Tyler

"Hmm, that would be a far more practical strategy." Diric noted, "I did not consider such a factor, perhaps because my knowledge on the arcane, admittedly, remains limited." "For good reason, though." Tynes spoke-up, "In Norkotia, we have never needed the use of magitech, nor any other supernatural power, to accomplish what we set out to do. While I certainly wouldn't dissuade you from proceeding as you laid out, I'm afraid that it offers little benefit for us. I would prefer to free Terrenus from the whims of magic, whether it be in wielded or technological form." He turned his head slightly to the side, though kept his eyes locked on Mia. "I'm certain your father was aware of our disposition on this matter, though perhaps he did not relay it to you. Norkotia has never needed to rely on the arcane, and I, for one, do not intend to allow that to change. Hence, there is little we can contribute to your project as proposed." "I suspect Lady Uldwar does not intend to make use of our assistance in the technology itself, rather, I presume she wishes to use it as an example of why House Uldwar is still a worthy ally in Ursa Madeum." Diric countered Tynes, then looked at Mia, "Am I correct?"

Nikki's brute strength was not yet overwhelming, but the muscles on her arms seemed to have gotten thicker over the course of their fight, and it seemed like she was getting even stronger with each second. That manic look in her eyes was at the height of its intensity, and if Arashi allowed it, Nikki would claw out her throat. "I'm... gonna... kill... you..." Nikki seemed to have completely lost it. Forcing Arashi against the wall, she began trying to wrap her hands around Arashi's neck to choke her out.

Another blow to the gut, and Nikki was thrown on her back again, the impact of landing on her rifle (still slung over her shoulder) causing even more injury in addition to what Arashi had caused. Nikki winced in pain, yet the green glow seemed to intensify in her eyes. And by now, her previously human left eye was now overtaken by the same mutant, beastly form that her right possessed. In fact, her entire body was now covered in a tough, rhino-like skin, though it maintained its human color. Her teeth ere now noticeably sharp, while her fingers were now tipped with claws. "No." Nikki somehow managed the energy to raise a boot and kick Arashi in the chest, forcing her away. The injured girl then staggered to her feet, blood dripping from various wounds. However, as she looked up at Arashi again, the Draconian would realize that Nikki's wounds were healing rapidly. Not instantly by any means, but quickly enough that it could be observed with the naked eye. Nikki didn't actually seem conscious of this, as she seemed singularly focused on beating... or perhaps killing... Arashi. "Rrrrrrrrr..." she growled, stalking forward again, one of her fists, now only featuring three fingers instead of five, raised to blast Arashi in the jaw.

Arashi's first threw Nikki back into the living room they had just left, causing her to smash through a glass table and several furniture items in the process. As she stood up, covered in various lacerations and bruises, and feeling like she might have suffered a couple broken ribs, and then some, from the impact of Arashi's fist, she began to think maybe she'd bitten off more than she could chew. But that voice, that irritating, insane, evil, wonderful voice, kept telling her to attack. Her mind was covered in a fog of madness and feral rage, making it difficult for her to reason logically. And all the while, she kept laughing at Arashi, as though there was something amusing about it all, despite the fact that she was now covered in blood and limping slightly. The leathery, mutated skin was spreading more noticeably now, and there were other changes becoming apparent. Nikki could not notice, but Arashi would. The scent of a bastardized dragonkin hybrid was becoming more and more prominent.

Nikki didn't respond to Arashi's accusation. Instead, she started laughing. A rather unhinged, not-Nikki-like laugh, that seemed to get a little crazier the longer it lasted. Even as Arashi was waiting for a response, Nikki lowered her shoulder and bull-rushed into the armored girl, driving the both of them through another wall (this escalated into a Marvel fight quickly...) and back into the street again. Despite this, Arashi would probably be able to figure that she still had an even advantage, even though Nikki seemed to be gaining a power boost from somewhere.

Nikki probably would have thought better about continuing to fight Arashi, as the other girl was stronger in both physical and metaphysical abilities, not to mention she was wearing some sort of weird-ass magic armor. But her better judgement was overruled by that voice in her head, the one that said to keep going, to get revenge for all the slights in the past, to prove she was the superior being. "No... I'm not pissed..." Nikki somehow managed to say in a quivering voice, "I'm MAD." The last statement was said in a voice that was not her own, while her blue eyes again turned green, but for a longer period. Even as she was moving and speaking, it seemed like the mutated skin spread ever so slightly further across her face. And once again she charged forward, throwing another strike, this one aimed toward one of Arashi's joints, where Nikki supposed she'd be weaker. The strike came faster than and with more force than Nikki had previously managed to muster, though why was not yet apparent.

