skelly4128
Now that is a good idea. A spinning wheel would be of great use in Camelot.
Iskandr
The time dilation field doesn't need to affect the whole planet. The Cloister in Stargate Atlantis only covered part of a world, and caused no harmful effects. Coruscant is home to trillions but Gothic is only going to need a few million people at most so a single city should do. I was thinking of something with massive protective domes, and with time dilation he put up new domes very quickly as needed on different parts of the planet.
Charles Ceaser
I liked your idea of someone from his lands, I think you meant the lands he owns, but I went with someone from his family coming to Camelot. Jumper Gothic hasn't had to deal with pretending that someone is a relative that he's suppose to care about before now.
Joe Lawyer
Don't forget the lesson taught to us by Faust, who I mentioned before, all that power and knowledge didn't help him. Besides there's no point learning if you already know everything, nothing would challenge him, and it would be very boring.
Also he does have plenty of people he can consult if he needs more knowledge. Nimueh, the Great Dragon, there's a creature called the Dochraid he can also approach for information, that's risky but it might be worth it.
The Star Wars Jump won't be as focused on improving things as the Stargate one. Once the Sith are removed Jumper Gothic can focus more on enjoying what that galaxy has to offer.
I was thinking of using domes on Tatooine. Terraforming isn't something you want to do a planet while there are people on it.
Actually I don't think having the Force is the best idea. It doesn't offer him much that he can't do with his Near-Ascended powers or with magic, I think it would be interesting for him not to obtain the Force Sensitivity because that is what other Jumpers would do.
If I do a Harry Potter Jump it would be after Star Wars. That could be a good setting for Jumper Gothic and Morgana to have fun in. But that wouldn't be written any time soon as I don't want to write a Harry Potter story the world doesn't hold much interest for me these days.
The Planeswalker spark is the grand prise, but Jumper Gothic is no rush to get it.
Why bother with blood. Your hair contains your DNA and is much easier to get at.
Nimueh is a High Priestess so its very unlikely that Jumper Gothic could learn her more advanced spells.
Jump Chain 5 - Merlin
Part 11
Cosmic Warehouse. Outside of Reality.
Once more in the dead of night Cameron and I were within in the Cosmic Warehouse working to take advantage of this Jump while others slept. Compared to other Jumps I didn't do much work these days as the demands of a Camelot Knight were nothing compared to past positions I'd held, but I was still grateful for the fact that I didn't need to sleep for eight hours straight. I could get by on less rest than most people.
However even if that hadn't been the case I wouldn't have been able to get much sleep this night as I'd just stolen a very powerful magical item called the Crystal of Neahtid from the vaults below the Citadel. If I'd been caught it would have meant a great deal of trouble for me, so I was very glad for phase cloaks, and replicators, which had allowed to me to steal the crystal and replace with an identical yet non-magical replica.
The Crystal of Neahtid was a very powerful instrument of magic and an important artifact of the Old Religion. According to my sources, which were more than just memories of the show now that I had so many books, there were many legends about the Crystal.
Some sorcerers who had lived in the past believed it held the secret of time itself. To those who know how to use it, the Crystal holds great knowledge: knowledge of what is, what has been and what is yet to come. Through it you could see so many things.
During the Great Purge many sorcerers died trying to protecting this crystal so I figured that it must be somewhat holy to followers of the Old Religion. Which made sense given that it came from the Crystal Cave which was believed to be the very source of magic in this world.
In the show the powerful warlocks, Alvarr and Mordred, persuaded Morgana to steal the Crystal from the vaults beneath the Castle. They would have used its power to destroy Camelot and kill Uther; however, Arthur was able to defeat Alvarr and take back the Crystal.
While the Crystal was soon returned to Camelot and the vaults, along the way it compelled Merlin to look at it and the young warlock was forced see to the future. He saw a vision of Kilgharrah destroying Camelot. Yet he wasn't able to prevent this from happening, in fact he caused it to happen, so seeing the vision didn't help him at all, it only upset him.
It was important to note that the Crystal could only be used by very powerful sorcerers, like Merlin and maybe people like Mordred, or Morgana. My magical tutor would no doubt be able to use this artefact, but she did have her own powers of foretelling so this Crystal might not be of much use to her.
