So here I am looking Death herself in the face. For the second time, as it so happens. It’s hard to believe that only a few short weeks ago the biggest concern in my life was if I had enough lamp oil to get me through the winter. I used to just be Brother Gregory, scribe and steward of Nordrime Monastery. No different than a hundred other men of the cloth. That seems like a whole lifetime ago. That was before everything changed. Before I started meddling in the affairs of the void. It’s funny how different the world seems to me now that I’ve begun to seek the truth. The world is much more mysterious place to me now. And more dangerous…
It all began one night nearly a month ago when I chose that one book from the pile. Or did the book choose me? Either way, the result was I accidentally entered into a deal with a demon of silence and shadows. He called himself Tenebrotep, a self-proclaimed god and my first encounter with a vestige; a being with no body or soul that should not exist, and yet does. His powers of subtlety and subterfuge are unparalleled and once I sealed my first pact with him, so were my own. That fateful night was only the beginning. Ever since then I’ve been struggling just to keep it a secret; this Veritalignicon and the Vestiges contained within.

It turns out that I was already meant for bigger things even before I opened the cover of that book. The King had given a weird artifact from the far east to the Chaplain, and through him it became my duty to research it’s nature. It was obvious it was somehow connected to the very pact magic I had so recently been inducted into the practice of and that it might hold powerful secrets. But what those secrets are has been difficult to uncover. And even if I did, who can I trust with them?

For now, the only one I’ve trusted about the artifact is Arnold. He’s another monk here at the monastery, but he has a secret of his own. See, he’s a Binder too, bound to the carnal Gourmander, and a member of the clandestine group known as the Order. I was wary of him at first but after a while I’ve come to trust him to some extent. But even he can’t know about the book. From what I’ve learned it’s a powerful and unique artifact and the Order has been searching for it for a long time.

Tenebrotep was the first vestige I called upon but there were many soon to follow. I made the mistake of trusting him too freely and nearly killed someone as a result. Since then I’ve saved his abilities only for when he’s really needed and turned to other names from the book for guidance and power. After the mess of nearly killing Rosemary, one of the girls from the village, I used the power of the twin serpent sisters Seno and Eno and their powers over life and death to save her life, though I got a nasty scar in the bargain. That was the night I discovered that Rosemary was a half-elf. Despite going our separate ways after that it wouldn’t long before our paths crossed again.

Experimenting with pact magic over the first week lead me to meet some new and friendlier faces than my first few bindings did. Xepoc, a time traveler from the distant future, gave me power over the flow of time which has been invaluable in my work. Kuzo remains somewhat of a mystery to me still as he never speaks a word and communicates only through hand gestures. Having the head of a bird doesn’t exactly ease negotiations either. Asam’ano Mora, or just Mora as I’ve come to know him, was actually a dwarf in life. He’s been one of my most useful companions, and with his mastery over stone and his extensive knowledge of mechanical workings I’ve constructed a secret workshop and a network of tunnels and secret passages throughout the castle.

During that same week I met the strange old man Baron Leonard. He claimed to be an old companion of my father’s before he died and had some very pointed questions for me. He knew more than he let on and I avoided him even after he confronted me with a Vestige’s Seal and offered it to me. When I told Arnold about it he sent word to the Order and they insisted we investigate. They even went so far as to instruct Arnold to teach me the art of binding, since Arnold did not know I already had some experience under my belt when he reported my induction into the order. They had given him a seal and a ritual for calling Acheron, a spirit from between the world of the living and the dead. Surviving a binding with her was to be my first task.

Acheron was less than easy to coax into a pact but eventually I got her to relent on the bargain of paying a life for her services by swearing to summon her again within three days time. Upon investigation of the manor where the Baron lived I ran into Rosemary again. Only this time she was trying to kill me instead of trying to save me. Turns out her eleven magic is a bit more potent than she let on. I was forced to disable her before moving about the house. In a secret passage in the basement Arnold and I found the Baron along with a prisoner in the form of another binder. We took care of the Baron with ease but the fiery Minotaur vestige proved to be less than grateful for the rescue. He was convinced that I was actually my father and apparently they had a score to settle. I was forced to fight and kill him to save my own life.

Interrogating the Baron turned up more informative than I would have believed. He told us that the Order was less than benevolent in their crusade to keep hold of hidden knowledge about binding and had been using it for years to control the political reins of the nation. Deeply disturbed by this, Arnold fled and I decided to spare the Baron and return later for more questions. But not without taking all of the Vestige Seals he had gathered over the years for his research.

