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Annie is on her trike on her way to school.
This van labeled HAZARDOUS MATERIALS is also on its way to school.
The van hits a patch of black ice. It goes spinning, it turns over, it slices itself open on a wrought-iron fence with spikes, and it disgorges boxes which smash open on the pavement. Some of them skitter clear into the slush.
Some of them - along with most of the van - land on Annie.
There is a whirl of bewildering pain and confusion -
- and she falls to the ground, injured and in more kinds of discomfort beyond that and moaning.
She slowly starts to heal before the eyes of her sole witness.
six artifact pileup annie in thedas
+ Show First Post
keep_busy
first-and-final
"Might... help?"
"It might cure the taint," says Stalas. "Might. We don't know."
"I - I ate their flesh," Ruck mutters.
Stalas winces. "Yeah. But - I'm not sure it will work."
"...cure... cure Ruck..."
"Do you want us to try?"
Twist, twist, head-wobble. "Yes..."
"It might cure the taint," says Stalas. "Might. We don't know."
"I - I ate their flesh," Ruck mutters.
Stalas winces. "Yeah. But - I'm not sure it will work."
"...cure... cure Ruck..."
"Do you want us to try?"
Twist, twist, head-wobble. "Yes..."
keep_busy
"Um, it's also possible you will... disintegrate... I don't know exactly how that works yet... but you can try if you want to." She holds out her hand.
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"I didn't disintegrate," offers Stalas, when Ruck looks uncertain. This seems to be sufficiently cheering. Ruck very tentatively touches Annie's hand.
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Ruck makes a series of strange facial expressions, and then wobble/shuffles his way over to a pile of junk near the back of the cave, which he picks through for some coins. Then he wobble/shuffles back to offer the coins to Stalas and Annie.
"...thank you," says Stalas. He accepts the coins. Ruck shrug-nods.
"...thank you," says Stalas. He accepts the coins. Ruck shrug-nods.
keep_busy
"It has some kind of side effect we don't know about," Annie mentions. "So once you're done fixing you might not want to have it any more. I can take it back when you're done."
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Ruck mumbles something unintelligible.
"Hmm?" says Stalas.
"...cure... how long...?"
"I had two crossbow bolts in my shoulder and after a couple of minutes of this I was fine," says Stalas. "But I don't know what it does about the taint, or how fast."
"You... you have..."
"Yeah," says Stalas. "I do. Still. I don't know. ...Annie, what if you gave him the one that disintegrates darkspawn? Alongside the healing? Might that solve the problem, if healing alone doesn't?"
"Hmm?" says Stalas.
"...cure... how long...?"
"I had two crossbow bolts in my shoulder and after a couple of minutes of this I was fine," says Stalas. "But I don't know what it does about the taint, or how fast."
"You... you have..."
"Yeah," says Stalas. "I do. Still. I don't know. ...Annie, what if you gave him the one that disintegrates darkspawn? Alongside the healing? Might that solve the problem, if healing alone doesn't?"
keep_busy
"We don't know which drawback goes with that one..." Unspoken: He might spontaneously fall in love with one of us.
first-and-final
"Yeah."
"...if... cure..."
"One of the potential side effects is disappearing and appearing somewhere completely different. That's how Annie got here," Stalas adds.
"Ruck could leave?"
"Yes."
Shrug-nod-nod-nod, goes Ruck. "Be cured... leave," he mutters. "Never go home again. Never be here again... yes, yes."
"There are other possible side effects."
"Never go home," Ruck repeats.
"...if... cure..."
"One of the potential side effects is disappearing and appearing somewhere completely different. That's how Annie got here," Stalas adds.
"Ruck could leave?"
"Yes."
Shrug-nod-nod-nod, goes Ruck. "Be cured... leave," he mutters. "Never go home again. Never be here again... yes, yes."
"There are other possible side effects."
"Never go home," Ruck repeats.
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"You could wind up blind and deaf, or be really warm all the time... but if you want to leave I can just try everything on you one by one and see what goes with which?"
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Shrug-nod-nod-nod-nod. "Never go home. Never go home."
"Darkspawn disintegrator first, I think," says Stalas. "For the maximum chance of helping with his ghoul problem if that does turn out to be the one that vanishes you."
"Darkspawn disintegrator first, I think," says Stalas. "For the maximum chance of helping with his ghoul problem if that does turn out to be the one that vanishes you."
keep_busy
"Yeah.
Tap.
And now Ruck is really uncomfortably warm, like he has been improbably surrounded on all sides by an open lava pit.
Tap.
And now Ruck is really uncomfortably warm, like he has been improbably surrounded on all sides by an open lava pit.
first-and-final
"Aaah!" says Ruck.
"What's wrong?"
But Ruck is already calming down. Shrug-nod shrug-nod. "Too warm. She said. Too warm. That one."
"Not so bad," says Stalas.
Shrug-nod, nod, nod...
Stalas watches the changing tone of Ruck's movements thoughtfully. "Feeling better?" he asks.
Ruck nods. His control over his body seems noticeably improved already.
"What's wrong?"
But Ruck is already calming down. Shrug-nod shrug-nod. "Too warm. She said. Too warm. That one."
"Not so bad," says Stalas.
Shrug-nod, nod, nod...
Stalas watches the changing tone of Ruck's movements thoughtfully. "Feeling better?" he asks.
Ruck nods. His control over his body seems noticeably improved already.
first-and-final
He nods, and shivers, and looks at the floor, and retreats to the back of his cave.
"...um? Are you okay?" says Stalas.
Instead of answering, Ruck begins to cry.
"...um? Are you okay?" says Stalas.
Instead of answering, Ruck begins to cry.
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Ruck shakes his head.
"Might have something to do with why he doesn't want to talk about how he ended up stranded in a cave eating darkspawn," murmurs Stalas.
"Might have something to do with why he doesn't want to talk about how he ended up stranded in a cave eating darkspawn," murmurs Stalas.
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Ruck cries and rocks back and forth in the corner.
Then he starts to hum.
Then he screams.
Then he starts to hum.
Then he screams.
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"...humming, the thing that just happened was Ruck humming," says Stalas, as soon as he realizes that Annie might not know that.
"Aah!" says Ruck. "Aah!"
"Well, now we know what the drawback of the healing is."
"Aah!" says Ruck. "Aah!"
"Well, now we know what the drawback of the healing is."
keep_busy
Annie sits up, shivering and definitely not lurching Stalasward for a hug. "Humming. Oh, god, I kind of need to know if it's just humming and I really don't want to test it."
first-and-final
"Give it to me and I'll go off to an isolated corner and attempt to quietly sing," says Stalas. "I mean, if it just hurts and isn't some unrelated horrible sensation."