Considering that she was unable to foresee the Great Purge or her possible death at the hands of a certain warlock I had doubts about the art of foretelling, it didn't seem very useful to me, however seeing the future wasn't why I'd taken the magical object. It could see things that had happened, and things that were happening right now. As such it could be a great tool for spying on people, or for finding stuff.
"Do you think you'll be able to use it?" Cameron asked me.
I'd already told her all about the history and abilities of this hunk of pretty rock. She had no faith in the mystical powers of a crystal, but she was a machine, her actions were dictated by her programming and logic. She didn't have my Magical Sensitivity Perk, and therefore she could not sense the power of the item I held in my hands. I was pretty certain this object was more powerful than even my sword.
"Truthfully I don't know" I admitted to the Terminator "I'm sensitive to magic sure, and that should help, on the other hand I'm lacking in the power department".
I gave the matter some more thought.
"If nothing else I should keep it so that it can't be used against Camelot" I said to Cameron "And perhaps in the years to come I'll find a way to tap into the the crystal's power".
There were other ways for me to increase my powers if I so desired. I was sure I'd get around the exploring them sooner or later. For now I had to deal with one of my responsibilities, and it was another reason why I wouldn't have gotten a full eight hours this night.
(Line Break)
Camelot. Albion.
Morgana slept, alas she did not sleep well. What should have been a time for resting was ruined for her by the most terrible of dreams. Outwardly she tossed and turned, ruffling her covers as much as her nightdress, as her body moved in response to the nightmare she was currently having.
Within in her own mind she saw someone running, and she could hear their panicked cries as they ran to what they thought of as safety. The young woman, a girl really, fled for her life. She was very scared, and Morgana felt that fear as her own.
Sadly the young woman was not able to successfully flee from danger. Whatever it was the girl had been running from caught up with her. The young woman fell to the ground, and as she struggled so did Morgana, she felt as if it was her hands that were futility attempting to fight off an attacker, yet in reality her arms only moved through the empty space above her bed.
Then Morgana felt pain as the young woman she was seeing her dreams was killed in a horrible way. It wasn't a slow death, but neither was a quick one, and the King's ward could feel the victim's life draining away as if it was her own. When the poor girl died the Seer awoke with a scream.
Even as she fought to control her breathing, and looked around to see that she in fact was not in any danger, Morgana couldn't help checking herself for wounds. She was not bleeding, the moisture covering her body turned out to be nothing more than sweat.
While she'd been lying down for hours now, the body of the noble lady seemed to have been out running, her legs were cramped, her hair was matted, and her nightdress had become sticky due to her physical form having become overheated despite the fact that it was a cool night.
Lying back the Seer knew that she was in for another restless night, but what she could do? The sleeping draughts no longer had any effect on her, and the nightmares were becoming more vivid as she grew older. If was as if they were growing stronger.
If only there was someone she could talk to be about this, it would make her feel better for sure. Saldy that wasn't possible, she could confide in no-one, not even her trustworthy maid, and it was the loneliness more than anything else that made Morgana wish she could be more normal, alas that simply wasn't meant to be.
(Line Break)
Camelot. Albion.
While even this kingdom, which was full of good people who were much better off than the medieval peasants of my world ever were, happened to be a peaceful place it still had its problems, as all societies did. They couldn't be avoid and some couldn't be solved, they could only be handled.
Crime was one of these problems, and when magic of some kind wasn't involved, criminal activity was normally limited to petty thievery and the odd bar brawl, now and again there was something a bit more serious. That was the rulers of this land took action. Someone would investigate, and any criminals caught would be brought before the king for his judgement.
One of the most serious of all crimes. perhaps the most serious, had taken place recently, the murders of two young woman, and since the last killing had happened close to the citadel the King had wisely chosen to increase security, and not just for the castle. The whole town was under what felt like marshall law.
For me this meant a few late night patrols of the castle. Which involved walking around with a lantern that barely provided enough light to see with. Not the most glamours of jobs to be sure, not when compared to the careers I'd had, but I didn't mind.
My job wasn't actually to look for intruders, as the castle was far too big for anyone person to watch over, instead my task was to ensure that the royal residence was kept secure. Which meant that I needed to do stuff like check the locks, make sure the guards weren't napping on the job, and ensure that no was out out of bed when they shouldn't be.
That last part led to me bumping into the Lady Morgana who at first didn't notice me, even though knights weren't exactly easy to miss, when she did see me the noble woman nearly jumped out of her skin, only to relax when she recognised me.