Some experimentation with the Veritalignicon revealed that by breaking a seal upon it I can add the vestige bound to it to the contents of the book. In this way I met several new spirits to welcome into my service: The Quorim, strangely abstract angels of law that enforce pacts. Narcosis, the fiery minotaur with a lust for destruction. Red Jack, a dangerously insane man who delights in offering anything if you’re willing to gamble for it. Along with the addition of Acheron herself to the book, my list of allies had grown greatly in number. Seeking to know more about the artifact I returned to the Baron’s manor for more answers, but we were interrupted when company showed up.
The Inquisitor of Nordrime, sent by the King to the northern reaches of the Kingdom and to keep an eye on his latest side project at the monastery, was rekindling the local inquisition and searching for half-humans or worse. Somehow the Baron managed to keep him off while Rosemary and I hid away but the threat was made clear. That very night, after Rosemary walked me home, I received a letter from my half-brother, a half-elf who lived deep within the forest in a place no human had ever seen. His people’s spies had discovered that the inquisition had decided to weed them out once and for all and had discovered the location of their hidden sanctuary. I had no choice but to act.

>>16442647

Using Xepoc’s power I slipped out of town unnoticed by the guards, but not unnoticed by something else. The Hounds as REM, Xepoc’s remote A.I., called them are fearsome creatures that hunt those who lurk between seconds. Unable to use time control, I turned instead to Tenebrotep once again and I slipped into the local military camp. There I used his manipulative powers to selectively edit the Inquisitor’s and his head officer’s memories of any knowledge of their plan before hunting down records and the messenger bird calling for troop deployments.

This morning when I awoke things were a mess. The inquisitor isn’t sure why he had called the troops together but he knows something is amiss. He called upon me personally and told me he thinks that they have been infiltrated and were searching for the artifact. As a result, he has ordered me moved out of the castle to a location in town and that I have a guard posted on me at all times. Then he asked if I had any contact with witchcraft, which I denied. After escaping his questions I sought out Arnold but found his room trashed and searched and him missing. Perhaps the inquisitor already found him before he even met with me. Unsure of what to do now I have come to the woods again to call upon Acheron both to settle a debt and to try to find Arnold. But it may already be too late.

BINDER QUEST XV
---------------------------------
~~How to Play Binder Quest~~

Binder Quest is an interactive game of collective story telling.

To participate roll a d100 and post a course of action. A roll is not required for every suggestion, but the highest roll(s) will be given the most consideration in disagreements.

To roll dice, simply type dice+1d100 into the email field before you submit you post.

Please, be courteous to other players. Any suggestions drastically out of character will be ignored but otherwise anything is allowed. If you have any questions as to your abilities or something that may have been mentioned in a past thread please feel free to ask.

Now let us begin.
---------------------------------

>>16443208

I guess it's time to open the beer and forget work for a while.

>another ekstasy

Well now, yes indeed Captcha.

"You certainly took your time," says the chilling voice of the skeleton you know to be Acheron. "It is not wise to keep me waiting. One day you will stand upon the Styx and I may keep you waiting."
The skeleton walks to the tiny pond nearby and casts water about in a circle on the ground until you are surrounded by a circle of frost. She draws up water into her own form, this time to create a watery cloak, long flowing crystalline hair and a gentle blue femine figure about her bones glittering in the sunlight. She steps back into the circle with you and stands with as much poise as she can muster.
"Now, what do you seek this time, pact maker?"
"Today I seek knowledge. I ask to borrow your powers of sight to locate something I have lost."
"Then the price is the same as it was last time I offered." She holds out her hands and from the waters of her form creates a lily of glowing white ice before placing it in her hair. "Twenty years from the life of a mortal, though I leave the choice of who's up to you"
You were afraid of this. Acheron is very uncompromising in her deals and you still aren't sure if you're willing to pay such a price.
You look the eerily beautiful figure of Acheron in the eye, trying to be as serious as possible.
"You know I can't agree to those terms, Asch. If you are as patient as you claim then surely you can wait a little longer for their souls. Is there no alternate price you could ask?"
"None. My price is non-negotiable. If you wish to peer through the waters of life you must fill my chalice with the lifeblood of the living. I require twenty years of life, and no less, however you choose to pay. Of course, you could sample one of my other favors for a different price."
As she says this her watery dress turns slowly into her familiar icy armor, encircling and encasing her in form-fitting beautiful white ice. A black hooded cloak appears again as if from nowhere and she pull it over her head.

