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XkyRauh
Feb 15, 2005

Commander Keen is my hero.
Chirurgeon. I support this uniquely-named class choice.

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Black August
Sep 28, 2003

[Waffling... dancing back and forth on the class select screen between (C)hirurgeon and (P)sychic. There's a quick glance at other options in consideration. (B)eastlords were good for survival, and got a lot for hand-to-hand abilities, with magic depending on what animal was picked. Chicken was always tempting... but was more of a challenge run. (b)erserkers were a REAL fun time, but it was incredibly RNG-dependent. Most player comments in the Blue Book mention that you typically blew through the early game with how much damage you did, but it always seemed to die out sometime around the third Megalith. Plus it was bad for Events. (E)lementalist was always an easy pick- Water was popular for its survivability factor, as was Thunder and Dark. But it took a pretty long investment time to really peak, and you'd always end up with at least one major elemental hurdle. (T)hief was its own kind of challenge run. You had access to a lot of cool stuff with picking pockets, but conquering the Megaliths is hard on a pure stealth build. (V)alkyries were a class that was slow to build up its toolkit, but could be devastating in the later game areas if you got lucky with Einherjar. But it was a LOT of management work. (F)armer... always a temptation, in the 'hardest class challenge run' kind of sense. Proof was in the Blue Book, with some of the furthest runs having been done with Farmers. But the number of Farmer oneruns that never made it past the valley outnumbered nearly every other class.]

[(C)hirurgeon... (P)sychic... one was incredible for healing, a clear winner for longevity of play, but it struggled to keep up against the dangers that weren't purely HP-related. The other opened a lot of unique options and powers that were difficult to come by in normal play. Tapping between (C) and (P) flashes the screen back and forth between the portrait of the doctor and the madman.]

XXXXXXX posted:

just in case!
just in case!
just in case!

[Alt-F8 is pressed absently while pinging between the two. It doesn't do anything else, but it does make the game hitch for just a second.]

VOTE END
CHIRURGEON: 6
PSYCHIC: 6




[The game catches up suddenly as the keys are left unpressed. The screen settles on the portrait for 'Psychic'... but it has the flavor text and color scheme of Chirurgeon. But it has the power description for Psychic. But it has the technique allowances of a Chirurgeon. But it shows neither class as being selected. It shows ]

[-ENTER-]

CLASS CHOSEN

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

Rolling one six-sided die to determine Trait. 1-2 is Tough, 3-4 is Second Wind, 5-6 is Lionheart.
[5] - so we go for more Will over more HP for now.

CLASS: PSYCHI ̸̛ ҉͜C
TRAIT: LIONHEART
STATS: +1 ST / +1 WL
PERKS: MAGERY


Sheet being updated...

LOADING...

...LOADING

sourdough
Apr 30, 2012

Black August posted:

[b]CLASS: PSYCHI ̸̛ ҉͜C

:stare: badass

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

**************************************************************
**************************************************************
**************************************************************

FINALIZED CHARACTER SHEET

**************************************************************
**************************************************************
**************************************************************

Modrasone
Jul 27, 2008

HE WANTS THIS AND SO SHOULD YOU!
Hyped for PSYCHI ̸̛ ҉͜C

Black August
Sep 28, 2003



Your clarity begins to dim, but not without having seen something illuminated. Your mind ruminates over all you've forgotten, and the ease with which you've simply adapted to an existence you woke up to. You feel like you... you did some medical training? No, of course you did, when you first joined. They were teaching all of you a little bit of everything they knew and could share, and there wasn't any time for the kindness of a slow class. It was all done in the moment. Another air raid siren, another street skirmish, another escape, another Servitor strike, and bodies would hit the ground, and something had to be done to stop them from dying.

But that isn't what's bothering you. Recalling that made sense in the moment. What didn't make sense was

quote:

you walking cautiously into the suspicious little white tent. Aitvaras held your hand as you ducked under the folds, his feathers puffed up with anticipation. Neither of your expected to walk into a space bigger inside that it was without, but you'd both seen wonders plenty since coming here. It still took you by surprise, your shoes clopping onto thick silver carpets, a great expanse of shelves and books nestled into a circular pattern. In the back-center was a huge dark desk, behind which sat a svelte man with sandy hair and a red uniform. He was smiling at the two of you, with familiarity. "No matter how many times I wipe your memory of me being here, you're still the only ones who manage to keep finding me. So..." he clicks his fingers, and concedes something. "...let's do reintroductions for the last time, and I'll make a deal with you."

What?

The Silver Mind posted:

I said, let's make a deal. Enough of your neurons have been deformed by the Dreamlands, and even now they're starting to flower with blue. You've always been hyper-aware, taking in every single little last detail- the twitch of a face, the color inside of a mumbled word, the comparison and contrast of past to present, assessing every single point and potential for danger. Climb up from that and look over it all with me, from inside the Silver Mind.

You pause at the edge of the woods to look up at the trees, and the silver of the mists hanging over you. It makes you imagine the sensation you just had, and you try to fall out of the world for a moment, finding serenity in the concept of neurons tinting silver.