"Thank you." Diric nodded in acknowledgement of both their consents, "First, allow me to speculate on the nature of the weapon itself. While you did not say with definiteness that the weapon would be build on Mount Egon itself, I shall, for the purpose of this hypothetical, assume that it is. While I suppose it may be possible to extract the energy into the Uru and transport it to another location to power the weapon, this would seem impractical and time-consuming. Therefore, we shall assume the weapon is constructed on or in the mountain itself. This, therein, provides the first difficulty, which is to construct the weapon without being detected. As the mountain is a large, well-known landmark, the possibility of civilian detection of the construction project is high, even if precautions are taken. Though, once again, for the purpose of this exercise, I will assume that construction is completed without incident, and the weapon reaches functionality." Tynes smirked slightly. This was going to be a long-winded expose, he could tell. "Even if the weapon is completed and fired, I would estimate that the likelihood of its detection reaches one-hundred-percent once it has been activated for the first time. Despite what Mister Barrows suggested about the blast arcing through the high atmosphere and landing on its target from above, the blast would still be seen emerging from the mountain itself, whether by other houses or civilians on the island, or passing ships at sea. Furthermore, the magical signature it will leave will be significant, and will likely be detected by magitech instruments or sensitive practitioners. Lastly, I would suspect that a weapon of such magnitude will require a significant period of time to cool down and or recharge. Thus, the weapon can therefor only be fired once, after which point its location will be compromised and enemies will move in to retaliate before further attacks can be made. If Oscar Uldwar was aware of this, it therefor meant his target had to be one to which he could inflict maximum effect with one single blow, as he would not likely get a second chance to fire. As I do not figure any lone noble house would be enough of a threat to push him to this extreme, I therefor must conclude that the weapon was meant to be used against the Veluriyam Empire. However, he could not strike Taen directly, due to its location within a pocket dimension, which can not be reached accurately by this weapon if it is as described." He folded his arms behind his back as he continued. "This means that his most logical target would be the Veluriyam leadership, specifically the Imperial Family, and during a point when they have gathered here in Ursa Madeum. If the blast managed to kill the emperor or the empress, but not the other, the plan will have failed, as the survivor would surely locate this weapon at Mount Egon, then rally the Taen army and destroy it, along with all of House Uldwar. Further, there is a strong likelihood that any event during which the emperor and empress are both here in Ursa Madeum, would be on that is also attended by other leading nobles. This of course could mean a decisive strike would eliminate all the potential opposing leadership at once, but doing so would also likely alienate all the houses and citizenry, in addition to Taen. This also does not account for foreign dignitaries, such as yourself, excellency, who might also fall victim if they were be present at the time. Therefore, retaliation, though disorganized, would come with exceptional force and vengeful. In any variation of this scenario, Uldwar's demise is assured." Tynes turned to gauge Mia's reaction, before looking back at his advisor. "So your opinion is that this weapon is basically a waste of time?" he asked. "I believe that would be a crude way of summarizing my analysis, yes." Diric nodded, "While the weapon itself is indeed, an intriguing prospect, it is no doubt a costly venture, and one that carries immense risk of discovery even before it is fired. Once it is fired, based on my speculations, its location will surely be traced, and the builder, House Uldwar, will suffer the consequences." "May I point out that, we have not yet learned what Lady Uldwar would do with this project herself, whatever stage of construction it may currently be under." Joseph noted, now properly addressing Mia, "Forgive us if there has been a jump to conclusions here, I would like to hear from you what your thoughts on this project are. After all, you would not have revealed it to us, if you did not have something in mind, am I right?"

The blow's speed and veracity caught Nikki by surprise, knocking the wind out of her and sending her reeling backward, though she could only go so far with Arashi still crushing her fist. "Augh... you..." Nikki wheezed. She came back and tried to punch Arashi's elbow with her left first, in hopes of freeing her right. "...are making me..." Then then tried to headbutt Arashi's chin with the crown of her head, hoping to daze her. "...angry..."