Awesome. You have no idea how much I've missed this quest.

You consider your options carefully. The last time you were bound with Acheron you used only her mastery over waters and ice and it proved invaluable. But she also has other abilities you have not yet tried to obtain. Among them, the ability to kill with a touch or to speak to the souls of the dead.

But right now the most pressing one is her ability to spy upon the souls of the living. You must know if Arnold is still alive and if there is anything you can do for him.

But even then, knowing where he was, what would you do?

If you bind yourself to Acheron you won't be able to enter the holy ground of the Monastery until the pact has run its course which would leave you unable to save Arnold if he is detained within. And she doesn't seem to be willing to compromise about anything.

We might be able to get info on Arnold from Gourmander or one of the others. The important thing with Asch is to pay off our 'will-summon-you-again-soon' debt, which we've done.

"Asch, let's forget about business for a while. I'll offer you a deal. I will bear your sign for one hour, and in return, you give me no powers or gifts. We can spend the time simply conversing. What say you?"

rolled 94 = 94

>>16443317
rolling

rolled 37 = 37

>>16443317

Agree

"Asch," you start. "How about we forget business for a while. I'll offer you a deal. I will bear your mark for an hour's time and I won't ask that you grant me any gifts or powers. We can spend the time simply conversing. What say you to that?"

"I say that you take me for a fool, binder. You cheated me from my due once. I will not be cheated a second time. A taste of mortal life is what I ask. If you are so desperate to spare the lives of the innocent then your life will serve just as well." She melts away her flesh of water leaving only bone and armor behind. Glaring at you from hollow eyes she says slowly and clearly, "There are no innocents, Animus Gregory. Only those with power and those without. The question is which one you will choose to be."

rolled 66 = 66

>>16443374

I somewhat appreciate Acheron's mindset to be honest. However, I do not see very many alternatives, perhaps we need to kill somebody, like the inquisitor.

Also, within what timespan do we need to give those 20 years.

rolled 57 = 57

>>16443374
We may have to track down the inquisitor and drain him. He's the only person I can think of that I wouldn't feel bad siphoning the life from.

"How have I cheated you?"

You see the reason in Asch's words but still have second thoughts. Can you really go through with this? You hate being left with so little choice.
"How have I cheated you? You agreed to the pact and it was upheld."
"Yes, but one cannot delay the inevitable forever. I was easy on you before, pactmaker, because you were uninitiated in the ways of killing. It really should not be so hard for you now. You have already killed once before. I was there, remember? You proved that you had no qualms with such practices and spilled good life that could easily have been mine. It only becomes easier from here on."
"This twenty years of life... How soon would I have to deliver it to you?"
"Before the pact is up, of course, however long you should ask it. And should you fail to find a suitable vessel for your payment I will extract the vital force from you myself."
She runs an icy cold finger along your neck from side to side.

rolled 87 = 87

>>16443458

Explain to her that the inquisitor feels like somebody you might not feel qualms about draining, but that it still disturbs you greatly. Perhaps she can give some insight on their faith afterwards when we drain them, to death perhaps?

What powers is she offering us this time though, if she doesn't budge from her requirements, perhaps we could gain more powers for the same trade?

Oh, this looks interesting.
But before I join in, some shopping and reading through this massive block of a recap.

rolled 92 = 92

>>16443458
Why must we take the life from one person only? And what if the person we take life from does not have 20 years remaining?

rolled 69 = 69

>>16443627

Good Questions

"I suppose if I must, I'll offer you twenty years from the life of the local Inquisitor. He at least is someone I feel I can live with stealing the years from. But wait... What if I took a year of life each from twenty different people? Or the life of someone already at death's door?"
She looks at you with a curious look, even for a skeleton.
"Such a thing could be possible... But you must visit each soul yourself and drain the years with a touch. If you were willing to undertake such a feat then I see no reason to disallow it. Payment is payment. If that is more agreeable to you, twenty years of life is still the price to partake in my vigil over the souls of the living. Is that all you wish to bargain for or would you like more?"

rolled 46 = 46

>>16443701

So she is offering us the same ability to control water as before?

>>16443750
[[You are currently only bargaining for her ability to scry for living souls. You could also ask for the water control ability but that may increase the price of the bargain.]]

rolled 73 = 73

>>16443701
Accept with a time limit of 24 hours, or until we fulfill our end of the deal.

