Dungeon Keepers: the Stranger World

By daybreak the next day, Torrens was awoken when the boat lurched to a halt. There were orders being barked, none of which he could understand, and the captives were directed out of the boat, across a short segment of dock and onto a larger ship, getting handed food and water rations along the way. The dock hosted a small township of tents and ramshackle buildings. Obviously a temporary town designed for the movement of captives. This implied that this was not a one-off attack but just one of many. The white soldiers were industriously enslaving the black tribes using their superior weaponry. Torrens had no qualms with that in itself. Quite a useful system. It's just the fact that it was used against him which caused the hatred to burn inside him.

And stretching out in front of him and the town was the limitless heat sink called the ocean.

Torrens did not bother resisting entrance to the ship this time round. This body did not leak heat like a bucket with holes in it, and managed to maintain a constant body temperature despite fluctuations in external heat, so to fear water now would be irrational. But the main reason was that he was at a strong tactical disadvantage here. His hands were bound, and even if they weren't he had no actual skill in the use of weaponry, something which humans relied upon heavily.

Once everyone was aboard the ship, it was untied from the dock and began to set sail out across the sea.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: Dirty clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, a knife, a soul lantern with two souls
Forces: 3 imps

First Creature: 1/3

How satiating, how satisfying, how… fulfilling it is to watch one’s ambitions grow – grow into a self-fulfilling prophecy, one with an inevitability for success, for congregation; everyone piece of the plan coming together to perform the will of their creator, one with powers comparable to that of a god’s? Yes, that is certainly congregation, and it is this congregation that will see Bataar’s will to the end. Robotic imps – everywhere! These automations carry out his will, and oversee the construction of what would be his great dungeon. And to think the hanger – his hanger – was already meeting the end of its development. A large cavern meets with the main room through a short tunnel, replacing the wall that was once there.

The hangar was almost done – and he still needed to create the next step of assembly efficiency. All this time, he has charged himself with his Heart’s power, granting him enough strength to complete his task. Presented to him here are fourteen imps, which should be – no, which is – more than enough to create the next device. So Bataar made the command… and three automations asserted themselves in front of him.

They performed the function… and Bataar executed the final procedures. Eleven imps left.

Another call. Another three imps to sacrifice themselves for greater efficiency. Eight imps left. Four TAAs.

Then another three mechanisms. Five imps left. Five TAAs.

Another three gone. Only two imps left with six TAAs.

Of course, Bataar had only needed three TAAs to begin with, but wanted to have extra assembly lines to continue the production of automations while he was working on the new device. But it required three full functional assemblies. It needed fuel. Bataar proceeded to slice his hand again, the previous cut already scabbing over and the skin around it appearing yellow. More blood spilled from his cut as Bataar winced at the pain, his head becoming dizzy as he lost blood. He still needed to find oil, but regardless, he was able to spill a couple drops of blood in each machine, and a series of whirring noises roared to life. Bataar, even through his disorientation, managed a smile. He drew power from his Heart, and while imbued with it, organized three of the TAAs in an organized fashion.

Sparks of electricity danced along Bataar’s fingertips.

Like a storm, a bouquet of electricity shot forth from his hands and engulfed the three assemblies. The machines, of course, has reacted to Bataar’s power and will, and conjoined. Their shifting gears and plates embracing each other, becoming larger and greater. It would still be a tedious process to complete, but it would be well worth the effort…



-:-::-::-:-

Location: Southwest United States: Grand Canyon -- Bataar's Dungeon
Forces: 2 imp automation(s)
Resources: A (small) dungeon & Heart, 3 TAA(s), 2 cactus slice(s)
Progress: 0/3 in making an automated imp (TAA[x3]), 21/25 in making a hangar, 0/5 in making the Secondary Automative Assembly (SAA)
(every post counts as three posts to TAA[x3])

The glass figurine was brought to Ordine by one imp. She was currently resting in her Heart to stay off real sleep for a little while longer. "The spawning chamber is ready, ser," hummed from the creature's form as it didn't possess a physical mouth. The imp used the ethereal word ser in replace of sir or ma'am. It was silly to distinguish between genders when ethereals had none. "We have two spawn circles. One for imps and another for this." The imp then handed the statue over.

"Excellent. Lets take a look then." She followed it down the hall into the kennel room again. Now there was a round staircase leading up to a second floor. On this floor there were currently only two structures side by side. Both were rised platforms consisting of three small circular steps. On the ceiling right above each platform was a point surrounded evenly by five more curved points. Before each platform was also a round pedistal. On the first was a little glass statue of an imp; something Ordine had made in her free time beforehand. The second was currently empty. She gingerly laid the figurine in the center of the second pedistal. Now to activate them. Stepping back, her eyes flashed once again with white light. She channeled power from the Heart through her hands into the little statues. The formations on the ceiling burst to life starting out as only a white orb before becoming a golden beam that touched the floor. White runes now circled the figurines and petidstals. Two portals to the ethereal plane were now open. The runes would shape them into whatever form she required as she summoned them.

Pleased, she left the room without calling any forces through them. She didn't have the required silver to bind any servants too. Instead she sent out one imp to gather more food and fresh water for her. Shouldn't be too difficult a task. The nearest farms were only a mile or two away. She gave the creature the summer dress to hide its light while it travelled. Silly looking, yes, but it worked. She wasn't ready to terrorize the countryside quite yet. The remaining imps redircted themselves the new task of building a chamber for their Keeper right above the Heart room. It would currently be used for as a safe place to sleep until she could turn into her true form. Later it could be adapted into a throne room of some sort.

Location: Greek Islands
Resources: A sword, a helmet, a shield, a pair of man's slacks, a shirt, and a vest, a summer dress, a map of the country and surrounding areas, and some spare coins
Forces: Six ethereal imps.
Dungeon: The beginning of three white marble spires hidden in a reef in the Mediterranean Sea.
Project: Building spawning pits 5/5, Building smithy/silver fountain 5/10, Building private chamber 0/5

"This will do," remarked Uekaru. His imp builders suppressed a surge of pride; such an admission was as good as a compliment from their austere master. The project in question was the foundry, now completed, and efficient if ingloriously designed. This particular hollow chamber had been chosen for a spring leaking out of the wall on its farthest side, which would provide a steady stream of water to cool and temper any metal armor or weapons crafted on the four granite anvils. They would have to do until enough metal could be obtained to make proper ones. Two firepits fed by large bellows made of native Yunnan and canvas salvaged from nonresidential supply tents in the quarry would provide the necessary heat for ironworking, while a smaller furnace could smelt the ore. Uekaru knew it was piecemeal and served for the time being only, but upgrades would come with inevitable influxes of material.

