Chapter 32: The Power Of The Mechanical Pencil
Chapter 32: The Power Of The Mechanical Pencil
The water pressure in the Richard White Games Forum finally became too great. The water blasted the door down and flooded into the Nethergate Forum.
---
Alorael entered the Geneforge 4: Rebellion Forum and approached the fountain. "Mine." He grabbed the sniper rifle from Jumpin' Salmon, pushed him over, chugged a bottle of skribbane, and began sniping.
Drakefyre, Zephyr Tempest, Zeviz, Ephesos, Lenar, the Silent Assassin, and Dikiyoba arrived shortly afterwards. The resulting barrage of fire, ice, and other spells drove the rats back temporarily.
"What are you doing? Attack! Kill!" Attorosi sent a bolt of fire at Tyranicus.
"Frack!" Tyranicus was incinerated.
Stareye crushed a red rat under his boot. "If we could kill Attorosi, that might dishearten the rats enough for them to call off the attack."
"And then what?" Drakefyre asked.
"I don't know. Alorael, snipe Attorosi!" Stareye said.
Unfortunately, Attorosi heard the command. It dodged the bullet and ran for safety. "Get him! Kill the sniper!"
Several green rats hit Alorael with their curse rays. The sniper rifle was knocked from Alorael's hands. He scrambled to pick it up again but he was hit by a bolt of fire from a white rat before he could do so.
Meanwhile, MagmaDragoon and Andraste found themselves cut off from everyone else.
"What do we do?" MagmaDragoon asked as a curse ray bounced off his armor and hit the very rat that cast it.
Andraste quickly clubbed it and a giant rat that was sneaking up on MagmaDragoon. "Just keep whacking away at them. Ahhh!" A red rat knocked her to the ground and a blue rat bit her before she could recover.
MagmaDragoon killed the blue rat. "Are you okay?"
"N... no. Help," Andraste gasped.
"Stew Boy! Someone help!" MagmaDragoon called.
The Stew Boy already had Thralni slung over his shoulder. "I'll be there in a moment!" The Stew Boy left Thralni at Nioca's feet and ran back for Andraste.
"Back again?" Nioca asked.
"Yeah. A blue rat this time. I guess I'm a bit slow," Thralni said.
Nioca cast a healing spell. "Well, there you go."
"Thanks again," Thralni said.
MagmaDragoon swung at a rat and missed. He stumbled in his heavy armor. A blue rat jumped on him and tried to claw him, but the armor deflected its strikes. Andraste managed to kick it. The blue rat turned on her. Delicious Vlish cast terror on it and slapped a few rats with his tentacles.
"This creature isn't a human," one of the rats said.
"Yes, but it's clearly with them. Kill him!"
Delicious Vlish was hit by a bolt of fire spell and collapsed on the ground.
MagmaDragoon got up as the Stew Boy arrived.
"I'll help Vlish, you take Andraste," the Stew Boy said.
MagmaDragoon picked Andraste up and ran off, but several rats blocked the Stew Boy and Delicious Vlish's escape.
"That creature knows a terror spell. I think Attorosi is looking for mental abilities," a giant rat whispered to a white rat.
The Stew Boy looked nervously at all the rats surrounding him. "I... I..."
"Surrender and we'll let you live," the white rat said.
"I... I..." The Stew Boy continued to look around in panic. He saw Wanderer brought down by the rats and everyone else being pushed further away by the rat horde. A wererat assumed Alorael's form and climbed onto the fountain with the sniper rifle.
"Oh no you don't!" Jumpin' Salmon dashed forward and yanked it out of the wererat's hands. "Alorael said explicitly that I should be the only one to have the sniper rifle if something should happen to him. Yeah. Something like that anyway." Jumpin' Salmon shot the wererat and ran off.
"Udder destruction!" Slartucker yelled. The rats around him were destroyed.
"DIVINE RETRIBUTION!!!" Ephesos blasted several rats while Nioca healed Andraste. Andraste grabbed her clubs and dashed back out into the fray.
Two giant rats now held the Heartstriker Bow. They struggled to aim it.
"This would be easier if we had thumbs!"
"At least we don't have to worry about loading it as well."
Finally, they had it in position.
"Ready?"
"Ready!"
"DIVINE... argh!" The arrow struck Ephesos, killing him instantly.
"We're being surrounded. Retreat to the Announcements Forum. Retreat!" Drakefyre said. Those that could turned and ran to the Announcements Forum. Jumpin' Salmon paused and fired a parting shot, enabling Marlenny and Kelandon to escape, before he exited as well.