>>16443855
I'd amend that to "24 hours with the ability to dismiss beforehand once we have provided payment".
That way we get some flexibility out of it and don't wind up in a difficult situation with us in front of a rather narked off Inquisitor with no means of escape.

Could we drain a three months from 80 different people to fill the debt? We could take the time from each of the Inquisitor's troops.

rolled 24 = 24

>>16443915
Sounds good to me.

>>16443919
How are we going to get the life from each of the men without any of the other men noticing us, since if I remember right our head becomes just a skull.

>>16443919
I get the feeling she doesn't really care /how/ we fulfill our obligation as long as she gets the agreed-upon amount.

>>16443701
We should be careful that the draining of life from them is not overt, as that could make fufilling the bargin very difficult.

>>16443933
whole body, I thought, but we have access to other powers, remember, we've got stealth vestiges we can call on later, and we have a network of tunnels running under the town.

rolled 11 = 11

>>16443933

This is a good point, we might be in for a rough ride if the skull appears.

>>16443973
Fair enough. Either way, gonna be making this pact right now and we'll worry about the payment after we find our friend.

Ok, all set and ready to bind the shit out of this.


>>16443973
Even with this, it would be a pain in our hollow pelvis to run about trying to take so little from so many people.
We should at least bring the Inquisitor within a year of death.
Enough to settle what he has to do and maybe enough to make him leave soon.

rolled 25 = 25

>>16444058
>>16444007

One thing though before this.

Does the inquisitor KNOW who took the years when we take them.

more importantly, can we take more than the agreed upon amount? If we have to drain 20 years, can we take 30 as a credit towards future pacts?

rolled 100 = 100

>>16444139

Sneaky bastard! <3

rolled 46 = 46

>>16444139
I hope we at least get some interest on our account.

Rolling for daemonic banking system.

"No, I'll only need the power of your sight. If I need to, can I drain more than twenty years from someone? Can I put it towards payment for next time?"
"I'm afraid not. Even though I would love extra sustenance, once the terms of our agreement are set you will only be able to drain the specified amount. Of course, you could just give yourself more leeway and agree to take the whole life instead..."
"That won't be necessary. Also, will the person know I'm draining their life?"
"Only if you want them to. Once you have hold of their vital force they will be like a puppet in your hands."
"Good to know. Alright, I'll take your pact for twenty four hours. But I'd like to be able to dismiss you earlier after giving you your payment in case things go bad."
"Fair enough. Twenty years of payment within twenty four hours. Agreed?"
"Agreed."
She steps forward and embraces you as her entire form melts into frigid water, flowing around you.
You steady yourself as the cold grips you from within. You take one last gasp before your pulse stops completely. You feel your face melt into a skeletal visage and your skin becomes as gray as a wraith's. Once again, you have left behind the world of the living.
**A pleasure dealing with you pact maker. As always.**
You blink slightly as you realize you vision is a little different. Something is not the same though you can't tell exactly what. Perhaps there are some things you might see differently with you new power.

rolled 94 = 94

>>16444260
Ok, wecan now probably see life essence.
Let's go search some people to see how thisworks out.

rolled 46 = 46

>>16444430

Agreed

rolled 31 = 31

>>16444444

Now this must get us some favorable attention!

As a monk, we probably have a hood, do we not? Might wanna put that up, considering we're currently freaky looking.

You pull your cloak up around your face to hide your gaunt features and proceed back out of the woods and towards the gardens. But you halt as you near the edge. You can see a faint glowing white light. The light is coming from a pair of monks walking through the gardens. It seems to be concentrated on each of them.

Without knowing how, as you look at their exposed light you know that one is named Adrian and the other is Emoril even though you've never been introduced. As you creep cautiously closer you can see that the pulsing ball of light encompasses them and is actually more of a shell. Emitting from the light shell of Adrian is a thin chord of light that attaches to the shell of Emoril. Dozens of smaller strands spring from each of them and trail off invisibly into the distance towards the castle above.

**Now you see as I do. This is what life truly looks like. The interconnected web of thought and emotion that is commonly known as the soul. Each is distinct, yet they are also entwined with each other. What you see now is the very soul of these people, laid bare for you to see.**

You walk past the two boys unnoticed and continue up towards the monastery gate and the town beyond. Looking up further into the garden you see the old groundskeeper Curwen busy at work. His shell is much smaller, barely extending from his body at all and looks more like his skin is speckled with tiny crystals. He does not have any spindles of light but there is one thick chord of golden light stronger than any else you have seen. Looking at the chord you know where it leads to. To the one person of any worth in Curwen's life. His daughter. "Rosemary..."