Speaking of material, the foundry would be of little use with nothing to craft with. Uekaru needed resources, and for that, he needed more imps. Even better, Tengu could join the workforce and extract the necessary ore from the bowels of the mine. Its former human occupants must have cleaned out any minerals they came across, but the imps and Tengu under Uekaru's orders could mine faster and deeper than the humans could and hopefully unearth new veins and deposits of ore. Unfortunately, the Tengu spawner operated at an agonizingly slow pace, producing a new minion once every few hours. That would not do at all. Uekaru blamed the Yunnan wood he had crafted into the mask. The cheap, common material conducted magic as well as earthworms conducted fashion; lapis lazuli and jade would fare far better. Those too, however, originated from deep underground, so mining remained the Keeper's number-one concern. A direct attack on Metal Town, while profitable, was simply not feasible without satisfactory weapons and armor. A new avatar could wait, however increasingly irksome its limitations were to Uekaru.

After assigning the tasks, Uekaru returned to the Heart only to be confronted by an imp. Its particular mutation had left it with a rather repulsive mouth, so it had a difficult time speaking. This was only worsened by its apparent excitement. Why on earth would this mongrel be sent to give me news? mentally groaned the Keeper as his patience snapped. "Out with it before you lose your head, wretch," he snarled hand on the hilt of his Yanmaodao. Composing itself as best it could, the imp related the information. "Hoomans! Hoomans incoming! Boats cross the lake! Lots of 'em!" Uekaru slapped a palm to his forehead. Of course! With the advent of another workday, of course the humans would return to the mine to continue their labor. How could he have missed this? Regardless, immediate action was needed. The miners probably wouldn't be armed but, then again, the Keeper and his forces weren't either. He could hold his own in a fight even in human form, but one was better off avoided. Thinking quickly, Uekaru spun around and headed for his Heart.

The imps and Tengu were down in the mines, not to be of much use even if they were here. Uekaru concluded after some postulating that he ought to try and keep the men of Metal Town ignorant to his existence. From the Heart Uekaru could manipulate his decidedly barebones dungeon via the veins. Deliberately accidental cave-ins -and a lot of them- might convince the laborers to take a day or two off. With this in his mind, Uekaru stepped onto the liquid surface of the pit of oil and sank down, allowing his consciousness to fill the Heart and flow throughout the dungeon like blood. Every clump of veins, along with being a light source, acted as a vision conduit. At his level of power and integration into the surrounding area, Uekaru could do precious little but cause the cave-ins he planned. He hoped that to be enough.

-=-=-
Location: His dungeon, in Metal Town Quarry, Western China
Forces: 11 slightly-empowered imps, 1 Tengu
Resources: An enchanted Yanmaodao sword, a half-full canteen, a few tons of stone, some metal and wood from the quarry along with tools, some cloth and vittles from supply tents.
Progress: 5/5 construction of a foundry. 0/8 mining resource and defending dungeon.

Jin'zul stood back to examine the creation he had spent the last few hours on. It was a simple, wooden slab that served as an excuse for a mask. Though it had a few intricate carvings and was painted with blood and dyes made from some of the local flora, the mask was nowhere as powerful or as extravagant as Jin'zu's ritual one. Still, it would serve its purpose well enough.

After a short incantation by Jin'zul, the symbols painted on the mask began to glow. The spirit of the creature trapped inside yearned to have a body. The Keeper obliged it, placing the mask on one of the decaying corpses outside. Instantly, the body began to shake and writhe. The massive gash in the corpse's neck that had nearly severed its head began to close, healing in seconds. The filth and rot that was beginning to claim the corpse was banished as well. Sickening crunches and cracks could be heard as the soul that had been trapped within the mask morphed and twisted this human body into one more like the form it had possessed in life, one that would be easier to control.

After perhaps a minute, the creature removed the now worthless mask and struggled to its feet. Jin'zul did not help it up, but merely looked down upon the first true warrior to follow him to this new world. This was one of his creatures from ancient Outremar, summoned back from the Spirit World to do battle once more. However, this creature's form was noticeably different from what it had been before.

While these soldiers, the Savages, as they were called, had been great, hulking humanoids before, this one was only around six feet tall and seemed to hunch, bending slightly forward at all times. These were no doubt the result of the Savages being forced to morph their own forms from pitiful human carcasses, but Jin'zul did not possess the power to efficiently summon hundreds of souls from the Spirit World as well as create bodies from scratch for them.

However, the Savages still had a number of intimidating and useful features, so they were not entirely worthless. The creature was slightly taller, and noticeably more muscular than the corpse had been, but still certainly no juggernaut. The Savage had long tusks protruding from a mouth of jagged teeth, four fingered hands, and long, narrow feet with only two toes. Shaggy green hair that looked akin to grass grew from an elongated head that had cruel, beady eyes, and pointed ears. The Savage's bare body was a dark tan, the color of the mahogany trees native to this part of the world.

By far the creatures' most useful trait, aside from their intelligence which paralleled that of a human in most regards, was their healing. While they could still bleed to death or be stabbed in a vital organ and slain, they were totally immune to disease and infection, which would be a lifesaver in this accursed insect breeding ground. A Savage could also recover from nearly any minor injury within three days, as their blood was potent, being similar to that of Jin'zul, their deity, emperor, and creator.

Meanwhile, the imps had completed the summoning circle at long last. Fueled by the heart, the structure would begin to bring forth imps from the fiery abysses where they spawn. At first only a trickle of the demons would come through, but in time that trickle would surely turn into a flood.

The imps were ordered to begin building more stone rooms around the existing one that contained the dungeon heart. Jin'zul would eventually find a use for them, but for now they could serve as storage areas, barracks, and a maze of sorts to make the dungeon heart harder for intruders to stumble across. While his laborers began their work, Jin'zul started to summon a construct to command his eventual armies into battle. He had one particular Savage in mind for the position. The first Savage guarded the entrance to the room containing the dungeon's Heart.


Keeper: Jin'zul, a long forgotten keeper from Outremar who once possessed great magical power, including the ability to use forbidden Black Magick to manipulate the aspects of Soul, Shadow, Smoke, and Blood
Forces: Four imps (+1 every post); 1 Savage (Currently no more being summoned)
Resources: Some stone tools, a large amount of food stored in the village, and 79 corpses (All are decomposed, 20 have already had their souls bound to Jin'zul, and 3 were ruined beyond use when Jin'zul absorbed their blood and lifeforce to heal himself)
Progress: 0/8 in building more rooms; 0/2 in summoning Savage construct
Dungeon: Currently one small, squat, above ground room crudely built of stone. Inside is the dungeon heart in plain sight. Imps and Savages have taken up residence in the nearby village.

Davy Jones stood back from his work and wiped his brow. He had finished his creation, which had required a bit more effort than the imp. Fortunately, the form of the creature fell into place as he built it.

Before him stood something which looked almost like a human. Its shape was suspiciously similar to the fisherman he had stabbed. There were a few very obvious differences, of course. Its (or, more accurately, his) skin was very dark, almost black with a hint of brown and green. He was clothed in clothing made from algae. Davy Jones did not intend for that to be permanent, just simply until clothing became available. Along the side of his neck were gill slits. The hands and feet were webbed. And the teeth were pointy, for a more menacing look.

