Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="talien" data-source="post: 3327975" data-attributes="member: 3285">Deus Ex Machina - Part 8: Casting RoomThe clockwork minotaur had a head formed of painted carousel horses, separated it into two halves.  Portions of other horses were added to widen the whole thing. A pair of gilt unicorn horns jutted from its head.  A great many ornaments--metal roses and fine brass fittings--were worked into the head so they spun and moved to draw the eye. The ears turned this way and that. Its fine mane was made of curtain tassels that tossed to and fro as it walked. The minotaur wore a cloak made of red velvet curtains on its back.It tossed Cal off like a ragdoll.  Before the ss’ressen could react, the clockwork minotaur slashed outwards with its axe.  Cal spun backwards, face first into the webbing.  He hung there, dripping blood.Beldin snarled.  “Never seen anything like it,” he said, drawing his morningstar.  “It’s got to have a weak spot.”“Beldin, no!” shouted Ilmarė.  Beldin smashed his morningstar into the minotaur’s knee with both hands.  The blow should have at least chipped it.  There was a terrible creak as the minotaur’s head swiveled to look down at Beldin.  “Magnificent,” was all the dwarf got out.  Then it backhanded him, swatting Beldin into the webbing.The clockwork minotaur turned its head again.  It focused on Ilmarė.  The minotaur whirred to life, stomping towards her one plodding step at a time.  “We can’t beat it,” said Ilmarė, her eyes wide.  “We can’t…wait!” She fumbled in her pack as the albino minotaur advanced towards her.  It was so close that she could hear the ticking of its gears.  She found it.Ilmarė thrust the invitation up over her head.  “Ambrose, I have your invitation!” The clicking continued, but nothing happened.  “Well, why didn’t you say so?” said Ambrose.Ilmarė peeked out behind the note.  The clockwork minotaur’s axe was inches from the note, stopped in mid-swing.  Ambrose climbed into his orrery.  As the globes whirled about, the patterns of their movement created a force that pushed the orrery off the ground. Ambrose pushed the bellows on the massive heads to push it towards Ilmarė.“Now I can go to my party!” said Ambrose.  The orrery silently floated over to the clockwork minotaur’s back.  He tapped it once with a tool, and the back opened up.  Then Ambrose got in it.The minotaur immediately whirled to life.  It lowered the axe, turned around, and stepped onto the orrery.  Ilmarė peeked into the room.  A glowing portal was at its center.  Beyond the portal, she could make out a city with strange, alien towers. It loomed over a misty lake.  A rising moon appeared to be in front of the towers instead of behind it.  And when she looked upon it, she knew.“Carcosa,” whispered Ilmarė.The flying orrery, the clockwork minotaur, and Ambrose floated through the portal.  It winked closed and was no more.</blockquote>

Verification