You now think you have an understanding of how to find people through the life web. Perhaps this will be more useful than you were expecting.

rolled 22 = 22

>>16444626
Do we know somebody who is somehow connected to the Inquisitor?

That would make finding him easier.
But before we come close to people, we should conceal ourselves with a pact.

Which of our allies would be appropriate for this task?

rolled 43 = 43

>>16444626
It has already proved informative. I suggest we try to search out any connections to Arnold we can in order to figure out where he might be.

rolled 43 = 43

>>16444626

Interesting, we should take efforts of finding surprising connections between people there shouldn't be none.

Alas, try to follow rosemary's lead while looking out for the Inquisitor or his retinue. Now where is that baron again..?

rolled 20 = 20

Thanks for the quest so far guys, but I really need to review this stock exchange data for tomorrow morning.

Keep us safe, rolling to keep bad rolls away.

You reach the garden entrance and turn towards town walking beside the golden link of father and daughter. It doesn't take long for you to recognize the path as the way to her uncle's house. The Baron is likely to be at home with her carrying out whatever studies he may be able to upon the artifact replica you entrusted him with.

You wrack your brain fro people who might have a connection to Arnold but keep drawing a blank. Though Arnold has lived here for years he was always somewhat of a recluse. His only real loves seemed to be food and drink. Perhaps the Chaplain might be the closest link since he was always entrusted by him with tasks requiring a senior member of the clergy. Or maybe one of the wine-sellers in town or one of the cooks in the monastery.

You turn and glance up at the castle. Being undead, you are unable to set foot within hallowed ground. This was the condition set forth by Acheron upon your first contract with her. This may prove troublesome since so many of the people closest to Arnold are within.

The inquisitor however... He did spent a great deal of his time in town with the soldiers in their encampment and the town guard may also have some connection. He also seemed to be quite friendly towards the Chaplain. But the Chaplain is friend to a great many people. It may be impossible to sort one connection of his from another.

rolled 79 = 79

Welcome back OP. It has indeed been a while. Nice to see you again. Alright guys, since we know Arnold is unlikely to have many strong ties to other monks, we should investigate the Inquisitor first.

>>16444810
Still, the Chaplain seems like our only real lead.

rolled 33 = 33

>>16444816
Also, try checking if WE are radiating any life energy? (doubtful but its worth a shot.)

>>16444711
Indeed, we must find our stalwart companion!

You look at yourself, wondering if you have any links coming from you. But to your eyes you do not give off even the faintest of light.

**You won't find your soul there. For now, it is in my power as collateral until you pay your debt. Even if I returned it to you it would do you little good. Only the living can share connections with the great web.**

You consider who you should seek. The chaplain may be a very convenient locus for a great many souls, but in all likelihood he is within the monastery. Where should you go?

rolled 57 = 57

>>16444810
We need to find either the Chaplain, and if he is within the monastery, the Inquisitor.
But finding the Inquisitor might prove easier.
And since time is of the essence- more than they might belive, in fact- I say we search for the Inquisitor first and don't risk circling around the grounds for half a day.

Also we need to drain the living essence out of this bastard.

>>16444889
Makes sense, I guess.

rolled 29 = 29

>>16444871
Well, if the Chaplain knows many people, and there's a chance he's outside of the monastery, then he'd be easily found by following the lines outside. Could we examine the lines to see if there is any noticeable signs that it might lead to the same person?

OP?
You still with us?

Walking by you look at the chords emanating from people as you pass by. You find that if you focus on each individual chord you can know who they are connected to. After a while you find one you recognize as the chaplain on one of the other monks in town.

Unfortunately, the chord leads right back up to the monastery. If the Chaplain is carrying out his usual schedule he may be conducting evening ceremonies right now.

Looking around at some of the other faces you find a solder and see his connections. Unsurprisingly, one of his strongest bonds is to Ranta the night watch captain, but trailing nearby is the inquisitor's trace signal. It leads off towards the Western gate on the other side of town. Perhaps he would be easier to find. Or perhaps you could dismiss your Vestige and seek out the chaplain within the monastery. Or perhaps you should see about paying your debt first and worrying about the task itself after. But Arnold may be in trouble.

rolled 72 = 72

>>16445395
If the Inquisitor has done something to Arnold, he will be connected to our friend.
Through him, we find Arnold and shall begin paying the debt.

rolled 20 = 20

>>16445412

Seconded. Though, If anything, we need to pay off the Debt first. Don't want to lose 20 years.