Davy Jones had constructed him from a soul and miscellaneous biomass. He basically allowed the soul to construct its own body, with some modifications. He had also modified the soul, so that it would have an attitude of service and not one of whatshappeningtomewhyismybodylikethisyoujustkilledmedidntyouidontlikethisrunningawaynow. That would be quite unwanted. Most of the mind remains, but a few bits, such as previous loyalties and relationships, morality (no good having a minion which refuses to slaughter humans) and the memories leading up to their death (especially if Davy Jones had anything to do with it), are erased.

So what Davy Jones had was effectively an amphibious human loyal to him. Looking back on the description the human part didn't seem the best of ideas, but that was what he knew and he had removed enough of them so that the annoying traits were removed.

"What's you name?" Davy Jones asked.

The creature suddenly looked around, as if he had been dazed before. In a gruff and confused voice, he answered, "My name is Tom."

"My name is Davy Jones, and I'm your new boss."

Tom looked down at himself. "What am I?"

Dave hadn't thought of that. He was so wrapped up in making the creature that he hadn't gotten around to naming it. No, naming every one of them Tom would not do. He needed a name for them as a creature. "You... are a Sailor. A Resurrected Sailor. Welcome to a second chance at life. Let one of my imps give you a tour."

The fish imp led Tom around the Heart and out into the sewer. Dave rubbed his head again. Creating a creature had fatigued him. But he still needed more. He had one more soul, so he went to resurrect one more Sailor. This time it would be much easier. He took out the remaining speck of light from the lantern, got an imp to push in some sludge from the sewer and he began moulding again. 20 minutes later he had completed it. After repeating the introductions (this one's name was David) went to lay down on his mats.

"Do you want us to do anything?" David asked.

"Nothing yet. Go and catch some fish or food or something. Just don't get spotted," Davy Jones replied lethargically.

The two Sailors departed along with an imp, and Dave settled down to rest.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: Dirty clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, a knife, a soul lantern
Forces: 3 imps, 2 Sailors

First Creature: 3/3

Level One Creature: Resurrected Sailor, a modification of a human. It is fully amphibious, has unusually dark skin and pointy teeth.

Revcovering

Terrenum and his froces were ralling and preparing. His eyes turned on a grand city. With the Immortal shouting in wispers to him. He was getting unpateint. But in his temples with his creatures being created. All is going as planned.



Creatures
EarthBound Gara , level 1 : 21
Earthbound Quetzals , level 2 :12
EarthboundLine walkers (earthbound immortal priests/imps) : 23



Terrenum Project
(find atleast a few thousand souls for immortal orb improvement)


the Immortal temples 10/10 *finished*

Immortals
Uru the Spider immortal , color red.
Ccoshbar the Dog Immortal with color dark orange
Immortal Cuauhcoatl the snake with color Dark Red
Aslla piscu the hummingbird color orange
Cusillu the monkey Yellow
Ccarayhua The Lizzard color Green
Ccapac Apu the giant , color blue
Chacu Challhua The Killerwhale , color purple
Wiraqocha Rasca The condor , color violet

Davy Jones had to make plans. He needed more power so he could take this pitiful township for himself. At the same time, he needed to keep his head low, as any unusual activity would be very prominent here. Already he had vanished without a trace, now living in his Heart concealed from view. And two fishermen had been reported missing. Conveniently these two events would probably not be considered as connected, as he had gone missing before the fishermen. As for his own absence, it would probably be thought that he had moved on quietly to another town.

So far him and 5 other creatures were living off seafood they could take from the sea or steal from the market. His imps and Sailors did not need water, which they gained from the ocean like fish do, but he still did. He had created a makeshift distillery for salt water out of whatever scraps could be scrounged from around town when nobody was looking. He also had an imp fetch him some water every so often.

But this was not sustainable. The construction of the second room had been halted due to a lack of materials to support it. Everyone was crammed into the Heart. He had to hurry up and find a way to fund his expansion or else the dream of being an all-powerful Keeper would fade away.

So he organised a plan. That night, the two Sailors would go to their old human homes and steal money and useful equipment. That money could be used to pay for construction materials and essential tools. Meanwhile, he would make a Construct. A potent conduit for his will and power that would be anonymous, inconspicuous and highly mobile. To make this, he ordered his imps to go and catch a seagull. Alive. They scurried off with one of the sacks, and came back half an hour later with a full sack.

Davy Jones took the sack and removed the bird from it, holding it firmly by the neck, but not enough to strangle it. It flapped its wings and waggled its legs, but it was to no avail. "Good work," he said, "Now ensure that I am not disturbed."

The imps quietly dismissed themselves from the Heart as Davy Jones laid the seagull onto the crystal of the Heart and began his work.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: Dirty clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, a knife, a soul lantern
Forces: 3 imps, 2 Sailors

First Construct: 0/3

Was Bataar a genius? Of course he was, who else could possibly devise such an efficient system to proliferate imps at such a consistent rate? During the tame it took to construct his Secondary Automative Assembly, the SAA, the three TAAs had already produced five imp automations and the dungeon hangar had already been finished. It was large enough to fit dozens upon dozens of deactivated imps (but why would he do that if he can have them expand his dungeon?) and dozens of constructs! Upon exploring, it really was quite a large room, and on one end is what seemed to be a slide or downward facing vent, which overlooked the river that cut through the canyon. Naturally, it was made of stone.

First things first, he should really stop calling the river "river, and the canyon "canyon". It's time to give them names! The River Bataar sounded good, yes? Or maybe Bataar River? Channel Innovation...?

Shit. This was harder than he thought.

Okay, so screw the river. How about the canyon itself? Keeper's Rift, eh? Hmm, maybe not.What he could do is derive it from more simplistic, archaic words. Like how one would name the most basic, fundamental terms in chemistry, geography or medical science. "Giga" or "gigas" meant big, great, and huge. Its river feeds into what is likely a beacon of life, being sustained by the river and the nutrients that flows through its grace, feeding this world's kin like a father. "Patria", meaning "fatherland" would be appropriate in this case. Dono, however, means "I give", so Patridono would be an appropriate name for a canyon, yes? Literally meaning, "the fatherland gives", straight from the perspective of the canyon itself. It was perfect - great! Canyon Patridono; Patridono Valley? Yeah, that was better.

Damn, I'm brilliant.

Anyways, back to work. Bataar made his way towards the main room, where now lays a large metal pyramid shaped device, just a touch more than half of his own size. Now lies the problem of getting the thing into the other room. Fuck; he was still tired. Next caught his attention were the two cactus slices he never got around to eating. And upon looking at them, he soon realized how thirsty and hungry he was. It took little time to grab both of them and eat the tasteless meat and suck on the juices. It wasn't reinvigorating, but he was refreshed enough to get his next task done... he hasn't taken much of a break since he got here, but he had to do all he could to prepare for the others. While imps weren't much, having a near endless supply of them would whittle any intruder down. Still, Bataar would have made constructs if he felt he was in any immediate danger, or if there were any Keepers near by capable of surviving the wasteland.

In any case, chores had to get done.