(The Silver Mind (Tech) 10 - [6]+[5]+[4] = 15 - Failure!)

Instead, you think about a chicken almost dying
Instead, you think about a dead boy
Instead, you think about almost drowning
Instead, you think about something so huge it could crush you like an ant
Instead, you think about what am I going to do?
Instead, you think about
you think about
you think
think
think
THINK YOU IDIOT, THINK

The Silver Mind posted:

(He tries to interrupt.)

SHUT UP AND LET ME THINK!

HP: [10 / 14] | FP: [7 / 14]
ANXIETY: [X][X][30%]


But your internal argument ends when you see it, through the trees. Undefined against the dense mist. Something moving away from you, heading north- something shrouded in white.

You were compelled to follow.
Not by any charm.
Or with any enchantment.
Neither was there curiosity.

What pulled you was gravity.

You're staring at where your feet step, as silence swallows the land. Underneath was wet, soft, dense grass, a pale green-blue of color, rare with singular little white flowers. The trees were hunched with the weight of too many leaves and never ending rain, bent colossi in mismatched growth patterns. There was no sign of life here, and there never would be.

You knew where to follow by the gash going through the ground, meandering with a pace that never slowed. You followed it with the mania of someone who knew what their dream had waiting for them next, and couldn't help but dream it into happening. You're stiff, cold, and wet by the time you walk the miles north, face slack.

You come out of the woods and into a grass clearing. It was mid day, the Sun hidden behind the iron overcast. Streaks of silver painted the clouds, where the light failed to come through and see you. Stalking through the field, arms limp at your sides, you finally arrive where the white-shrouded figure waits for you.

It stands with its back to you at the bottom of a steep hill, and as you approach, it raises one hand to silence you- the other hand clutches tightly to the rusted scythe it holds close. The arms were bone, covered with sallowed yellow skin, wet with cold blood. The raised finger is pressed to the face in the hood, as it turns to look at you - and with ice in the heart, sensations come flooding back.


ANXIETY: [X][X][X][X][50%] (It's her.)

OST: From The Valley.













Śmiercią is here.

Black August
Sep 28, 2003



ANXIETY: [X][X][X][X][50%] (It's her.)
ANXIETY: [X][X][X][X][50%] (It's her.)
ANXIETY: [X][X][X][X][50%] (It's her.)

OST: Tithe

Your feet won't move; your throat bulges as you gag and retch out a sudden mouthful of bitter acid.

Your hands itch with sweat and fire.
The small of your back feels so tight it might crush a disc.
There's a singing string of taut red-hot muscle in your chest.



Śmiercią knows this. She's grinning it. She's so angry with you.

"I knew you'd be here, eventually. I waited for a long time for you to finally catch up."

She's so MAD. Her bone hand shivers and twitches as it holds the scythe, ready to wrist-flick it at any second into your heart.

"I watched you in the city - yet again, you were the heart of a disaster."

You did a horrible thing. A bad bad bad thing.
(I did?)
Something she'll never forgive you for.
(But I didn't do anything...)


"So I'll make you now pay. I'll send you to labours, to earn my tithe. Force your responsibility-"

Her scythe comes up to caress your neck. You stop shivering; the only motion allowed is the raging pain of your heart. She rests it there, fingerbones dancing with tresses of shredded yellow flesh.

"For the death of my daughter."

You knew it was true, pulling you down gravity-black into the guilt. You were crying, face wrenched into an ugly wet mess. Śmiercią is nodding as her wicked flesh curls, wrinkled with a smile of condemnation.
(But it's not true! I didn't!)

Your memories war with your body, each offering their own series of events, smears of thoughts and scenes rooting you to the spot with the inability to know what to trust. But your body wracked itself with hot shame, somehow aware of every accusation Śmiercią has waiting for you.

A long minute passes, before she draws the scythe away, startling you when she slams it into the ground, and begins to gently circle-thresh the tall grass surrounding you. Her voice seems to always come right into your ear, no matter the angle.

"Your tears disgust me, and I'll shave them from your cheeks if you blubber or wail. So listen to my tithe, and brand your actions with its price! Do you see the land we walk on?"



Underfoot, the grass was cool and wet, smelling of something perfume-sullen where it had been cut.

"This is the Holy Land of Seven Lords. They walked from an Island to this place, and were told to go forth from this valley and be only faithful to what hurt them, and it would earn them their safety and their Lordship. Their cults walk the lands beyond, pilgrims sinful of fallen holies."

The scythe finishes its circle, and whips up, gently tapping the crooked point to the puft of your tie-knot.

ANXIETY: [X][X][X][X][X][60%]

Your stomach makes a grotesque sound, and your jaw pops from being held tight in tension.

"I. Don't. Care. About the plight and the past of these cults, those Lords. What I care is that what hurt them was MIGHTY, and it gifted them obscene. Those Lords are rich and quickened, roiling with colours not found in Heaven's rainbow."