Thirded

You follow the dark strand of the inquisitor from the guard and find many other strand coalescing into it, gaining in thickness as it travels. It seems that the bonds between souls reflect some of the character of the relationship between the linked souls, as this one seems much more dark and frayed than the peaceful golden bond you followed before.

As you approach the gate you see the inquisitor. He has a small group of men on horseback following behind him. He has a thick web of black chords coming from him and reaching out to many people throughout the town. But, curiously, he has a massive golden arch stretching from the top of his soul bubble and stretching across the sky to the south. It seems to be a coiled connection of dozens of names from some place you do not recognize. He and his entourage seem to be leaving town and are heading for the gate.

Pursuing him may be a problem. Not only will he be much faster on horseback once he leaves town and has a guard with him, you'll never get out of town through the gate looking as you do. You'd have to circle around and make your way either through the forest or find another means of egress.

rolled 90 = 90

>>16445488
Can't we use Tenebrotep's abilities to circumvent this?

>>16445564
[[You would have to summon and bind yourself to Tenebrotep to again. Bindings only last as long as the pact specifies. Also, Tenebrotep can stand neither light nor sound, and the sun is till a few hours from setting and there are crowds all around.]]

rolled 23 = 23

>>16445571
Then I say, leg it, monky boy.

Well... let's think about this... what vestiges do we have that could allow us to keep up with him? Xepoc is an option, but since the Hounds of Tindalos exist in this setting it's imperative we don't rely too heavily on his powers.

>>16445602
I think we can avoid the Hounds as long as we only accelerate our timestream rather than stopping it entirely.

Red Jack could give us anything... as long as we're lucky.

Kuzo can let us fly, I believe, which would be handy. How he'd react to our trying to pact him while also pacted to Acheron, I don't know.

You search the countless threads string from the inquisitor but can not find Arnold anywhere amongst them before he vanishes through the gateway. Cursing your luck you begin to make your way around towards the forest but you'll lose precious time this way. Hopefully you'll be able to pick up the trail and catch up to the Inquisitor by finding another thread once you're out of town.

You pause at the river's edge. There is a patrol wandering about on the far side of the river and searching the woods for something. Apparently the guard has become much more active since the believed attack from last night. You fall back and walk into a shadowed alley to consider your options.

You don't have the book of true binds with you but you know you can call upon the vestiges within merely by chanting the words of their summoning ritual. Some hidden talent of yours. You remind yourself of the other spirits you command:

-Xepoc, the Harbinger of Eternity’s Repose
-Seno and Eno, the Dichotomous Serpent
-Tenebrotep, the Lurker in the Night
-Asam’Ano Mora, the Architect of Misery
-Kuzo, the Storm Warder
-Gourmander, the Hungering One
-Quorim, the Stalwart Blade
-Narcosis, the Indomitable Force
-Red Jack, the Gambit of Buffoons
-Acheron, the Stygian Judge

**Have you forgotten already, pact maker? You have none of your precious human blood left in your veins right now. You will not be calling upon the aide of another until our bargain has been settled.**

>>16445674
>**Have you forgotten already, pact maker? You have none of your precious human blood left in your veins right now. You will not be calling upon the aide of another until our bargain has been settled.**
Dammit, the things we forget over a few months. I suppose that we can't boost our existing pact to a higher level either? That makes this quite inconvenient.

But hey, we're dead, so we don't have a mortal body, right? Will we still tire, grow exhausted from exertion? Or can we just sprint all day? That would at least let us catch up with the Inquisitor, and quite possibly outrun any patrols as well.

>>16445803
...That's a good point. If we're undead, we may very well be tireless.

rolled 75 = 75

>>16445803
If this were true, we may have a chance.

>>16445803
Before boosting our existing pact, we might want to think about paying off the one we already have.

I have a crazy plan. If we're stopped, we could uncloak ourselves dramatically, claim to be the god of death, and drain some time from whoever apprehends us.

rolled 74 = 74

>>16445902
We cannot "boost" our pact but we are indeed tireless.

rolled 86 = 86

>>16445935
Sounds good.
Not actually crazy, but utilitarian.

>>16445935
I think that it would be more practical to just outrun anyone who stops us instead of revealing the fact that there's a skull-headed person with crazy supernatural powers running around.

Besides, if the only difference between whether we're willing to steal someone's life or not is whether they're inconveniencing us, aren't we a terrible person? Extending that logic says that we should basically be willing to bend others' lives to our convenience, and therefore kill as many of them as needed to pay for pacts.