"Alright, stand at attention!" Bataar yelled out towards the seven imps scurrying around his dungeon. "Help me push this damn thing into the hangar."


-:-::-::-:-

Location: Southwest United States: Patridono Valley(Grand Canyon) -- Bataar's Dungeon
Forces: 7 imp automation(s)
Resources: A dungeon & Heart, 3 TAA(s), 1 inactive SAA, 2 semi cactus slice(s)
Progress: 0/3 in making an automated imp (TAA[x3]), 0/3 in pushing the SAA into the hangar.
(every post counts as three posts to TAA[x3])

Ordine was present in the room when the smithy was finished. She used the term loosely. It was bare of any tools, for they hadn't scavanged any yet. The silver fountain rested in a corner. It was a great basin with a statue of a full helmet attatched to the wall above it. Nothing yet flowed from the statue's mouth for she didn't have the power required to summon silver. Essentially the room was in its bare bones, but it was still progress. It was all just inconvinces anyway. The small town she had passed by on her trip had held a repair shop. Tools could be found there and likely on the farms themselves. Her imp had returned successful with food and some small stolen construction devices and confirmed her thoughts. As for the silver, it would be a problem solved after the next project was finished.

The imps were already busy working it. Before she summoned servants she should have a place to house them and replenish their energy when it got low. With that the renergizing rooms were being built above the spawning room. They would be simple empty rooms with silver lines along the floor and ceiling. Her army would stand on these lines which channeled energy through them, thus replenishing them. It was simple, quick, effective, and above all orderly. The rooms could constanly be built ontop of each other in a single spire as her force grew. Instead of stairs, these rooms would be connected by use of a large magical plateform that functioned as an elevator. For now, the imps used a simple pulley system of stolen rope and harvested wood to travel between floors and lift the marble stones.

While that was underway, she kept one imp out of the project to start scavanging missions. She mapped out farms she had seen along her travels that should be ripe for the picking in collecting tools. She guided the creature in not striking the same target twice at the risk of getting caught. It was also informed to take any silver it could get its hands on as more imps sooner where better than later. With that it left quickly, taking the dress that it had actually turned into a functional little cloak and sack. The proccess would take a long time to gather a good supply of resources. The travelling wasn't easy and the imp would have to wait for the right moments to strike.

She left her minions to their missions and retired to her new chambers. Again, it was the bare bones of a room. Only a wooden bed with plant matter padding sat in it. Alas, it was enough for now. Laying her head down, Ordine's eyes quickly shut and her mind fell into eager sleep.

Location: Greek Islands
Resources: A sword, a helmet, a shield, a pair of man's slacks, a shirt, and a vest, a map of the country and surrounding areas, some food and water, and some spare coins
Forces: Six ethereal imps.
Dungeon: The beginning of three white marble spires hidden in a reef in the Mediterranean Sea.
Project: Building smithy/silver fountain 10/10, Building private chamber 5/5, Building renergizing levels 0/10, Scavanging 0/25

Tom and David crept out into the two during the dark of night. This worked to their advantage as they looked just like humans, provided the lighting was very dark and nobody actually looked at them. They split up, each going to their own respective homes. At this hour, their wives from their previous life would be asleep, and they knew their way around their own homes, so this would be a piece of cake.

A mere fifteen minutes later they rendezvoused with a small bag full of coins and a few tools they had owned. They went back to the Dungeon and opened the trapdoor. An imp was there to remind them to be quiet, as Jones was still working, and they entered. The tools were handed to the imps and the money was placed in a corner. Davy Jones paused from his work long enough to give them an approving nod.

The yield was quite reasonable. They had about $20, two shovels, a knife, a hammer, a saw, a fishing net and some clothes for themselves. The two shovels were the most needed of the tools, as it would allow all three imps to work at once. But they still had to wait for some more wood or else they would have no support for the dirt-walled room.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: Dirty clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, 2 knives, a soul lantern, a hammer, a saw, a fishing net, two shovels, a pickaxe
Forces: 3 imps, 2 Sailors

First Construct: 2/3

Tekkeitsertok was impressed. The tunnel was well hidden, requiring one to know exactly where to look to find the entrance, and the heart itself was an intricately detailed affair. Theelemntals had gone above and beyond the call of their duty, slowing their progress by some small amount, but also allowing them to create beautiful, intricate designs. The hear itself was formed from the restored bones of an ancient beast they had found buried in the grounds, it's skull sitting atop a massive ribcage, spread wide to allow him entrance. Around the skeletal remains there were dozens of runes, transcribed from ancient myths and tales of his glory.

Striding forward, he released the very last of his power into the framework before him, where red sparks climbed along the skeleton, before settling in the eyes and mouth of the fierce beast. The ribs cracked as their tips grew sharper, and teeth lost centuries before to the uncertain process of fossilization re-appeared with a snap.

Tekkeitsertok turned to the elementals, and commanded them silently to build a new room behind his heart, whose floor would connect directly to the plane of earth, allowing him an near infinite amount of material to work with. It would allow him to create the creatures he planned, and more importantly, to summon more imps with which to expand his dungeon.

Finally, plans planned and orders given, he stepped into his heart, where the ribs snapped shut around him, and began to work.

creating first creature- 0/3
Building portal to plane of earth- 0/9
creatures- 6 imps
resources- n/a
location- southern Nunavut(south eastern NWT)
Keeper- Tekkeitsertok, taking the role of a native god of hunting, caribou, and the earth. Communes with the ground around him.

(the skull and ribcage are taken from an albertasaurus)



Khazid'hea had been understandably upset at his sudden arrival, and subsequent weakening, in this new world. With time, however, he realized he would be able to regain his lost power, if only through the blood of his victims. Even better, he knew that his weakened form would still be capable of swaying weak minds, and that was far more than he had been capable of with dozens of wards placed upon himself.

And so he waited.

Far longer than he would have liked, it must be said, but he was nothing if not patient. When, in time, a man, though more a child than a man, came across him, and on a whim tried to remove him from the stone, he started his machinations. It was remarkable how easily he could take everything from this one's mind, almost as though he didn't even realize his subjugation was possible.

Regardless, he searched the child's mind for places of import. There were a great many ports to the east, he learned, any one of which could potentially harbor a nascent keeper. The time for his work had begun. And so, turning toward the rising sun, he began to walk.

As the Construct approached the farmhouse, he passed a small barn. A young man, who had been securing the last of the farm's animals in the shelter so that they could be safe from the ongoing thunderstorm, looked up. The Construct's silhouette was visible right outside the door. Garbed in large, silver-dyed robes and a sprawling cloak, he seemed to almost glow in the night. The startled boy staggered back, yelling a word in some exotic language.

The Construct, nearly as surprised as the boy, looked into the barn to locate the source of the sudden scream. The robed figure's mask, with its stark, pale surface and the four, menacing rubies enameled on it only served to further terrify the human cowering in the back of the barn.

