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The Lord Ruler is in his palace, when he sees a sight he hasn't seen in centuries. Trees, sunlight...is he hallucinating? The fact that there's a forest in his living room isn't the surprising part. The fact that there's a forest on his planet is. As soon as he walks through the door to where his living room isn't, it's definitely not a hallucination.
His stores of Allomantic metals abruptly disappear. They're still physically there, but the power is completely gone. He immediately turns to go back, only to see more forest.
At least his Feruchemy still works—he can tell because he's still alive—but that won't last him forever. He only has so much stored youth, and without both sets of abilities he can't replenish it. He hasn't been in so much danger since the beheading that one time. Returning to Scadrial is the highest and currently only priority. If spontaneous forests are a thing, he needs to find someone who can explain them and more importantly how to get back.
The next few hours are spent walking in an essentially randomly chosen direction, with the sun to his right. He's quite certain that suns are supposed to be moving across the sky, but that's not a pressing emergency. He already knew he wasn't on his own planet when he saw proper trees and plants instead of ash-covered monstrosities. Whenever he calls out, nobody responds. If it's an empty spontaneous forest, he's probably doomed.
After some time, he hears his stomach growl. He hasn't seen much that looks edible, but possibly that's just because he's not used to real plants. Berries. Berries used to exist. Those berries look tasty, and if they're poisonous it's not like he needs to worry about it. As always, he has a truly ridiculous amount of stored health in his gold jewelry. Tapping gold just in case, he eats a handful.
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unprophesied_of_ages
unprophesied_of_ages
Visible doesn't mean much under the circumstances, and Feruchemy is simple enough to figure out that the decoy will probably finish very soon. But it'd be silly to take that risk.
"When you've done it, confirm by doing something I'll notice but not disapprove of," Alendi doesn't want to have to think of a signal right now. "I'll let you go after that."
If the sorcerers can manage to sorcer things despite the distractions, there are probably bigger threats coming up. He doesn't have a lot of freedom of movement at the moment, but zips around as far as he can while still keeping his ring in contact with the fairy who's attached to the floor. Might as well be a very slightly more evasive target.
"When you've done it, confirm by doing something I'll notice but not disapprove of," Alendi doesn't want to have to think of a signal right now. "I'll let you go after that."
If the sorcerers can manage to sorcer things despite the distractions, there are probably bigger threats coming up. He doesn't have a lot of freedom of movement at the moment, but zips around as far as he can while still keeping his ring in contact with the fairy who's attached to the floor. Might as well be a very slightly more evasive target.
The decoy is seriously limited in what she can do with a stuck jaw and broken neck. She flutters her eyelashes.
The grit is annoyingly well-aimed.
The grit is annoyingly well-aimed.
unprophesied_of_ages
Fortunately, Alendi is finally free to get away from it. He yanks the spike out of the fairy and returns it to its previous place in his own body. He says, quickly, "you can run now," and then launches himself up. Two levels is easy enough, and with his speed he'll immediately get to either his destination or the next obstacle that can stop him, whichever comes first.
The fairy cannot actually run, because she has a broken neck and is glued to the floor.
His going directly through the ceiling seems to have caught some fairies off-guard; there are some in the next floor up (he hits his head on a sorcerous barrier between him and the next one) but they're all facing the fairy equivalent of a stairwell and need to turn around to address his presence.
His going directly through the ceiling seems to have caught some fairies off-guard; there are some in the next floor up (he hits his head on a sorcerous barrier between him and the next one) but they're all facing the fairy equivalent of a stairwell and need to turn around to address his presence.
unprophesied_of_ages
If Alendi were concerned with the fairy's plight, he might have to turn in his Tyrannical Dark Lord card. He's only paying attention to his relevant enemies.
There's probably no need to fight them. He can stroll past them and take the fairy stairwell before they have a chance to react. He jumps across and up, kicking off the far wall and hoping the barrier doesn't extend over the stairwell itself.
There's probably no need to fight them. He can stroll past them and take the fairy stairwell before they have a chance to react. He jumps across and up, kicking off the far wall and hoping the barrier doesn't extend over the stairwell itself.
The barrier does extend over the stairwell itself!
But then the south wall of the palace disintegrates and then it doesn't anymore.
But then the south wall of the palace disintegrates and then it doesn't anymore.
unprophesied_of_ages
That was either an extremely counterproductive defensive measure, or help from a sorcerer on his side. Alendi jumps again, and takes off down the corridor at a speed only Promise can track.
He is accompanied by enough bursts of light and extreme-temperatured winds and occasional enemies turning into sparrows that he makes it unimpeded except for physical attacks he may easily shrug off to the guarded room where the decoy directed him as her first guess. The door, naturally, won't open.
unprophesied_of_ages
Is this a "won't open" as in barricade, or a "won't open" as in magic? Probably the second thing. Rather than test the door directly, he tries battering down the wall it's attached to. South of it, naturally. (Pain gets turned off, just in case.)