You can feel Kwiat rustle in your pack, once. Even a chicken knew to hold her breath, when the sallow woman spoke.

"What you will do."

The scythe presses in, cleanly popping past the fabric- so close to kissing the skin.

"Is find these Lords. Every last one. In name of me, this labor to thee. You will harvest them each in turn, and steal them from their faithful and from their hurter. I will use those colours- I will rend open Heaven with them and bring my daughter-lost back."

You take in what she's demanding. She allows you this, for just two seconds- and then you're screaming, falling to the ground, hands crossed over your chest with nerves claiming cold and fire, thunder and metal, dark and light and void biting deep.

HP: [-18 /18] [*COURTING DEATH*]

(CLING TO LIFE (HT) 14 - [4]+[3]+[5] = 12 - Success...)

It happened that fast. Seven near-death strikes across your chest, surrounding your heart. Seven tiny pinpricks with Śmiercią's scythe. Seven little vents through to your soul... where you would tether seven Lords to your spirit.

ANXIETY: [ ! ][ ! ][ ! ][ ! ][ ! ][ ! ][70%] (DEATH'S DOOR)

Quest Log posted:

Śmiercią has tasked you with your only hope of escaping her scythe. You must journey from the shelter of the valley into the fallen lands beyond, where 7 Lords reign with their cults. Each must be slain, and their soul taken, such that Śmiercią will have a way to open Heaven and reclaim her daughter, whose death you are responsible for.

She squats, leering over you with skin draping off in heavy curtains, taking in your panic and helpless thrashing. Your body was weak, barely keeping your heart going, brain a soft gray scramble of cold cold cold. But her words were still crystal, dragging your head in attention.

"You mustn't fail me. You WILL make pay. But if you... should... die."

She was there. Lying on the ground as you inched away, eyes unable to break stare from those wet gaping sockets. The scythe hung over you both, held limply as she makes her promise.

She leans in to whisper it so close you can feel the crinkle of her parchment lips.

"My scythe will already be waiting at your back. It will cut your soul... ribbons to dust... and you'll have never be."

Quest Log posted:

Śmiercią has tasked you with your only hope of escaping her scythe. You must journey from the shelter of the valley into the fallen lands beyond, where 7 Lords reign with their cults. Each must be slain, and their soul taken, such that Śmiercią will have a way to open Heaven and reclaim her daughter, whose death you are responsible for.

UPDATE: If you fail, and die, you will be erased from existence.

ANXIETY: [ !! ][ !! ][ !! ][ !! ][ !! ][ !! ][ !! ][80%] (DEATH'S DOOR)(HORROR)

little tight whistle whines
hands opening and closing without control
blood too cold, it'll go still and stop your heart
the tears won't stop and you know she hates your crying
screaming wounded animal dashed on the rocks waiting for the End


"Shhhh... swallow that sad sound. You're already as close to grave as I'll allow - why cry when only one step away? You'll suffer more under my labours than under my sickle. Shut it in!"

(Exert Emergency Control) (WL) (-10 Penalty!!) 8 - [1]+[3]+[4] = 8 - Success!)

Something dark, something that's been paying attention, gently wraps itself over your mind. Still shaking, you go slack, sitting up weakly with a detached expression - the light has left your eyes. You nod, body simply responding to her words.

"There now. Silent. But I'll let you speak twice, and I'll give you two answers. I'll give you the generous I failed to show Adam and Eve. It suits me most, to watch your torment, you knowing only a little of the lot that waits."

Two questions? Two... the silver and the black dance across your numb mind, ruminating in your stead over what a Tyrant might demand, what a Psychic'd like to know. {STRING}{what a __________ would ask}

Noise washes across your overwhelmed mind, as you clutch the black scar of your skull, and think, think, think...

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

PLAYER CHOICE
Śmiercią has given you your quest. She now allows you to ask two questions. One of these questions will be voted on in the poll. The other question you ask is any one question *you* collectively agree upon to ask her. Voting will end sometime tomorrow.

What Do You Ask?

sourdough
Apr 30, 2012
Voted "where are the lords," as we can find out for ourselves who they are (and chat em up ourselves) if we know where to look

For the second question, I have no real idea, but falling back on "who (or what?) are the lords" might be a nice way of satisfying both our natural inclinations :v:

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

That is the default assumption if no consensus for a unique question is reached in time.

Stoner Sloth
Apr 2, 2019

tempted to go for broke and ask "How can you be stopped?" but she might take that the wrong way and we don't know if she's bound to answer truthfully or similar

"If you're so powerful, why not go do this yourself?" might get us a hint at least of whether it's because she fears the power of these lords she wants us to gather.

Guess thinking from a Tyrant perspective we should even now be planning on killing her in the long run.

Open to other suggestions though!

e: also really enjoying this OP, you rock!

Isaacs Alter Ego
Sep 18, 2007


What about "What should I do to save Kwiat?"