The boy held up his lantern, hoping the light might expel this vengeful spirit. The effort proved futile. The Construct attempted to silence the boy with but a thought, as he had once been capable of, but found his own power lacking. Without even the meager strength it took to invade and dominate such a simpleton's mind from afar, the Pale Demon touched a gloved hand to the nearest animal, which just so happened to be a large bull.

The bull's mind was almost instantly fragmented and destroyed as one of much greater power rushed in to take control of the animal's body. Without warning, the bull stopped panicking at the sound of thunder, and it stopped looking warily at the newcomer. It turned around and charged, head down with horns extended, straight for the boy that had taken cared for him for years. The beast gored the human in the bowels, and then the Construct's mind retreated from the animal's. The bull fell to the ground brain dead, with a vacant look in its eyes.

Davy Jones let out a deep sigh as he unbound the inner workings of the seagull from himself. The new Construct was finished. Outside, it looked like that scary seagull which always beats away other seagulls with its brute strength to get to the scraps of food. Behind the extra mass, bigger claws and larger beak, making it more of the size and shape of a large crow, was a pair of very intelligent yet evil looking eyes. This was not a simple bird. It possessed a mind greater than average person. Although it could not perform magic on its own, Davy Jones gave it the ability to be an efficient conduit for his own magic, even over great distances. And it had been given a potent trait which would make it stand up to the title of Construct. It was capable of quickly regenerating from any injury, even lethal ones, short of total dismemberment. There are limitations, of course. Regenerating is an energy-intensive process, so consecutive uses would produce a greater delay. But it still made the bird a worthy creature.

The bird stood up and ruffled out its feathers. This time Davy Jones had taken the time to name it. His knowledge of the alien language of Outremear helped in this. "Gaoithavis," Jones greeted.

The bird bowed. "At your service, Davy Jones," it replied in a voice which was a combination between gruff, ominous and squawky.

Davy Jones smiled. Things could only get better from here.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: Dirty clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, 2 knives, a soul lantern, a hammer, a saw, a fishing net, two shovels, a pickaxe
Forces: 3 imps, 2 Sailors, Gaoithavis

First Construct: 3/3

First Construct: Gaoithavis - appears as a very large seagull, a potent conduit for Davy Jones' magic, very intelligent, capable of regeneration from anything short of dismemberment.

A knot of rooms and passages had now been built around the main room that contained the dungeon's Heart. The smallest of the rooms were but tiny widening in the tunnels, and the largest was perhaps thirty feet by twenty feet. Some hallways were straight and spacious, whilst others were winding, claustrophobic passages that a crawling Savage would barely be able to navigate. Some rooms had ceilings so low that you had to crouch to maneuver through them, and others had ceilings more than ten feet up.

The one trait that every nook and cranny of the chaotic labyrinth shared was darkness. There were no windows and no skylights, and torch sconces were few and far between. A lack of ventilation combined with the few torches' smoke and the darkness resulted in the very air seeming to push down on and oppress any who entered the dungeon.

This was a start, but it was still far from ideal. Jin'zul did not intend to forever live in squalor, hiding in this little rat warren. For all the confusion that the maze-like dungeon presented, it was still rather small, and it would be hard to defend if attackers decided to simply knock down the walls or bombard the structure.

The walls were made of two thin layers of uneven stone blocks held together by a hastily made mortar, with two or three feet of earth packed between as an extra layer. As a result, the walls were rather thick and could support a good deal of weight, but their strength against catapults or other siege weapons was still questionable. The floor was dirt due to a lack of materials, as the imps possessed no mine and had been forced to gather nearby boulders and stones they had found near the ground's surface. Stone pillars and supports as well as wooden rafters supported the heavy, but somewhat thin rock ceiling in some parts.

The imps were promptly given a new assignment upon adding the aforementioned expansions to the dungeon. Gathering up stones had been slow and was now no longer viable as every large chunk of rock in the vicinity had been broken down and gathered. The easiest solution to the current lack of materials would be to use some of the timber from the chopped down trees, but a wooden dungeon would be utterly worthless and a large portion of the lumber had been used making the abbattis. The wood would not go to waste, but it would not be used for building Jin'zul's fortress.

A better option would be to take the earth and stone of this particular region, abundant resources, and create brick. The construction of a sizable kiln would be a large undertaking, but a worthy one. The imps were put to work first digging a small cistern near the river, and then creating a canal to allow the river to flow into it, and a wooden floodgate so that the flow could be cut off to prevent flooding.

Back in the dungeon, a new evil stirred. This construct had been amongst Jin'zul's most loyal followers during the height of his power in Old Outremar, and had once been a terribly feared commander. For that reason, the Keeper had used the full extent of his power to personally craft a body worthy of a construct. No human bodies were consumed in the ritual, for they had all been soft and weak in life. Jin'zul created the form by shaping his own blood, which rested cold and still in his veins, while the Heart suspended in the air still pumped in vain.

Khoukr the Cruel, as the giant of a Savage had always been called, breathed once more, in a form even more powerful than the one he had lived and died with. He was as tall as a typical man during this time and then half again. His flesh akin to stone and his arms strong as steel bands, Khoukr made a horrible foe, although he and his warband had always relied more on strength and brutality than tactics or skill at arms.

Jin'zul looked approvingly at his minion, who shared his blood now just as he had done once more. Then he croaked, "The dead cannot die, only sit and wait. That is what I did, until fate had me brought me to this land, one far from Outremar. Now, it is my destiny to burn and sack the cities of men."

"I will help you once more," Khoukr growled as he grabbed Jin'zul's shoulder with a bone-crushing grip for support and then stood up, his head brushing the ceiling. Had this been anyone else, Jin'zul would have killed them for daring to touch his form, but Khoukr was his blood brother now. Khoukr stalked off out of the labyrinth seeking weapons and armor from the bodies of the village's slain warriors. Meanwhile, Jin'zul got to work summoning the souls of more Savages into masks and then reincarnating them using the human corpses.



Keeper: Jin'zul, a long forgotten keeper from Outremar who once possessed great magical power, including the ability to use forbidden Black Magick to manipulate the aspects of Soul, Shadow, Smoke, and Blood
Forces: 12 imps (+1 every post); 1 Savage; Khoukr
Resources: Some stone tools, a large amount of food stored in the village, and 79 corpses (All are decomposed, 20 have already had their souls bound to Jin'zul, and 3 were ruined beyond use when Jin'zul absorbed their blood and lifeforce to heal himself)
Progress: 0/5 in reviving five more Savages; 0/5 in digging brick kiln cistern and canal
Dungeon: Currently one small, squat, above ground room crudely built of stone, surrounded by a dark maze of other such structures. Inside the central room is the dungeon heart in plain sight. Imps and Savages have taken up residence in the nearby village.

Davy Jones climbed out of his Heart. It was now about ten in the morning. Gaoithavis was patrolling the entrance, although any observers would just think he was acting like a bird, albeit a big one. As Dave walked off, the seagull took flight, following him by flitting from spot to spot or soaring around in the air.

Dave politely nodded to some of the passing townsfolk. He had taken one of the clean sets of clothes from the Sailors so that he would not look like an utter wretch. He stopped when he reached the dealer of timber in this town.