"I... I..." The Stew Boy still hesitated.
"Don't you dare!" Delicious Vlish flailed ineffectively at the rats.
The Stew Boy hung his head. "We surrender."
"No! Fight! Fight!" Delicious Vlish managed to knock the first two rats to approach him away. The third knocked him unconscious with a rock that had probably been launched from Student of Trinity's sling at some point in time.
"A wise choice. Come on," The white rat led the Stew Boy over to Attorosi.
The Stew Boy was forced to kneel in front of Attorosi.
"What's this?" Attorosi demanded as the rats set Delicious Vlish on the ground.
"This creature can cast terror. We offered the human a chance to surrender so that we could capture this creature. As you can see, he accepted," the white rat said.
"So, human, you will answer all of my questions, correct?" Attorosi said.
"I... I..."
"That's pretty much all he says," a blue rat sneered.
"Answer my questions if you want to live! What is the name of this creature?" Attorosi squeaked.
Delicious Vlish regained consciousness but remained still. Do it, he projected to the Stew Boy.
"What! Er, yes. Yes. That creature, as you call him, is Delicious Vlish. He's, well, an edible vlish." The Stew Boy reached into his pocket for the poisoned mechanical pencil.
"And exactly what is a vlish?"
Come on, kill it, Delicious Vlish repeated, Do it to protect these boards!
"I will!" The Stew Boy lunged at Attorosi.
"Look out!" A white rat leapt in front of Attorosi and took the pencil thrust. The rest of the rats knocked the Stew Boy flat. The pencil fell from his hand.
Attorosi laughed. "You thought you could kill me? Look at my rat horde, ready to kill and die for me. Did you honestly think..."
Delicious Vlish scooted along the ground and wrapped his tentacles around Attorosi.
"Ahhh! Get him off! Get him off!" Attorosi screamed.
The rats forgot about the Stew Boy and tore Delicious Vlish apart. The Stew Boy jumped up, grabbed the mechanical pencil, and drove it into Attorosi's heart.
"Nooo!" Attorosi tried to claw it out but promptly died. All the rats halted, confused.
"I did it! I did it!" The Stew Boy suddenly realized he was still surrounded by rats and ran screaming for the Announcements Forum.
---
Alorael entered the Geneforge 4: Rebellion Forum and approached the fountain. "Mine." He grabbed the sniper rifle from Jumpin' Salmon, pushed him over, chugged a bottle of skribbane, and began sniping.
Drakefyre, Zephyr Tempest, Zeviz, Ephesos, Lenar, the Silent Assassin, and Dikiyoba arrived shortly afterwards. The resulting barrage of fire, ice, and other spells drove the rats back temporarily.
"What are you doing? Attack! Kill!" Attorosi sent a bolt of fire at Tyranicus.
"Frack!" Tyranicus was incinerated.
Stareye crushed a red rat under his boot. "If we could kill Attorosi, that might dishearten the rats enough for them to call off the attack."
"And then what?" Drakefyre asked.
"I don't know. Alorael, snipe Attorosi!" Stareye said.
Unfortunately, Attorosi heard the command. It dodged the bullet and ran for safety. "Get him! Kill the sniper!"
Several green rats hit Alorael with their curse rays. The sniper rifle was knocked from Alorael's hands. He scrambled to pick it up again but he was hit by a bolt of fire from a white rat before he could do so.
Meanwhile, MagmaDragoon and Andraste found themselves cut off from everyone else.
"What do we do?" MagmaDragoon asked as a curse ray bounced off his armor and hit the very rat that cast it.
Andraste quickly clubbed it and a giant rat that was sneaking up on MagmaDragoon. "Just keep whacking away at them. Ahhh!" A red rat knocked her to the ground and a blue rat bit her before she could recover.
MagmaDragoon killed the blue rat. "Are you okay?"
"N... no. Help," Andraste gasped.
"Stew Boy! Someone help!" MagmaDragoon called.
The Stew Boy already had Thralni slung over his shoulder. "I'll be there in a moment!" The Stew Boy left Thralni at Nioca's feet and ran back for Andraste.
"Back again?" Nioca asked.
"Yeah. A blue rat this time. I guess I'm a bit slow," Thralni said.
Nioca cast a healing spell. "Well, there you go."
"Thanks again," Thralni said.