I'm worried for this chicken. And I think this immensely powerful being would be a little disarmed by such a low-stakes question, so their reaction might tell us a few things about them. But I like the idea of at least making sure we do one good thing in this world before our journey's done.

sourdough
Apr 30, 2012

Stoner Sloth posted:

tempted to go for broke and ask "How can you be stopped?" but she might take that the wrong way and we don't know if she's bound to answer truthfully or similar

Good way to quickly get murdered haha

But for something kinda similar, can pump her for other useful info on the lords... "How can I defeat each lord" or some such

Randalor
Sep 4, 2011



Isaacs Alter Ego posted:

What about "What should I do to save Kwiat?"

Part of me wants to go with this, part of me wants to go with some form of "What can the seven lords do" or "what are their weaknesses".

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

Voting will end a while after noon. Please have your question ready and decided upon then.

take the moon
Feb 13, 2011

by sebmojo

Isaacs Alter Ego posted:

What about "What should I do to save Kwiat?"

2nding this but I'd be happy with defaulting or anything that leads to more lore

sourdough
Apr 30, 2012
Ok I've been convinced, officially voting for asking how to save Kwiat

Ass-penny
Jan 18, 2008

Isaacs Alter Ego posted:

What about "What should I do to save Kwiat?"

I'm worried for this chicken. And I think this immensely powerful being would be a little disarmed by such a low-stakes question, so their reaction might tell us a few things about them. But I like the idea of at least making sure we do one good thing in this world before our journey's done.

This has my vote.

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

Voting is closed for asking Śmiercią questions.
Where are the Seven Lords? - 5
Who are the Seven Lords? - 2


LOADING...

...LOADING

Black August fucked around with this message at 19:23 on Oct 20, 2020

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

[It's the typical pick between the Who or the Where. Where was more helpful by far, going by posts of convenience in the Blue Book. Especially with Psychic... or at least what's been working as Psychic so far, despite the wrong coloration on the status screen. There was enough known about the Who to get by, so it's Where.]

Śmiercią leans in uncomfortable close to hear you ask your question, the dark working your suffocating chords to whisper the words. Her head was hidden by the heavy white shroud - she smelled of so many dead flowers.

"...where are they? Dry your eyes, afore I pluck them, and see it clearly then! Know these Names to follow out in the holy dark- they are HUNTER, they are MOULDER, they are DOUBLER mightiest Three, they are BLEEDER - BURNER - HIDER - DANCER, with cults of the faithful free. Look! To Heaven!"

Her hand was around your neck. But it was the feather's touch, effortless grace pulling your skull to the iron sky as your eyes roll, and vertigo drags your mind's eye out into the dark.










Out into the valley holy.



















Into the neverending sky.












[Psychic] - You can handle this. The Silver Mind will reflect this unseen image and keep it.
[Tyrant Supports This]










you come
back
down



Your sanity sleeps in its disassociation, the black and silver capturing the vision effortlessly.

Some time later, you were wet and cold on your side, eyes hissing with heat. The sudden mental clarity high has your mind spike with a fear that the dark can't capture, as you worry you've crushed Kwiat underneath you. You weakly roll and confirm that she's safe. She's still alive.

The question comes out before you can stop yourself.
















[Thankfully, Tyrant and Psychic had good archetype synergies. There was no sanity loss or anxiety peaks from the vision. Which left the second question, that had so many oneruns given an excess of forethought. A prompt was there, to ask her anything. There was plenty of examples in the Blue Book of unique responses. There was always room to ask something new, overlooked, or even trivial.]

["What should I do to save Kwiat?"_] ENTER
















[...the game is hanging for a while, when an unexpected screen loads. Every failed runner knew it, as it usually preceded a death.]



[Śmiercią had moods. This one was known as 'Oh No']

[But, why is the game taking so long to load?]

XkyRauh
Feb 15, 2005

Commander Keen is my hero.
Alt+F8 again! Keep doing it! If the game is still loading, maybe we can avoid our fate?

XkyRauh fucked around with this message at 21:11 on Oct 20, 2020

damn horror queefs
Oct 14, 2005

say hello
say hello to the man in the elevator
Oh, no

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

You were face to face with her. That same nightmare's grace dragged you in, scythe discarded, the flesh dropping from the teeth to be clean and bright with her anger. The rumor of a dead eye glares from the nest of rotcallow in the socket.

"You dare?"
She shakes you by the shoulders.
"You have the NERVE?!"
Fingerbones gouge into your arms.
"IDIOT-"
The bonetips rake over your cheeks, dully scarring the flesh.
"IDIOT CHILD"
Both hands grip your face and squeeze it hard, jostling your skull.
"IF. YOU. EVER."
Your hair is grasped, head dragged by it to be shook and stared at.
"SAY MY DAUGHTER'S NAME"
The scythe is at your temple.