Frustrated you throw caution to the wind. You decide that if you're going to take action now is the time. If you are truly tireless as one of the dead then now is the time to find out.

You set off at a run towards the wall, darting past the sentries guarding the River gate. You run as fast as you've ever run in your life and find yourself able to completely ignore your fatigue. One of the guards steps to block your path with spear raised but you leap and find you are far lighter than you used to be, landing atop his shoulder and kicking off forward to the ground while knocking him aside. You set your sights firmly upon the black tendrils coiling from the guards and off over the hills and put all else from your mind focusing only on running.

Shouts go up behind you as you continue at your breakneck pace off the path and into the hills. One of the sentries fires a crossbow bolt but it flies aimlessly over your shoulder. Or did it go through your shoulder? You aren't sure and it doesn't matter now.

You can see the snaking trail of the branch of all the guards soul links to the inquisitor and you take off over the hills leaving the guards far behind. You run ceaselessly for minutes until you come to the woodland edge where the inquisitor and his mounted guards are standing before ranks of soldiers. It seems they are preparing a woodland ranging to seek out any spies or savages that they can find.

You pause on the hilltop even with no need to catch your breath. There are twenty-five armed men, but only a fifth of them are mounted, including the inquisitor himself. Half of them have crossbows but two of the mounted men have longbows. The inquisitor himself is armored and has his blade in hand marching with the infantry before him and his cavalry behind...

This will not be an easy fight. A direct confrontation might be suicide if you had a life to lose.

>>16445998
Escape is a natural first option, but if it becomes impractical, I mean.

>>16446205
The question is do we have a life to lose...

>>16446205
I think our best bet here is to wait until the ranging starts, then try to get the Inquisitor when he's got less forces immediately around him. Watch and wait; perhaps the mounted contingent will break off from the rest, or they'll otherwise separate.

In the meantime, can we see any connection to Arnold?

rolled 22 = 22

You all remember we only came to steal life for a debt and find our friend, right? We should probably filter out what we don't need so we know where to go once we tag out some 20 years of the inquisitor.

You look at the inquisitor's soul trace but he's too far to pick out the chord of Arnold from the multitude of names that spring into your mind looking at him. You watch as they disappear into the woodlands keeping in tight formation as the head further west. It might be best to just watch and observe them until you can get a better opportunity.

You hear a shout from behind and without turning resume your running into the woods. It seems the guards have just caught up with you and though you would have no problem taking care of a few lightly armed men there's no need to come to blows if it can be avoided. Besides, revealing your supernatural nature is a card you have not yet played and it might be best to play keep a close hand until the time is right.

You head south of the ranging hoping to follow on their flanks as they sweep the woods. You slow your movement down hoping to avoid making too much noise and alerting the nearby ranging but if you take too long you're sure to be caught by the guard.

You can hear the river not far off. Perhaps you could make for that to either hide or lose their trail? Or maybe you could climb up above. But right now the only advantage you have is a body with no need for rest and no cares for pain. What would be to your best advantage?

I think the best thing we can do is follow quietly until they break ranks to eat or rest.

rolled 15 = 15

>>16446480
I say we keep running and we lead the guards into the woods as they follow our trail and let them run straight into the soldiers.
With a little luck, they will get busy enoughwith each other so we can take some life unseen.

>>16446522
Hm. Liking the way you think.

Well, we also don't need to breathe (do we?) so running to the river and then walking a while upstream might work to get the guard off our trail.

rolled 79 = 79

>>16446522
Seconding this.

>>16446522
If the guards run into the soldiers, they'll tell the Inquisitor about us, and this will turn from an aimless hunt into an us-hunt. How much confidence do we have in our ability to evade thirty guys trying to chase us down, really?

>>16446543
This is a good idea... Lead the guards close to the legion, then duck into the water... they're unlikely to think of searching there.

rolled 74 = 74

>>16446567
When they run into each other, the guards and soldiers will have a little discussion.
And I doubt the Inquisitor will believe their little story of how they chased the runner-monk from the gate to the woods so easily after they probably just fucked up his battle plan.

rolled 47 = 47

>>16446610
See Discworld Death in a thrilling chase for his un-life!

Running Monk


In a theater near you.

>>16446610
Precisely, particularly if we're in the water, which they're unlikely to search.

rolled 21 = 21

>>16446660
Even if they do, you think they will find us, clad in our dark robe?
Even if you had experienced divers, searching a river for a corpse is a hopeless task.
And they don't have divers plus we can just walk away.