She carried only a small candle, but she carried in front of her and by doing that she'd ruined her nightvision, hence why she hadn't seen me coming. I also noted that she wore her nightclothes under a robe, and that her hair was a mess, which meant she'd woken up recently.
"Sir Gothic" she said "You scared me".
Well that hadn't been my intent.
"I'm sorry my lady" I replied "But you shouldn't be out of your room at this hour. The king's instructions were quite clear on the matter".
Not that I really cared about Uther's orders, I was just playing the part of loyal knight.
"I'm having trouble sleeping" Morgana confessed "I thought a walk might help".
She was a young woman troubled by nightmares that were in fact visions of the future. Her gift, if it could be called that, warned her of danger to come as well as important future events, but she wasn't able to accept this power and she hadn't learned to harness it. So right now it might as well be a curse.
"Let me escort you back to your chambers my lady" I said "I wouldn't want anything to happen to you".
Morgan smiled at me, and when she agreed I used my near-ascended powers to make a wave of pleasure pass through her. I didn't normally manipulate people in such a way, but the sad truth was that Morgana was doomed unless I redirected her life path. Besides I desired her for myself, and as such she had to come to desire me in turn before she'd join my other companions.
"I hear that you often have bad dreams" I mentioned.
While my tone was casual my words had been very carefully chosen. I needed Morgana to open up to me, and this would take time for sure, so right now I didn't think she'd tell me much.
"Yes" she said "I've had them since I was a child".
She didn't speak again for a few moments.
"Gaius tells me that I shouldn't worry myself about them" she told me.
I knew that Gaius downplayed her nightmares because he was trying to protect the young Seer, if Uther discovered that she had the power of prophecy he would consider it to be no different from sorcery, and given his hatred for all things magical he might even have her killed. Of course even Gaius didn't know that Morgana was in fact the king's illegitimate daughter, which might protect her somewhat.
"Well no offense meant to our Court Physician, but I have to disagree" I said "I've travelled far, seen much, studied many things, and in most cultures dreams are considered to be very important. That they help us deal with all the thoughts and emotions we have while we're awake. Our fears can manifest in our dreams and create nightmares. We have to face those fears in order to banish them".
Which I was sure was true for most people, but Morgana was special. Still just having someone to talk to about her dreams might help her.
"Don't ignore your dreams, my lady" I advised "You have them for a reason. Try to figure out what they mean".
She didn't say anything else until we were outside her chambers. I could tell that she was thinking over what I had just been saying.
"If you don't mind I'll check your room before I bid you goodnight" I said.
There had been a couple of murders after all, and both of the victims had been young woman.
"A man alone with me in my chambers" Morgana said with a teasing smile "Sir Gothic that wouldn't be proper"
I returned the smile.
"We can keep the door open while I have a quick look" I said.
Besides we wouldn't actually be alone. Cameron would be close by and out of phase.
"Very well" Morgana agreed.
I did a quick inspection while her ladyship settled herself on the bed, and when she did I couldn't help noticing how tired she looked.
"Sleep" I commanded with a wave of my hand.
The Seer laid down on her bed, going to sleep as if it was something she'd simply decided to do, when in fact I'd just used one of my many near-ascended abilities, to make her rest. It wasn't mind control, what I'd just done was a trick much like what the Lantean Merlin had done to Baal in the Stargate show, I'd taken control of her body rather than her mind.
I'd learned to do that from a near-ascended human who'd lived in the Cloister. She employed that power to make people who were injured go to sleep so that they wouldn't thrash about and make things worse while she was healing their wounds. It also worked on small children who wouldn't go down for naps, however I'd never used the trick for that.
This ability was actually pretty easy for someone to resist unlike other near-ascended powers, only Morgana hadn't even tried to resist because of how tired she was, and people who were hurt or ill didn't tend to have much resistance to outside influences.
During the last Jump I'd discovered much about what a near-ascended human could do, not just from spending time in the Cloister, but also from other sources, and I'd experimented as well. Although I'd been careful when doing that so as not to cause needless harm to anyone.
We were capable of far more than what was seen in the Stargate show, and while it might seem like magic it really wasn't. I understood the difference quite well, magic was a power that was all around us which certain people could tap into while my near-ascended abilities came from within me.
I used another of my near-ascended abilities to heal Morgan. I couldn't do anything about the nightmares, but I could do something about the minor damage caused to her body by the lack of proper rest. The body needed sleep just as the mind did.