EVER AGAIN-








ANXIETY: [ !!! ][ !!! ][ !!! ][ !!! ][ !!! ][ !!! ][ !!! ][ !!! ][90%] (I'm Gonna DIE)













_ _ _ _ _ _



quote:



quote:



quote:

decided to ask the Farmer about the chicken. Aitvaras knew a lot about chickens, but he didn't know much about the plants and herbs nearby, and how they could affect his henhouse girls. You found her in the old tent at the border in the woods, just as she was coming out of it- you saw the wall of photos once again, still too dark to make out from afar.

quote:



quote:


She was plain with piercing stare you didn't feel comfortable bearing for long, even if your own eyes had the same quality. Aitvaras spoke easy with her, both skilled at raising birds, and shared an afternoon of examination and understanding. She explains to the both of you that a gem-like blue flower found in the east forest was vetted by the colony Chirurgeon to have mild internal restorative properties, being an alchemical-nature flora.

quote:

Kwiat could
live.



Quest Log posted:

Holy Valley map updated with the location of Blue Bubblegem Pods.



Śmiercią

"□□□□□□□□ "

□ □swered, now go forth to conquer their Megaliths, and act in my stead. If you seek counsel, it will be in a place I walk often, buried in the cliff west. Look for a place to hide along the river, and don't cry to Heaven for want of better lodging! There is only doom here - no answer for prayer, when I dance waiting for your slip!"

You don't even blink, and she's simply gone.
You feel-

ANXIETY: [10%]

-alive.
You assess yourself.

HP: [0 / 18]
FP: [14 / 14]

(Info will be added to the character sheet)
You heal 1 hit point every 12 hours.
First-Aid acts as a passive skill, meaning you'll recover 2 HP every 12 hours.
You heal 1 fatigue points every 10 minutes (6 per hour).

You're in one piece. But weakened. You're having trouble remembering the last few hours - there's a humid fog clouding your thoughts, washing out the hue of the black and silver. But you can clearly see the vision from the clouds. You know the valley now. To the west... she'd roam. The south had the beach. The north promised somewhere you could have safety. Plus, there was that one path you caught sight of while following Śmiercią to the Holy Land.

Your legs itched. They wanted to keep moving. You didn't feel safe, and it was noon. Night would be here soon. Kwiat was still quiet and clucky in your backpack, alive but unwell.

What should you do?

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

[Where to go? Always a tough decision.]

[PLAYER CHOICE]
Where First?

Black August fucked around with this message at 22:27 on Oct 20, 2020

XkyRauh
Feb 15, 2005

Commander Keen is my hero.
I'm beginning to wonder if instead of attempting to alter our fate (Alt+F8) we should be aggressively trying to control our fate (Ctrl+F8) but part of me thinks that is a terrible idea. :stare:

I voted go back and explore where we came from. If we don't remember much, we should be sure we didn't miss anything. We're still fragile.

Stoner Sloth
Apr 2, 2019

>tend to poor chicken

>head north (safety) with the intent of heading east, when possible, to the Blue Bubblegem Pods in order to acquire healing medicine for our friend Kwiat

sourdough
Apr 30, 2012
The holy land and hideout are clear next places to go, so let's do a quick check on the passed path first, I'm sure there won't be anything bad there

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

Voting is closed for choosing where to go first.

Explore the Holy Land - 0
Head to the Hideout - 2
Go explore the path you passed - 4

LOADING...

...LOADING

XkyRauh
Feb 15, 2005

Commander Keen is my hero.
I like that loading screen tip! We'll have to get some insight about the Lords before we enter their Megaliths.

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

[It seems like the game didn't crash after it glitched out. Thank God. There wasn't much forgiveness with crashes- sometimes the game was fine, and sometimes, that was your onerun and you're both poo poo and gently caress out of luck without another copy.]
[Looks like the cutscene reset some of the stat values. Anxiety is back to baseline, which was good since dealing with a panic attack post-Śmiercią wasted the first day. Of the three places to go, south was a good choice for securing supplies, depending on how the RNG felt.]



You're on your feet, teetering, spitting up dried wads of phlegm while looking around the empty Holy Land. You didn't like this place- it made you feel something foreign that you weren't comfortable with. You didn't want to go find the hideout Śmiercią promised yet either- the dim day was still early, and the red remnants of your panic urges you to keep moving to learn your surroundings before night was here.

Retracing your steps through the misty grass brings you south and east, a mile or so of slow wandering to find the trail, and then head down in. Even though you knew there was nothing living around, that did not exclude other categories of things that liked to be plenty active without needing stuff like 'oxygen' or 'organs made of meat'.

Going down the path feels nice, though. It was warmer now, and you were mostly dried off, allowing your mind to wander absently. Colors shift inside your brain, neurons sparking silver...

[Psychic Passive] (The Silver Mind 10 - [4]+[1]+[5] = 10 - Success!)

nEurrONsssSPARKsssssSILVER and creep creep creep - bend up like a flower; face the Sun, and smile.

The Silver Mind posted:

[Your brain was the Holy Valley, spread and draped in silver curtains, capturing the radio waves expelled in patterns across the sky, each broadcasted from inside someone's skull.]

...40 to 60 degrees, with isolated showers over the Rivergreen...

