her daughter, then on zatara. the cloud behind her eyes seems to slowly dissolve, and she drowsily says: "... my darling." it's hard to tell which of the two it's directed at -- maybe both -- but after a moment, fear floods her eyes and she shakes her head weakly, sounding almost panicked. "You shouldn't... have come... they'll take Zatanna... I have to--"

and it's at that moment, as the crowd of brainwashed guardians gather around them on all sides, armed with pikes and swords and scowls, that a sound like lightning crashing through a tree rends the air, and a few steps in front of where charming is running for his sword, a breathtakingly beautiful woman appears out of nowhere, garbed in exquisite violet robes accented with expensive jewels. in her hands is a staff of her own, that seems to be solid gold, tipped with a blood-red ruby. her expression is hard, radiating anger and displeasure, and her other hand is raised in the air, where a crackling ball of lightning glows within her grasp. it's pretty clear that she intends to chuck it at whoever makes a move in her direction first, too. but for now, her eyes are only for the woman crumpled upon the dais. ]

ENOUGH.

[ her voice echoes off the buildings around them, magnified to a near deafening sound. ] There's nothing left to be done, Sindella. You've carried your burden - your duty - to its end, and it is time for your heir to take it up for you. It is the only way to save yourself now.

This city must stand, if our people are to live on.

[Francesca fades back into visibility as the guards close in around them, still standing over Hook. She narrows her eyes at the woman, her booming voice, and the lightning ball in her hand. It's obviously more than their small group can handle physically so she takes a step forward, to the front of the group, sheathing her weapon in a show of good faith. When she speaks up, she sounds calm yet hopeful (Diplomacy check of 43).]

But there is another way. If we help you to break this curse, you can end your exile, correct? You could be free.

[ risa shifts past them, backing up towards where gold is - and she lays a palm on his shoulder, warm light coursing through her hand (28 hp restored). her eyes are on francesca and the mysterious mage, however. the latter speaks up, scoffing slightly: "It would be the only way, yes. But what do you know of magic powerful enough to counteract such a curse?" ]

[Gold lets out a sigh of relief and nods a polite thank you at Risa before craning his neck to give Emma a look.] If you would, Ms. Swan.

[aka let me go, so I don't kill myself getting out of your grapple.]

[ zatanna, in the meantime, is still talking to her mom quietly... those up on the dais can make a listen check of 17+ to hear that she's whispering something quietly which is leaving zee protesting with wide eyes ]

[With his sword in hand, Charming hurries back to the group, looking around wildly at the approaching army. He doesn't have time to hear any secret conversations because he is FUCKING CONCERNED WITH THE APPROACHING ARMY??? GUYS???

Despite the earlier events, Charming instinctively steps to Emma's side.]

Everyone alright? [He says while... probably stepping over Hook.]

[ emma lets gold go, eyes immediately flickering over to charming in concern. sry hook her concern for you taps out at stopping you from dying, and he may be unconscious but he's definitely not dead, so now she's moving to where charming is, putting a hand on his shoulder. ]

Looks that way. Are you - ? [ she studies the wound from where she'd shot him, grimacing, but this is really not the time. she slowly turns her head to glance out, past the zataras, at the armies advancing. ] I think we've got bigger problems.

[With David's listen check of 20, he does pick up on Sindella and Zatanna's conversation, and while the army closing in on them demands his direct attention, he can't help but throw some back to them as well.]

If you have any ideas, ladies, now would be the time.

[ sindella seems to be regaining more and more of herself, and is gesturing to zatanna to leave her side. zatara seems torn between wanting to address the issues at hand, and wanting to figure out what she's aiming at. a tearful zatanna violently starts saying "No, no you can't!", and after a moment, zatara tries unsuccessfully to pull her away.

"It's the only way," sindella says, a strangely calm conviction in her sad smile. ]

[ the golden haired woman seems oblivious to whatever the zataras are doing over there now, stepping forward again, eyes trained now on francesca. ]

I ask you again: what power could you possibly wield that we have not already tried? We have searched for eons, across the reaches of time and space, to no avail. Your claims are empty. [ she raises her staff. ] Submit, or be destroyed. [ and a hundred pointy weapons are lowered at them. ]

[ She can hear zatanna and sindella talking (listen 27) but can't make out exactly what they're saying in the middle of her own conversation. But she gets the "It's the only way." part before the blonde woman speaks again and she's really hoping that's some semblance of a plan being worked out back there <.<

She's just gonna stall, for now (with a nat 20 bluff check + fast talk for a total of 59 if it matters). ] It's not power we wield, but knowledge. Our organization specializes in combining scientific and magical research in order to create something beyond both. Something better. We wouldn't have come here without an offer. For help, and an alliance.

[ unlike most of the party, risa sees no cause to be a dick to hook, so she's gonna heal him too, gurl. (30 hp) because it beats carrying his broken ass out of here through a giant army, if it comes to that. ]

[Now that he's free and healed and only concerned with the approaching army, Gold's capable of actually thinking clearly and he limps up to join Francesca.]

It's not as if you stand to lose anything by indulging us. [(Diplomacy 24)]

[ the mage keeps her eyes on francseca, but lowers the staff. ]

An offer.

If we take this offer, it does not change the fact that Sindella's vessel can no longer support the Medulla Jewel. It must be transferred to her daughter before this day ends, or she will die. The jewel needs a host to control its energies: and without one, this city will collapse, the spells we need to conceal our home unraveled. We will stand exposed to your world. Our guardians will flee.

I cannot risk that for my people. If Zatanna will stay, we will accept your alliance.

[ zatanna stands up defiantly. ] You keep these people against their will. They're no more than slaves, who you force to kill! You keep them from their families, their loved ones... You steal their lives just to shield yourselves from your own curse.

I will not be party to that.

Once we find a way to break the curse, no one will have to be party to it. [Charming doesn't like the sound of any of this, but the terms the blonde has put forward don't really seem negotiable.]

We won't leave her here alone. [They have no way of knowing if the state Zatanna's mother has been left in is the product of years of exposure to this jewel or minutes. And if one or more of them stay, they may be able to stall. He looks to the others, leaving Emma for last.] Go. I'll stay. [He wouldn't be much use to them in solving a magical problem, anyway, and his sword might be of use here to keep the girl safe.]

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