"Ah, Dave, where have you been?" the shopkeeper enquired.

"I've been out of town," he replied, browsing the selection of planks. Finding a suitable pillar-like one, he said, "I would like some of these." Looking at some long flat planks, he added "And those."

The shopkeeper nodded and began collecting them and putting them into a bundle. "You building something?"

"That's none of your business," Dave replied, sharpness creeping in on his voice.

After an awkward silence the transaction was finished and Dave left carrying a large bundle of wood. But it was very heavy. He would not be able to carry it far, and he couldn't take it back directly anyway because there was no way he'd be able to hide that. Instead he would take it to some secluded location out of town and fetch it after dark with his two Sailors. But he still had to get there, and there were people in the way.

Dave veered nearer to Gaoithavis and muttered, "Make sure they don't follow, or pay too much attention. But don't outright attack them, okay?"

The bird nodded and took flight. As Dave was about to walk past the small cluster of chatting townsfolk the bird swooped down and clipped one of them on the ear. He then landed behind them and stood mockingly. As the group turned to complain about how that bird attacked them, that bird is very big for a seagull and then scare the bird away, Dave was able to walk past and around the corner without becoming the centre of attention.

He dumped the wood in a cluster of bushes outside the town. He had Gaoithavis guard the place until he returned to collect it. The bird obliged, and Dave headed back to his Heart to while away the day.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: 2 sets of dirty clothes, 2 sets of clean clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, 2 knives, a soul lantern, a hammer, a saw, a fishing net, two shovels, a pickaxe, some money, some wood
Forces: 3 imps, 2 Sailors, Gaoithavis

Tekkeitsertok stepped from his heart, the razor sharp ribs parting only barely enough to allow him passage. Magic burned in his wake as he walked to a pile of debris the elementals had carelessly left in a corner while they worked, and he imposed his will upon it. It grew and shifted, becoming a quadruped, growing to several feet in height before pieces of jagged, hard rock formed into great antlers, with sharp and barbed points. It's body quickly took on the shape of a caribou, but larger and stronger. It's hide became broken pieces of limestone, while it's hooves became rough chunks of soil, which connected with the ground at each impact, giving it sure footing. As a final touch, a light coating of soil and chalk dust gave the creature the impression of fur, making it appear, from a distance, as though it were no more than a simple caribou. With a smile, Tekkeitsertok sent the beast to the village he had encountered earlier, to lead them to his temple, that they might know more of him.

Building portal to plane of earth- 4/9
creatures- 6 imps
resources- n/a
location- southern Nunavut(south eastern NWT)
Keeper- Tekkeitsertok, taking the role of a native god of hunting, caribou, and the earth. Communes with the ground around him.

Ordine awoke hours later. Upon rising, she stretched out her human limbs. The sensation felt quite good and surprisingly refreshing to her body. She walked downstairs And checked the map to see what progress had become of her dungeon. Completed areas turned from a white to a golden glow on the map. The renergizing levels over half-way completed, which was good. Her imps were likely running low on energy themselves and would need these rooms to restore their own power. Plus at this point she could summon some forces and not have them fade away on her.

She made her way to the storage rooms of the smithy to check up on how the acquirement of supplies had gone thus far. There wasn't much. The smithy itself had a few thongs, hammers, and such placed neatly about. The supply room held some rope, cloth, and, to Ordine's delight, some silver. It consisted mostly of a few pieces of utensils, some rings, and some random parts off of other tools. It was enough and only enough to create another imp. She grabbed up the silver and rushed over to the Heart. There she fashioned the pieces into tiny bits of armor for her minion. She wasn't about to summon one and bind it to simple spoons. The thought itself was ridiculous. She took the shiny little suit and went to the spawning room. Human excitement built as she was about to use the portals for the first time. A thought crossed her mind on how she would miss would miss some of these 'emotions' once she was in her true form. Then a second thought followed of disgust at the first one. This whole human thing was making her soft and mushy. What a terrible side effect. She tried to squash the emotion and focused on pulling an imp from the portal. Her eyes flashed white as the golden beam intensified for a moment. A little glowing form emerged taking only a single step out of the portal. The armor pieces where drawn to the form and floated from the her arms to the imp, binding onto it. She wasted no time in ordering it to join in the scavenging. It rushed off to the storage room to grab some cloth to fashion itself a cloak and sack just like the first.

That finished, Ordine had already decided on what to do next. Once everything was in full swing, she wouldn't have the time required to constantly pull forces from the portal herself. A construct, however, would be perfect for the job. Problem was she was out of silver, an age-old issue already it seemed. She could take a risk though. The Heart had enough power to help her create the construct no problem. Summoning silver from nothing however would strain it as it was currently holding up the sea. Many things could go wrong if she pushed it too far. The barrier could fail, the creating of the construct could go awry, the Heart could let loose a burst of energy and destroy parts of her new dungeon. But these were really worst case scenarios. The chances of that happening were slim as the strain shouldn't be that great. And she really didn't want to wait for the imps to return with more silver. Their journeys at the moment tooks about two or three hours.

"What the hell," she decided on the spot and entered her Heart. She should really get a feel for how much it could take anyway. Oh dear,.. these human impulses could very well be the end of her. But she didn't linger on the thought. It was time to focus. She started crafting one from an imp. It didn't have to be a complex creature to do its simple job. Plus it wouldn't take long and would be less strain on the Heart.

Location: Greek Islands
Resources: A sword, a helmet, a shield, a pair of man's slacks, a shirt, and a vest, a map of the country and surrounding areas, some food and water, and some spare coins
Forces: Seven ethereal imps.
Dungeon: The beginning of three white marble spires hidden in a reef in the Mediterranean Sea.
Project: Building renergizing levels 8/10, Scavenging 8/25, Imp construct 0/1

Night had fallen, so Dave exited the Heart along with his two Sailors, after the coast had been declared clear by Gaoithavis. They darted through the shadows and soon reached the place where the timber was stashed. Gaoithavis took flight and circled above the town, checking for any human presence. The two Sailors picked up the wood and hauled it up onto their shoulders, and Dave picked up the rest.

They then made their way through the town. They were walking along when Gaoithavis spoke to Dave's mind. People are awake in a house 3 houses down on the right. Detour to the left.
He paused. He hadn't used telepathy before, but the link he had made between himself and his construct must have allowed them to communicate mentally.

He signalled to the Sailors behind him, who had stopped also, and they took the advised detour. Other than that, they had been able to get back to the Heart without ill events. The imps stirred when the wood was handed down, and had mutterings of relief and exasperation. They took the wood and started building the actual rooms. Now work could get done.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: 2 sets of dirty clothes, 2 sets of clean clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, 2 knives, a soul lantern, a hammer, a saw, a fishing net, two shovels, a pickaxe, some money, some wood
Forces: 3 imps, 2 Sailors, Gaoithavis

Sanguine, don't be a chicken.