...want to leave, if I can just get off the roof I can leave...

...[Heavy Monstrous Breathing]...

...ship could have been sent by Marshall to collect me...

...once upon a time in another end, in a lost end, in a...

OST: JC-TV Jingle

quote:

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD ~ MORNING JANDOUBI!

oh god that's loud

quote:

It's ya boy, JC, with your morning news fix of JC-TV! Can I get an all-call? FROM MY CREW IN JANDOUBI! FROM OUR FAM OUT IN THE LAND! FROM ALL THOSE STILL LISTENING DOWN IN PARADISE!

god please turn down the volume your skull is vibrating

quote:

YOUR TIP-TOP-TAT NEWS - We're not far from the day that Paradise unlocks itself again for our return! Tensions have risen with unrest over recent activity spotted out in the ocean, with Backup in the wild keeping vigil. Dancer has declared a last ramblin' pilgrimage, walkin' the clockwise before regrouping every Backup to return to Paradise. Now let's figure out the local Jandoubi weather; we're going to check in on Bang Bang, who will let us know how sick Hider is tod

SSSssssssTOP stop stop STOP STOP stop stop stop stop

ANXIETY: [ X ][20%]

...




Your neurons seem to calm down. You felt it, though. Felt voices north in the valley, as well as somewhere just outside of it.

In the sudden haze of psychic noise, you didn't notice that you've arrived at the end of the path. Before you, in a large clearing among the silenced woods, was...



Well it looked like a cornerstore, or at least the idea of one as you were familiar with. On top of a soccer field? In the middle of a forest. With the lights on. Just playing it cool, like there's nothing wroooooOOHHHH WHAT IS THAT SMELL? It's such a heavy, greasy stink! Kwiat starts to get active in your pack, while your bowels grunt and agree that your freak physique needs a protein-payment if you wanted to continue your subscription to Six Pack Perfection. But in the back of the black, a voice commands your biology to recognize caution, discipline, and obedience. ...but poo poo you are hungry.

Strength has made a demand! Health supports this. Tyrant doesn't agree...
(STRENGTH 18 - [1]+[6]+[5] = 12 [MoS 6] -VS- WILL 18 - [5]+[6]+[1] = 12 [MoS 6])
STALEMATE

...

Ok you're just tensing your abs and making a strained face while passing gas. You're undecided. You know it's not a good idea but...

INTELLIGENCE IS HERE TO SAVE THE DAY!
(INT 8 - [5]+[3]+[3] = 11) - FAILURE)

While your willpower and your strength have a titanic war of decision, your brain pops and sizzles a little and tells you that you see something SHINY and it's right by the door and oh look you may as well head in now, Good Idea.

By the door was, in fact, some colorful coins scattered on the pavement, lit by the false gloam of the store windows. You scoop them up, counting three, noting that they scintillate between shades of red, yellow, and blue. Each coin was emblazoned with the symbol 'CRUNCH COIN®©™' on the front, and MC&D on the back. You're drawing a blank until you look at the door, and see two signs- one of them listed the hours of the store.

STORE HOURS posted:

M: CLOSED
T: 10pm-12am
W: CLOSED
T: CLOSED
F: 8pm-12am
S: CLOSED
S: 12pm-12am

The other seemed to talk about the coins.

CRUNCH COIN®©™ posted:

The new exclusive currency for all MC&D brand fractal-convenience! Convert any currency recognized by MC&D at one of our kiosks, and use your CRUNCH COINS®©™ to buy what your hunger commands!

Okey-dokey.

You approach the glass doors. They slide open clean and neat, blinding you with the interior lights and the wave of scents- plastic and tile, fried foods and sugars, meats, treats, and things discreet.

OST: SUPERSHOP

It's... amazing.



It's huge in here, as you wander around the saturated aisles. Nobody else was around, and the counter only had a scanner and a coin deposit for buying things.



Kwiat pops her head out of your pack to stare around in usual chicken fashion. The reek of fried foods was heavy in the air, along with the omnipresent hum of machinery.



As you wander further in, you realize that this place is bigger on the inside than on the outside. An hour or so spent carefully walking around and studying posters gives you an idea why- this store apparently uses proprietary 'Fractal Technology', which makes no sense until you walk down enough aisles to realize you can see where you came from on the ceiling, while a drink machine casually churns away seated vertical to the wall. Aisles, shelves, products, and machines meld into each other deeper in, with more and more unique products.



Coming back around to where you can make out the entrance (just in case just in case), you realize that it seems ONLY junky food is sold here, and that you still haven't seen anyone around.
You're no Thief, but maaaybe you could just load down your pack and-


*ZZZZZZZZZZZT*

What was that?



Oh. Oh jeeze.

ANXIETY: [ X ][ X ][30%]

Oh hell. You calmly reach behind, to where Kwiat was holding a pack of corn nubs for you, and wrest it away to put BACK on the shelf, while staring plain-faced at the glowering red glass eye above you.