Also I suspected that she wasn't eating enough. Hopefully my healing would restore her appetite. The poor woman was too skinny for her own good, and this along with the fact that she seemed even more pale than was normal for her, convinced he that she needed my healing touch.
As for her dream-visions I could do nothing about them, that was a magical matter and I didn't have the knowledge required to handle such things. Any attempt to do so by me could do the young woman harm, so for now all I was able to do was to give some support and help her bare the burden. This I could do by giving her someone to talk to and a little healing.
Once this was done I got up and left, as it would be creepy to stay her and watch her sleep. Besides I had a patrol to finish. On the way out I noticed that my present, a nice bit of jewellery had a spot on her dresser. She'd not thanked me for the gift, which I had entrusted her handmaiden to deliver, however given how distracted she'd been tonight I could easily forgive that.
(Line Break)
Camelot. Albion.
Arthur paced to and fro in front of the door that led the chambers of the Court Physician, and while he was well aware of his father's frowning face, he couldn't force himself to keep still right now. He was too concerned, he didn't think anything would be able calm him down.
The King looked worriedly at his son. Uther was better able to control himself, however not even he could hide for too long how concerned he was about current events. The recent deaths had the people hiding in their homes due to fear and that was no good for kingdom as it meant that the common folk weren't going to work. Even his soldiers were nervous about going on patrol or manning the battlements.
Which was bad because it might make the kingdom look weak to its enemies and therefore ripe for conquest. Order had to be restores, the people had to be made to feel safe once again. However pacing the corridors wasn't going to help with that,
"It is alarming how the death rate of women in this kingdom is increasing" Uther softly said "I find it hard to believe that we have no explanation for the mysterious deaths of those poor souls".
The two men were waiting for Gaius to finish his work before heading inside the chambers of the older man. The scientific process that the healer used in his investigations was not a quick one, and he needed time as well as peace in order to do his work.
After what felt like hours the door was opened by Merlin who was assisting Gaius at the moment and the two nobles headed inside the room to find the corpse of a woman. The sight of the dead body sent a chill through Arthur's body, but he tried his very best to hide it. If they were to discover the source of mysterious deaths, and bring it to an end, then he must show strength and courage.
"I have identified the cause of death" Gaius told the king and the prince.
The two men peered down at the spot the healer was pointing at. They saw that two small red holes were present on her neck.
"The other victims also had the same mark on their necks," Gaius said gravely "I had never seen such a mark before, but I have consulted my books and I believed I know the source. I suspect that these deaths are the work of a vampire".
Arthur had never heard that word before and he was curiously looking at Uther. However his father also had a look of bafflement on his face.
"A vampire?" the king asked.
Gaius nodded, and reached for a book. He opened it and showed a picture of what looked to be a man, only he had fangs, and there was something inhuman that the prince couldn't quite put his finger on.
"Vampires are creatures that feed on the blood of their victims into order to sustain its unnatural existence" the healer informed "Until now I thought they were just a myth, but it is the only explanation that makes sense".
Gaius read some more from the book.
"The vampire is an undead thing and can not be killed" the healer told the two Pendragons "however some of the stories say that they can be stopped if they are tracked back the coffins they sleep in and staked through the heart with a piece of wood. Sunlight is also said to be lethal to them, but it may only drive them back to their coffins".
The king considered what to do.
"You must find this vampire and drive a stake into its unbeating heart" Uther said to his son "Search the whole town, leave no stone unturned, have everyone looking, and only during the day".
The king then turned to Gaius.
"Find out more about these vampire creatures if you can" he commanded.
Gaius gave the monarch a short bow before returning to work.
(Line Break)
Cosmic Warehouse. Outside of Reality.
Once more I had donned the armour of the black knight. The suit seemed bulky, but in fact it was amazingly lightweight and easy to move around in. This was because it was made from materials that didn't even exist in this universe.
"We're hunting a vampire" I said to Cameron, who was over by the door keeping a watch out for anyone trying to enter my chambers "I spoke to the Great Dragon and he told me that vampires can't be killed, but you can stop them by driving wood into their hearts when they are in the grave, or their coffin".
He'd explained that the stake pinned the vampire to the Earth in a symbolic way and as long as the stake wasn't removed then the vampire would remain dormant. Even sunlight couldn't kill the vampires of this world as they could reform from their ashes come nightfall as long as their resting place remained intact. Which meant that even vaporising the vampire might not be enough.