It's a camp, Doviculus. A well defended camp filled with... five people. I'm used to being ridiculous, but this body is still fragile. Those are five hardened criminals.

You know for my entire lifetime I used a human body? True, I augmented it when I had to, but you're supposed to be some sort of extraordinary being, accustomed to battling with what could be considered a child keeper's powers.

Except I'm not even a child keeper.

Sanguine rested his eyes for a moment. He was accustomed to changing, but the hardest thing about this was... being ordinary. He had feelings, and the ability to banter, and... he was weaker, slower, dumber. His mental faculties were sluggish, but he could not find an archive or library for miles. He needed to occupy his mind! He stopped himself, and focused on trying to get both money and power. In his pocket was a bounty for the five criminals here, with a reward of 300 pounds. Indeed! That would buy tools and other equipment for himself. He stepped up from behind his tree, and walked into the view of the five.

The two guards immediately pointed their rifles at him, and the three were quick to catch on. They variously pointed rifles at him, or readied their blades. Sanguine smiled, and said in his best Corfe accent "Lads, I'll give it to you straight. I happen to be a very rich owner of the castle near here, and I need me five men. Five men to be my henchmen. Each week you are under my employ I can guarantee you 100 pounds in cold, hard metal. I will feed you, equip you, and put a big roof over your heads. Now, what do you say to THAT little proposition?"

Four of them sniggered, but one walked up slightly. He was heavily beared, with a large knife hanging from his side. He said "Your name?" "Holt Corfe, uncle of the physician Calvin Corfe, who you may or may not know. I'm the lord of Corfe castle, and I'm currently repairing it in order for it to serve as a suitable camp. I'm gonna kill Mr Mueller, and steal his hoard." The one who had walked up to him thought, and said "But doesn't your family have ties with the Muellers?" He turned back to get his pipe, and Sanguine took the chance. Grabbing him by the neck, in a single motion he wrenched it to the side, killing the man. Grabbing the knife he had noticed hanging from his belt, Sanguine threw it at the nearest guard. It missed. Cursing, he threw the corpse at the guard and picked up a nearby branch. Following as the corpse hit the guard, he slammed the branch into his groin and grabbed the rifle in the process. It went off, but that didn't matter. He threw it like a spear at the nearest, and this time his aim was good, It hit is chest, and the man collapsed as his rib cage collapsed. Sanguine grabbed the rifle, and directed it at the other guard with the rifle. Pulling the trigger, it hit him in the groin, and he went screaming onto his back. The last two were easily dealt with. And none of them had been killed. But that was soon to change. Two minutes later, every single one had been executed and their energy consumed. It was a good start. But of course, now he had to get the money...

Sanguine
Major Minds: Doviculous, Smit (Highwayman)
Location: Dungeon Heart, Corfe Castle, Swanage, England, Europe.
Resources: A clean white shirt, black bowtie, black trousers, 4 dozen pounds, 3 musket, ample ammo, green jacket and purple pants, wanted poster for Smit, Two months supply of food and water. Does not yet possess the gift of foresight.
Forces: Himself?
Allies: The Physician (Calvin Corfe).
Dungeon: Corfe Castle, Dungeon Heart, Framework of Imp Portal

After a short time the nascent imps working on the brick kiln lost the fervor and excitement that they had possessed upon entering this new world, but still they drudged on. With a steady flow of water coming into the little reservoir, all that remained to do was build a sizable furnace, a mixer, and some brick molds. Then, the imps would have a working kiln that could turn loose, raw earth into hardened brick.

Of course, the process was more arduous than it sounded; the dirt as well as small quantities of sand, gravel, and plant fiber would have to be manually dumped into the mixer, and water pumped in from the nearby cistern before mud could be created. After the mud was of the right consistency, it could be poured into molds and then left to dry in the sun, after which it could be put in the furnace and baked to become as solid as rock.

The work gang of imps was constantly being forced to improvise, as they currently only possessed what worthless implements they had looted from the nearby village and what loose rocks they could find as construction materials. As such, chiseling stone molds and building the large mixer and furnace was taking much longer than it should have, but the steady flow of new labor from the summoning circle served to expedite this slower part of the project.

While the kiln slowly began to rise up, so too did five new Savages. Talking to one another in a guttural, bastard tongue of Outremar's ancient language, the new soldiers gathered up what weapons and clothing they could find from the village the corpses of its inhabitants. They carried mostly stone spears and axes, and wore only clothing made from leather and plant fiber, but there was sure to be all sorts of poisons out in the surrounding rainforest that could eventually be utilized.

Under Jin'zul's instruction, day and night patrols were immediately organized. Two thirds of the savages would always keep watch at night, while the other third would mainly do work and oversee construction projects, but would still be armed so that they could defend the area in the case of an attack. The two shifts would change with the moon.

All his few minions already scurrying about on orders, Jin'zul was left alone to the task of crafting totems. He sensed that there were Loa serving the Creator even in this world, and while the warlock served crueler gods, being able to communicate and barter with the spirits would be a great advantage. For those reasons, he was building a totem from wood, blood, animal skins, and the bones of the village's inhabitants.



Keeper: Jin'zul, a long forgotten keeper from Outremar who once possessed great magical power, including the ability to use forbidden Black Magick to manipulate the aspects of Soul, Shadow, Smoke, and Blood
Forces: 17 imps (+1 every post); 6 Savages; Khoukr
Resources: Some stone tools, a large amount of food stored in the village, and 70 corpses (All are decomposed, and 20 have already had their souls bound to Jin'zul)
Progress: 0/3 in creating totem to the Loa; 0/5 in building brick kiln furnaces, mixers, molds, and pumps
Dungeon: Currently one small, squat, above ground room crudely built of stone, surrounded by a dark maze of other such structures. Inside the central room is the dungeon heart in plain sight. Imps and Savages have taken up residence in the nearby village, and a brick kiln is under construction between the village and the nearby river.

After a long time, a hand broke the still-as-a-mirror surface of the oil pit that contained Uekaru's Heart and scrabbled for purchase on its lip. Finding a handhold, Uekaru heaved himself lethargically from the amber-hued liquid and rolled out onto the warm, sandy floor of the Heart chamber. A good few minutes passed before he could manage a sitting position, and in that time his imps and his Tengu arrived to anxiously wait for their master's recovery. Looking wearily at the brutish yet eager vermilion faces, Uekaru knew he must dictate what happened next. "The humans are gone," the Keeper growled. His creatures did not dare to breath for what he might say next. "We are sealed away from the outside world until further notice. What resources did you gather while I orchestrated the cave-ins?"

The foreman relayed the short list from memory: metal ores, several deposits of stone, a mostly submerged cavern with an unexpected amount of wildlife, and other such commodities. The most useful to Uekaru was the acquisition of an unexpected vein of hematite; this find was very fortunate, for that variety of iron ore could be sent straight to the blast furnace without further refinement. If deposits of raw vanadium and manganese were found soon enough, Uekaru could already begin the production of steel at such an early stage of his existence on Earth. The smelting of proper steel would at first need to be under his supervision, however; only the finest, purest metal could serve him properly. As it was, though, the venture had been more than acceptable. His personal reserves of magic and energy were quite severely depleted, though they were never high to begin with for his human body and they could be replenished with food, drink, and sleep. How iresome. With this on his mind, Uekaru gave his orders.