That doesn't work. But after he's been at it, Promise presumably finagles something, because now he can walk right through it.
unprophesied_of_ages
Thank you, omnipotent sorcerer.
He charges through, rather redundantly using precognition on top of speed. No telling what's inside that room, after all.
He charges through, rather redundantly using precognition on top of speed. No telling what's inside that room, after all.
Well, then, the tiniest sliver of a second in advance, he will get to see that now everything is absolutely dark. And the entire palace shakes with an
absolutely
tremendous
NOISE
absolutely
tremendous
NOISE
unprophesied_of_ages
Ow.
(tin)
Better.
He doesn't even know if the Queen is in here, but there's an obvious thing to try. He grabs a dart that was meant for the crossbow, and hurls it in a direction. He is of course calling on enough luck to make a one-in-a-million shot, plus five percent or so.
(tin)
Better.
He doesn't even know if the Queen is in here, but there's an obvious thing to try. He grabs a dart that was meant for the crossbow, and hurls it in a direction. He is of course calling on enough luck to make a one-in-a-million shot, plus five percent or so.
He can neither see or hear if it hit.
And now he's completely wrapped in chains, including across his mouth and binding his limbs so tightly that they'd break if he were a normal person. They feel like they're made of perfectly smooth stone.
And now he's completely wrapped in chains, including across his mouth and binding his limbs so tightly that they'd break if he were a normal person. They feel like they're made of perfectly smooth stone.
unprophesied_of_ages
Oh, fun.
If it were stone, it'd barely impede him. Since it is, it clearly has magic behind it. He starts straining against it, spending as much strength as it takes to break out of this thing.
If it were stone, it'd barely impede him. Since it is, it clearly has magic behind it. He starts straining against it, spending as much strength as it takes to break out of this thing.
Nope.
The pitch darkness and the noise continue.
Hands poke him to see if he is somehow getting out of there. Pat pat prod prod they have no respect for his dignity whatever. They remove removable objects.
The pitch darkness and the noise continue.
Hands poke him to see if he is somehow getting out of there. Pat pat prod prod they have no respect for his dignity whatever. They remove removable objects.
unprophesied_of_ages
He's not getting out. Especially once the removable objects are gone. The bracers on his upper arms don't get removed, possibly because they're thoroughly attached to his arms via spikes, but he's left with no metalminds except the ones keeping him young. And, of course, a piece of gold he had implanted in his jaw after the incident with the beheading. This adds up to: No metallic means of escape.
Sucks to be him.
They continue patting and prodding him. They inspect the bracers, then leave them alone. They wait for another minute of dark dark dark, noise noise noise. After this minute, something sugary is insinuated through the chain gag in his mouth. With a long utensil to push it down his throat. Yummy. This happens three times.
They continue patting and prodding him. They inspect the bracers, then leave them alone. They wait for another minute of dark dark dark, noise noise noise. After this minute, something sugary is insinuated through the chain gag in his mouth. With a long utensil to push it down his throat. Yummy. This happens three times.
unprophesied_of_ages
It sucks to be him even more, now that he's tinless and the noise is back. That's probably not his biggest problem right now.
Nope.
The noise dies down. The darkness remains. The damage to his hearing clears with a crackle.
A woman's voice says, "Do nothing."
The noise dies down. The darkness remains. The damage to his hearing clears with a crackle.
A woman's voice says, "Do nothing."
unprophesied_of_ages
He reverts to his chronological age, and also starts to not breathe. These do not combine well for him.
"He is withering away," says the voice. "Do you wish his death, my queen?"
"Not yet," says another woman's. "Keep him alive, without loosening his binding." (Air feeds itself into his lungs without his intervention. His aging reverts, although not much.) "Throw him in the dungeon." (Someone picks him up and begins to carry him away.) "See to repairs. Determine who he subverted on his way in. Renew their orders. Put out his eyes." (Someone puts out Alendi's eyes. This is a standard amount of painful.) "Call in Flay and Whetstone. Restore the light." (Alendi has no eyes and may not be able to appreciate this.)
"Not yet," says another woman's. "Keep him alive, without loosening his binding." (Air feeds itself into his lungs without his intervention. His aging reverts, although not much.) "Throw him in the dungeon." (Someone picks him up and begins to carry him away.) "See to repairs. Determine who he subverted on his way in. Renew their orders. Put out his eyes." (Someone puts out Alendi's eyes. This is a standard amount of painful.) "Call in Flay and Whetstone. Restore the light." (Alendi has no eyes and may not be able to appreciate this.)
unprophesied_of_ages
Those are not names of people Alendi wants to meet. He resists with every action he conceivably can, which is none.
Alendi, eyeless and kept breathing and not shriveling to death solely on the sufferance of another's sorcery, is carried out of the room, tossed casually down an empty fairy "stairwell" and allowed to hit bottom in a way that only breaks his hip and both legs and not his skull, and then picked up again and carried some more.