You play it cool, and head over to actually confirm the prices of things you can buy. Adding up your three colorful coins, you can buy some things, and then get the hell out of here. You didn't have any money to convert, anyways.

It looks like you could get...

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

PLAYER CHOICE

What To Get?

(Voting ends in a few hours.)

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

VOTING CLOSED FOR GETTING A UHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Bedrock-Banana Protein Bar + Shockolate Powerthirst + x1 Double-Boil Egg - 2
Platonic Cheeseburger + Mushroom Cola + Curly Fries - 3
Dry Salad + Gallon Water + Fruit Puffs - 0
woah hey is that belvedere? a PINT? gimme that - 0







hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh- yeah you want the sandwich, sugar drink, and the fries. You need protein, but you also want raw calories, sugars, fats, and salts right now, and something heavy enough to keep you feeling full while also feeding Kwiat. You're still shook from having nearly died three times since the morning began.

You punch in three coins, and press for the burger with fries, while scanning the soda you found in the far back inside of a blacklit cooler with a script you couldn't read.

The scanner hums happily with each coin forced in, confirms your purchase, and then spends a minute bringing down a blue-steel module with a number of technological and otherworldly components slotted in. It starts the process of cooking your request, your inner eye catching a glimpse of the mental scan process the module throws through the store, staring at your Ideal Burger and comparing it against its vast database. The synthesizer floods with the essential essence of lard, superheated under the direct of perfect algorithms. Soon the process is done with a few more alchemical synthenizations, making you wait for it to cool.



Everyone has a custom at this point- you got the food, the side, and the drink. What came first? For you, it was the drink. Cleared the throat for the first bite. You open the giant soda can by pulling on the mushy metal tab, until it cracks loud enough to startle you. No fizz comes out, but you can feel it irregularly coursing through the can strong enough to make your hand hum. It smelled of something deeply purple-blue, and it had a dim glow. You first taste nearly has you spit it onto the floor. More out of complete surprise at the flavor than it being bad. It's BITTER, and oily, but then descends into a strongly grape-cherry aftertaste that made swallowing it easy.

The module pings, and robot-shoves your order out, each wrapped in a perfect little paper bindle. You grab them, one packet of some orange sauce, and head outside, sipping your soda. You get the distinct and undeniable feeling that the store wants you to be thanked, and to come back.

You sit on the sidewalk, facing the soccer field. A light rain had started to fall, darkening the sky to a dim blue. You sit near the tree to avoid the droplets, and open your luck-gotten meal. You try not to think about the blood stains you saw fresh near the coins. You try not to think about why nothing is alive in these woods. You put out the colors, the tightness in your chest, the raw burn of your weakened body with its seven scars. You try to not panic immediately when you pull Kwiat out of your bag, and find she had swiped a pack of the double-boiled eggs. Your peace is interrupted. Of course, right? Right? Something bad happened. This meant they saw it, right? This meant they'll kill you, right? They'll come outside and scream and something terrible and angry will want to MURDER YOU.

Disquiet (9) - [1]+[1]+[2] = CRITICAL SUCCESS!!





quote:

The Thief was smirking it off. He had such infuriating control over what his eyebrows could do. "Hey, no reason to get excited. Of course I lifted something extra. Practice, like the boss said! It's just a pack of crisps anyways."

He was giving you that critical look that you knew from nights in the booths. He had a lesson. "Listen, they didn't see, and we didn't get caught. I can't believe you got the boss teaching you locksmithing and you don't pick this up. YOU were the distraction! While you were acting so nervous for the camera, I gave it a little-" he clicks his teeth and winks.

"That easy."




ANXIETY: [_]



~
Sunday. 2:00pm. The First Day.
You found beauty in Hell.

The rain picking up brings you back to the world. You stare at the lit store glass for a long 30 seconds, but... nothing is happening. You deftly take the eggs and crush them up, and place them down on the paper from your burger for Kwiat to have (with a little of the provided salt). The wrapper is hidden in your bag. ...you're clean, got away with it. You let go, and begin to eat, focusing all of your senses on enjoying your first meal here, and the quiet of the rainy field. Just one moment, captured. Where you didn't worry, and didn't think about anything, but how good the moment was.

~

XkyRauh
Feb 15, 2005

Commander Keen is my hero.
Are we going to save the eggs for later, or feast on them now?

XkyRauh fucked around with this message at 21:36 on Oct 21, 2020

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

[That was an unexpected relief. Finding Beauty In Hell this early was a great headstart into managing the esoteric of anxiety. The burger was a fun and common option when lucking into this event- it fully satiated hunger, and Psychic was one of the few archetypes to interact with mushroom cola. One player in the Blue Book swore that choosing it is part of what lead them to the freak event in Jandoubi with the palette-swapped Bleeder.]

[The only travel option left now was heading to the Hideout to secure it before nightfall. The burger event plus the Beauty In Hell helped make that feel a lot more viable.]