MagmaDragoon swung at a rat and missed. He stumbled in his heavy armor. A blue rat jumped on him and tried to claw him, but the armor deflected its strikes. Andraste managed to kick it. The blue rat turned on her. Delicious Vlish cast terror on it and slapped a few rats with his tentacles.
"This creature isn't a human," one of the rats said.
"Yes, but it's clearly with them. Kill him!"
Delicious Vlish was hit by a bolt of fire spell and collapsed on the ground.
MagmaDragoon got up as the Stew Boy arrived.
"I'll help Vlish, you take Andraste," the Stew Boy said.
MagmaDragoon picked Andraste up and ran off, but several rats blocked the Stew Boy and Delicious Vlish's escape.
"That creature knows a terror spell. I think Attorosi is looking for mental abilities," a giant rat whispered to a white rat.
The Stew Boy looked nervously at all the rats surrounding him. "I... I..."
"Surrender and we'll let you live," the white rat said.
"I... I..." The Stew Boy continued to look around in panic. He saw Wanderer brought down by the rats and everyone else being pushed further away by the rat horde. A wererat assumed Alorael's form and climbed onto the fountain with the sniper rifle.
"Oh no you don't!" Jumpin' Salmon dashed forward and yanked it out of the wererat's hands. "Alorael said explicitly that I should be the only one to have the sniper rifle if something should happen to him. Yeah. Something like that anyway." Jumpin' Salmon shot the wererat and ran off.
"Udder destruction!" Slartucker yelled. The rats around him were destroyed.
"DIVINE RETRIBUTION!!!" Ephesos blasted several rats while Nioca healed Andraste. Andraste grabbed her clubs and dashed back out into the fray.
Two giant rats now held the Heartstriker Bow. They struggled to aim it.
"This would be easier if we had thumbs!"
"At least we don't have to worry about loading it as well."
Finally, they had it in position.
"Ready?"
"Ready!"
"DIVINE... argh!" The arrow struck Ephesos, killing him instantly.
"We're being surrounded. Retreat to the Announcements Forum. Retreat!" Drakefyre said. Those that could turned and ran to the Announcements Forum. Jumpin' Salmon paused and fired a parting shot, enabling Marlenny and Kelandon to escape, before he exited as well.
"I... I..." The Stew Boy still hesitated.
"Don't you dare!" Delicious Vlish flailed ineffectively at the rats.
The Stew Boy hung his head. "We surrender."
"No! Fight! Fight!" Delicious Vlish managed to knock the first two rats to approach him away. The third knocked him unconscious with a rock that had probably been launched from Student of Trinity's sling at some point in time.
"A wise choice. Come on," The white rat led the Stew Boy over to Attorosi.
The Stew Boy was forced to kneel in front of Attorosi.
"What's this?" Attorosi demanded as the rats set Delicious Vlish on the ground.
"This creature can cast terror. We offered the human a chance to surrender so that we could capture this creature. As you can see, he accepted," the white rat said.
"So, human, you will answer all of my questions, correct?" Attorosi said.
"I... I..."
"That's pretty much all he says," a blue rat sneered.
"Answer my questions if you want to live! What is the name of this creature?" Attorosi squeaked.
Delicious Vlish regained consciousness but remained still. Do it, he projected to the Stew Boy.
"What! Er, yes. Yes. That creature, as you call him, is Delicious Vlish. He's, well, an edible vlish." The Stew Boy reached into his pocket for the poisoned mechanical pencil.
"And exactly what is a vlish?"
Come on, kill it, Delicious Vlish repeated, Do it to protect these boards!
"I will!" The Stew Boy lunged at Attorosi.
"Look out!" A white rat leapt in front of Attorosi and took the pencil thrust. The rest of the rats knocked the Stew Boy flat. The pencil fell from his hand.
Attorosi laughed. "You thought you could kill me? Look at my rat horde, ready to kill and die for me. Did you honestly think..."
Delicious Vlish scooted along the ground and wrapped his tentacles around Attorosi.
"Ahhh! Get him off! Get him off!" Attorosi screamed.
The rats forgot about the Stew Boy and tore Delicious Vlish apart. The Stew Boy jumped up, grabbed the mechanical pencil, and drove it into Attorosi's heart.
"Nooo!" Attorosi tried to claw it out but promptly died. All the rats halted, confused.
"I did it! I did it!" The Stew Boy suddenly realized he was still surrounded by rats and ran screaming for the Announcements Forum.