"Begin construction on a barracks for the soon-to-be troops, a simplistic laboratory, and a storeroom for our resources while I regain my strength." A couple of the imps seemed somewhat flippant. They clearly saw how the battle against the intruders had drained their overlord and perhaps, with that, a chance for revolt. This realization disturbed Uekaru...but imps were imps, and he would need to put up with their wretchedness until the Tengu could wholly replace them. "My human form is getting to me...a trout with arms would be more sustainable and trustworthy of an avatar. I must improve it, and to do that, I need a greater domain. In the course of your construction, be sure to carve spaces into the walls for my veins to take root. Work quickly and precisely or I shall break your jaws.

-=-=-
Location: His dungeon, in Metal Town Quarry, Western China
Forces: 11 slightly-empowered imps, 4 Tengu
Resources: An enchanted Yanmaodao sword, a half-full canteen, a few tons of stone, some metal and wood from the quarry along with tools, some cloth and vittles from supply tents.
Progress: 8/8 mining resource and defending dungeon. 0/10 construction of new rooms

The progress on the new room was soaring along now that they had the resources. With the presence of wood the room was half finished. The wood was necessary. While many Keepers would have the luxury of building either in sturdy stone or above ground, Davy Jones was stuck with, for the moment, dirt. A cave-in would not only be a major set-back, but would also leave a large hole in the ground above which would reveal his presence. The usage of wood was as such very high.

This room would expand the living quarters of all the denizens of the Dungeon, which would be critical for maintaining moral. Living in a single room and a sewer is not pleasant, especially when he has such a flimsy grip on their loyalty. He needed a clear master plan, to get him from here to full Keeperdom. To help him meditate on the issue he stitched together another imp, this one made mostly from mussels. He took his time. He needed to straighten his thoughts.

Eventually he finished. Then he called down Gaoithavis. "Search for a nearby patrolling naval ship. I can feel a heavy fog coming on tonight, and that is when I want to strike."

"Right away, Davy Jones," Gaoithavis replied.

As the bird took flight, Jones rallied the Sailors. "We are going on a skirmish tonight. We will attack a naval ship. I will fill you in on the specifics of the plan, but we need the boat we hid earlier. We shall swim out to there now, and wait until nightfall to begin rowing.

"You imps can watch the Dungeon while we're gone. Except for you. You need to lead us to the boat."

Davy Jones grabbed the soul lantern, and handed the two knives to the Sailors. Then they swam off, and his plan was set in motion.

Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: 2 sets of dirty clothes, 2 sets of clean clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, 2 knives, a soul lantern, a hammer, a saw, a fishing net, two shovels, a pickaxe, some money, some wood
Forces: 4 imps, 2 Sailors, Gaoithavis

Tekkeitsertok was impressed by his elementals' progress, and watched as they finished a complicated ritual to open a rift to their home plain. With an abundance of material to work with, he drew up and breathed 'life' into three more of his steeds. As he worked, he felt a large number of boots, and four hooves, coming to the temple, though it was far above and a distance away. He heard, through his servant's ears, their prayers and supplication for his creations, and saw, through its eyes, as they began to build a new village at the base of the hill, quite luckily on the opposite side of his dungeon.

He ordered his elementals to begin work on a new chamber, outfitted with all the necesities for his troops convenience. They would be elementals and golems, so food would not be required, but loose rocks, shale, and earth with which they could repair themselves would be important, perhaps tended to by a number of the imps. Finally, he stepped back into his heart, and began work on something new.

Creature #2- 0/5
Imps- more imps arrive via portal- 0/8
creatures- 6 imps, 4 Shale Steeds
resources- n/a
location- southern Nunavut(south eastern NWT)
Keeper- Tekkeitsertok, taking the role of a native god of hunting, caribou, and the earth. Communes with the ground around him.



Khazid'hea found himself at the sea, with the great luck of an untended boat nearby. He started toward it, hoping to reach an island he had heard of in the prior town, when he heard movement behind himself. He turned, to see a hidden shack, with it's owner angrily advancing on him, shouting incomprehensibly about stealing his property. Khazid'hea released his control over his host, allowing him to shout in fear far more naturally than the sword ever could, and, when the clearly violent man stepped too close, took back control and lashed out, tasting the flesh and blood of his victim, before drinking in his energy and growing stronger, though not strong enough to begin restoring his prior form. Sighing, he drew his form into the boat, and began the long voyage.

The night was cold, the sky was clear, the waters calm and the moon shone in the sky and glistened off the ocean. Floating in the ocean, slowly drifting away from shore, was a dingy.

Davy Jones and the two Sailors sat in the dingy. It still contained the fishing gear from when he had killed the two fishermen... which were sitting right next to him. Despite how he had been sure to clear the memory of their murder, they were still feeling unsettled. They remembered this boat quite clearly. Now they were wondering why their boat had arrived here. And how they had died. Their boat obviously didn't sink, and wave that would have thrown them overboard would have thrown their equipment out too. When asked as to the means of their deaths, Dave feigned ignorance. But this would not do. His only hold to their loyalty at this time was a programmed instinct. Sadly, humans are pretty good at overriding instincts, and if they get good reason to they'll rebel.

Gaoithavis, hurry up, Davy Jones hissed, If we wait here too long they'll get too smart for their own good.

Why would that be? Gaoithavis replied.

This boat brings back memories for them. And if I'm not careful it will bring back very unhappy memories. About me.

Gaoithavis mentally nodded in understanding, and continued his flight. A few minutes later, he relayed the position of a naval ship to the small crew and they set off, rowing towards the ship. While the Sailors rowed, Jones simply sat there, holding the soul lantern. However, he was not doing nothing. He was expanding his influence to the sea around him. He did not yet have the power to do much, but he could make small changes. At the moment he had made a current flow underneath the boat, making it go faster towards their destination. He would have to pace himself, though. He didn't yet know how far he could push himself, or how far he should push himself. Overexertion could set him back days, potentially, incapacitating his Avatar (still pathetically human) and draining the power from his Heart. He knew he would have to at some point. But to do so too soon would jeopardise everything.

The small crew sailed on into the night, where they would find that ship.


Davy Jones (alias Dave Johnson)
Location: Bay Bulls, Newfoundland, Canada
Resources: 2 sets of dirty clothes, 2 sets of clean clothes, a makeshift Heart in an abandoned cellar connected to a sewer, 2 knives, a soul lantern, a hammer, a saw, a fishing net, two shovels, a pickaxe, some money, some wood
Forces: 4 imps, 2 Sailors, Gaoithavis


For the Compendium
First Construct: Gaoithavis - appears as a very large seagull, a potent conduit for Davy Jones' magic, very intelligent, capable of regeneration from anything short of dismemberment.