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

Because the vote was 2/2 as of my posting, it was a split event where the burger was taken, but Kwiat attempted to steal the eggs as well. Because of the critical success for Disquiet, the event went with no horror, and so both the character AND Kwiat are fully fed for the day - she got to eat the eggs.

sourdough
Apr 30, 2012

Black August posted:

Because the vote was 2/2 as of my posting, it was a split event where the burger was taken, but Kwiat attempted to steal the eggs as well. Because of the critical success for Disquiet, the event went with no horror, and so both the character AND Kwiat are fully fed for the day - she got to eat the eggs.

:woop:

Glad I was busy and missed the vote

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

You savor the rare of a perfect satisfaction in your belly with the amount you eat, and how much you needed it. Full without feeling sick. You wipe your hands in the wet grass and thank God, gently packing up Kwiat and disposing of your leavings. You dished off the cola too, and it went real good with the burgin'. Washed it all d

[M U S H R O O M]

it's a good thing you have your world-class lungs because your esophagus is expanding like a frog's croak. A rip-roar sudden GAG tears up through you. No no. No way. You glare daggers at your biology in front of the Tyrant.

(NOT GONNA DO IT (HT) 14 - [3]+[2]+[2] = 7 - Success!)

OHHH YOU ARE STAYING IN THE DOGHOUSE.






You stand up, stretch, cough out one more hard gag, and then swallow, breathing deep. You keep it down.
You suddenly go dead cold. ...was that poison? WAS THAT BAD?!

[PSYCHI ̸́̕ ̶́͟ ̨͡͡ ҉̛͜C̵̨͠͏͜ H́͞͠͏̛I͡͞URGEON - Automatic Intervention.]

Her Office posted:

You were always comfortable around the Doctors. Well, ok. They were the four assistants to THE Doctor, but you got along with them well since they knew Mom. They argued, cajoled, insulted, and hyena-barked at one another in a constant bickering storm to point out each and every error in technique of care they were all making, constantly micro-correcting before another bout of concerned smelling and self-angry search for the right information among the reams that the Doctor had set them to study since landfall.

"Shrooms? Yeah? I remember one job back in, what - 190?"
"Nah nah. 189-191. Mushrooms, right? That one rear end had 'em night before."
"Yeah. Was onna jackhammer, when what started hurling his turds! HAW!"
The fourth one was silent, as always. They laughed. You'll be fine.

w ait no you're ok. You feel f ine. Alright.

ANXIETY: 10%

You're fine. You need to move. It'll be 3 or so hours to the hideout from here. You have to get indoors by nightfall.

HP: [ 9 /18 ] (Event Bonus)
FP: [ 14 / 14]


Restrengthened feet move under sullen trees, as the rain refused to let up beyond a constant foggy mist. Somewhere to the northwest, there was a strange black streak to the sky, hidden often by the closer clouds. You pass back through the silent (silent silent) Holy Land, not looking back on the Blue Island Waters Blue Blue Island Blue Waters. You start to head north, ^ along the river = and through the trees & hanging over its edge, until you begin to slowly mount a long series of rocky ~ hills of some deep bronze stone that shone dim with the rain, and demanded your attention as you work over them to stay with the river. Eventually, you come up the rain the frame building of a pale golden stone, temple-like to your eyes. It was shrouded shrouded with tree leaves growing in upon themselves forever to cover it up. But the distinct part was how the entire structure appeared to intersect with a waterfall, like someone simply phased it through where the waterfall began to descend, a perfect bisection. You could divine it by 4 by 8 by 12 by 0

[Psychic] - PSI power increased. PSI !ESP is temporarily β level in power. Stat downs of altered state cancelled.

The Silver Mind posted:

"Trust me over the Dark on this. Don't feel anxious. Just walk through the spiral, not down it. You'll get through this safe. You REALLY shouldn't have done those. But, you didn't know. How could you? Here, watch this."

well, nobody could because there's never been anyone there. Your hand is a pale little claw, and you look at the nails bitten on until they were ripped bloody. It was all growing fractal and making your inner eye stare backwards instead of
forwards.


(Tyrant Exerts Control Over Altered State (WL) 18 - [6]+[4]+[4] = 14 - Succfail!)
([MUSHROOM] Tyrant is confused...)

f e e l i n'
f u n k y


neurons that gleam silver
are most beutiful
when reflecting rainbow.


https://i.imgur.com/KHnaIiR.mp4

so wait

hold on posted:

why am I speaking in here? I can see the hideout but I know Someone is there and it scares me, but I can't

see what their face is yet. It's hypergloss swirls when you can see the PSI hiding in everything!

So tell me. Who is waiting there, in the courtyard of that palegold stone place, wandering to see the waterfalls before they catch scent of me?

Black August
Sep 28, 2003

(Voting will end tomorrow morning.)

PROTIP posted:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Disquiet is a complex Flaw. It has many hidden flags set by a huge web of interrelated system checks. What's important to know is that it can strike especially when your Mood is happy or safe. Core to the Disquiet is an intense doubt, of the self and the self's experienced reality.

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Black August
Sep 28, 2003

Voting ends at 1:00pm EST.

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