The dragon hadn't been able to tell me much more as it hadn't needed to deal with any vamps, as they didn't prey on dragons and while the magical beast didn't state it I was fairly certain that his flames would destroy a vampire. However that would be hard to test since I'd need to get the undead thing to the dragon.
I was sure that my magical blade would slay the creature as it could kill anything up a minor god, and Excalibur, which was kin to my Caliburn, had slain a Wraith in the show, which was also an undead thing that couldn't normally be destroyed. I intended to drive my sword into monster to ensure its destruction as I didn't want some idiot grave robber to accidently free the creature sometime in the future.
"Do you have a plan?" my bodyguard asked me.
Indeed I did.
"The vamp is going after young women out at night so I figure that you can wander around while I remain close by while out of phase" I said "Then when the vampire attacks I'll pin it down with my near-ascended powers and stab it with the sword".
Not a brilliant plan, but the most simple of plans were best as it meant there was no less to go wrong.
"There's a curfew" Cameron reminded me "You can get away with wandering around after sunset, I can't".
She had a point there, and she couldn't be bait if some of the guards ended up escorting back to the castle. Even if she wasn't caught I was only assuming the vamp wouldn't be able to sense that she wasn't what she appeared to be. Also it might be able to see me even when I was out of phase, just like the Great Dragon could.
While all that was a concern, this vampire was feeding without even attempting to cover its tracks so I doubted it would be careful when hunting.
"Then we'll have to move quickly" I was now saying "By now I'm sure that Merlin and Arthur have a plan, and they'll muddle through if they have to, but I'd much rather deal with this quickly so as to avoid further deaths".
Plus this wasn't in the show so I couldn't be sure that events would work out as hoped.
"Anywhere idea where to look?" was Cameron's next question "My memory banks don't contain any information on blood sucking creatures of the night".
So her last software update hadn't covered everything. Was Jump Chan not as all knowing and all seeing as she appeared, or had he purposely left some things out in order make things more interesting? That was one of those questions I didn't think I'd ever get any answer for.
"Well if Joss Whedon TV work taught me anything it's that Fox network executives can't be trusted, and that vampires hang around in graveyards".
They also seemed to obsess over petite blond haired teenage girls, but that didn't seem relevant right now.
(Line Break)
Graveyard. Camelot.
As soon as the deed was done Cameron and I phased out of existence so that anyone coming to investigate the noise we'd just been making wouldn't see us. Which was partly a shame as I'd created an impressive suit of armour for my black knight persona, and this rate so few people would ever see me in it. Still that might be for the best.
"I think this is what humans call anticlimactic" Cameron remarked.
While I didn't agree, it had been over fairly quickly. As planned the vamp had attacked Cameron, not realising that she wasn't human, and to be fair why would he think otherwise?, and I'd pinned him to the ground before de-cloaking. Then I'd stabbed the undead thing with Caliburn, ending the foul creature.
Apparently that whole turning into mist thing was either something made up, or it was a trick that the vampire hadn't known, not that it really mattered. In the end it had burned up and then exploded. Which had been both visually impressive and very noisy.
My Magical Sensitivity Perk left me with a feeling that it was really dead and so I decided to trust the feeling rather than go looking for a coffin. Not that I would have to had to look for long as I was in a graveyard.
"Well we had a good if simple plan, a decent amount of knowledge about our target, vastly superior weapons, the element of surprise and a surefire way of destroying our prey" I said to Cameron "Take all of that into account and our easy victory should come as no surprise".
My bodyguard nodded in agreement.
"What do you think will happen next" she was now wondering "You can't tell the king that you killed the blood sucking creature".
Well I could, but I had no proof and the king would wonder how I'd done since the lore of this world stated that vampires could be contained, but never destroyed.
"The vamp killed three people in a week" I said to Cameron "Things will be tense for a few days, and when no one else dies people will start to relax their guard, they'll think that the vampire moved on because the knights were hunting for it".
While its unconfirmed death would worry some people, better that then letting more young women die. I simply couldn't have risked Morgana ending up as one of its meals after going for another midnight stroll.
"Let's head inside" I decided "I've helped enough for one night".
I'd been up late a lot recently so I was going to get an early night for a change. Plus there would be sex with Cameron which was always fun.