Nikki stood and listened to Arashi ramble like a madwoman, wondering if her already half-witted mind hadn't somehow lost a few more wits. Was that even possible? "You wanna know who the fuck I am?" Nikki growled, a brief green flicker flashing across her eyes, as she started to close the distance between her and Arashi. Normally, she was not one to give in to rage like this, but Laughingstock was still there, egging her on. And when you combine a mad god in your head, with a girl who has done everything in her power to piss you off, even normally easy-going sorts like Nikki can snap. "The name is Nicole Stratton." Nikki stated, before suddenly snap-punching the Draconian in the nose, "But you can call me Nikki." She clenched her other first and prepared to follow-up in case Arashi recovered quickly. "And I'm going to pound that name into your head so you never forget it again!"

As Ephah hit the pavement with a satisfying thud, while Rami babbled incessantly as he floated off into the clouds, Nikki smirked slightly. With a little luck, it seemed she'd managed to dispatch them, though the third one had still managed to elude her. However, rather than receive a moment to enjoy her minor victory, she was immediately approached by an unwanted familiar face. "Wow, you have some nerve." Nikki turned to face Arashi, a scowl on her face, "You gave me nothing but problems every time I returned to the Imperium, then you decide you don't even remember who I am? Seriously, what the hell is your problem with me, Arashi? I've never done a damn thing to you!" She had tried to be nice to the Draconian girl, but for whatever reason, Arashi had always had it out for her. Nikki was never sure why, but she always had to avoid her whenever she stayed at the Imperium. Frankly, it was just more motivation for her to get out of there again, both to escape Marigold's creepiness and Arashi's jack-assery. She had been thankful when Marigold kicked Arashi out, but it seemed fate led their paths to cross again. Unfortunately, this time, there was no Marigold around to break up the confrontation.

While both Norkotians were very intrigued by the weapon, both also held immediate reservations about it. "What are your thoughts on this, my friend?" the Grand Executor turned toward his Vulkish comrade. "If I may be frank, excellency, I believe it to be the product of either desperation or madness, though quite likely a portion of both." Diric stated in his emotionless voice. "Explain?" Tynes didn't necessary disagree, but he wanted to hear his friend's in-depth analysis. "I would gladly do so, sir." Diric replied, "However, doing so may offend the sensibilities of our host, therefore I shall not unless commanded otherwise." Joseph glanced over at Mia, having already seen her temper nearly boil over already, and they had barely been in her company for more than fifteen minutes. However, if she was to be a reliable ally, she would need to be able to accept harsh criticism, particularly from a man as pragmatic as Diric Redbridge. The Vulk was logical to a fault, but it meant he was usually right on most matters. His ability to learn and retain information was second-to-none, at least among mortal men that Joseph was personally familiar with. In truth, even superhuman beings likely would have trouble matching mental capability with the Vulk. "I believe, given the gravity of this situation..." Tynes glanced at Mia and Barrows, though particularly the former, then back at Diric, "Your unfiltered analysis is something we would be foolish to do without."

That's fine by me I think. I would like to return to a steady pace again once we move on to next week, but I'm fine with waiting a bit longer this week.

We could if needed. Do you think you're gonna be unable to post for quite a few more days, then? I'm willing to wait a little longer if you don't think it will be too much longer.

Upon hearing the word "Uru" being mentioned, both Joseph and Diric shared a brief glance, knowing how valuable that particular resource had become to their military buildup in recent months. Confirmation that there were deposits of it in Tazerek, and that Oscar Uldwar had substantial amounts of it to Ursa Madeum, were significant revelations indeed. "Fascinating." Diric was first to speak, "Uru is noted for its capabilities in storing magical energy, meaning it could conceivably been used to hold a considerable power load. However, for that power to be useful, there would have to be a means of converting it into destructive force and delivering it to its target." He naturally worded it so that Barrows could continue his explanation, though he was already formulating various hypothesis in his head. "Go on." Joseph elected to directly urge Barrows, though he himself was considering both the potential political ramifications if this got out, but also the potential usefulness of the Uru ore and possibly the weapon Oscar had been working on.

Oh, it was fine, all things considered. A bit thrown-off by people still recovering from illness, but otherwise fine. It's just my parents and my brother and sister, so not particularly big. Yourself?