Well then, seems we have our gameplan.

OP? We doing this?

You run North towards the river with the guards on your trail You take one last look over your shoulder and see a few of them breaking into the forest edge far behind you and plunge in. You suppose the water might be cold, but your skin was cold before you even plunged in. You instinctively hold your breath for a moment but then you let the water flow into your lungs and you plummet to the bottom of the river bed.

Landing on your feet, you fight the current and slowly begin walking upstream. Step by agonizing step you walk for what seems like a small eternity before you spot a rough outcropping on the side. You grab hold of the rocks and kick your way up to the surface.

Very slowly you rise up just far enough to stick your head out. You cannot see any guards or soldiers about though you hear the sound of horses mingling with the sound of dogs barking further downstream and echoing across the rocky river shore. Perhaps there is a crossing further west where the rangers sought to ford the river.

rolled 38 = 38

>>16446865
And now We'z going all sneaky-like.
Dey will neva see us comming.

We should probably remember to cough up that water before we change back.
Now, I guess, to find a guard and follow him to the Inquisitor.

Thinking it might be unwise to hold on to the unneeded weight you force yourself to retch up as much of the water in your lungs as you can manage. Regaining yourself, you carefully and quietly make your way towards the sounds. You can hear the dogs moving off one way and the horses another. Perhaps they are splitting up?

The denser woods here make it easier to move stealthily and remain unseen. You finally get a glimpse of one of the mounted men but he is on the other side of the river. You take cover and remain motionless, not even breathing. He is with two footmen and is scanning the woods as they pass. It seems the group has split up and are searching the woods in smaller units. But for what?

You wait until the men pass out of earshot before moving again. You can hear hounds getting closer to the south. If the men have split up it will be more difficult to find the inquisitor. You saw the black tendrils connecting the men to their duties snaking away from the men but could not pick out which one was the inquisitor from this distance. Some are beyond the river, some are further down it and some of them are behind you.

>>16447044
Excellent, now we canattack in any direction.

I advocate killing some of those dogs, if their lifes count. And even if they don't, they could search uswith those.

rolled 75 = 75

>>16447168
What I forgot...

>>16447168
[[It has been clarified in the past that Acheron will only accept sentient life as payment for her pacts. Also, the price is only twenty years off of someone's natural life. An actual death is not required and Gregory has been against needless killing since the beginning.]]

>>16447193
Does that count for hounds clinging to his bones?

rolled 98 = 98

>>16447193
I say we Get back across the river, and use our unbreathing silence to sneakily try and find the inquisitor.

That, or attempt using our bone like exterior to make the dogs or friends and have those lead us to him.

rolled 62 = 62

>>16447280
> bones are the friend of dogs
This is so not gonna work.
Let's go with that.

rolled 85 = 85

>>16447280
Bone exterior might lead to less-than-friendly interaction with the dogs. Other than that, I agree with stealthily following the black soul path.

You turn to the south to the sound of the nearest hound. You stalk closer to it using the trees as cover to obscure vision of your prey. You stop and hug close to a tree as a sentry from the town gates comes into view alone with only a tracking dog to accompany him. You wait for him to move forward. But as soon as he gets within ten meters of you the hound goes crazy and he shouts. The hound is going crazy, probably at your scent which must be quite distinctive.

You slowly retreat back to the river before you can be discovered and plunge back into the water, letting the current carry you for a while as you cross to the opposite river bank. You crawl out of the water slowly onto the muddy shore and raise your eyes. Directly in front of you is a group of four footmen circled around what looks like a corpse. Three of their backs are to you but one of them is obscured only by his companion.

For now you're unnoticed but the river has little cover nearby. You could wait or try to retreat to another point on the river.

rolled 3 = 3

>>16447394

Stay in the water and see if we can observe them from there.

rolled 2 = 2

>>16447394
Yeah, this yould even be Arnold or Rosemary lying there.
We need to keep peeking.... all sneky-like.

rolled 5 = 5

>>16447506
>>16447522
Set sail for fail!

rolled 73 = 73

>>16447506

Yeah, if we can lay low in the river, the cold won't affect us and it'd be harder to see us I think.

>>16447394
You wait patiently for the soldiers to move on, laying prone in the mud of the river bank watching and listening.
"Looks like it died instantly. Arrow from a longbow. Clean shot right between the eyes. Could just be a poacher but could be we've got savages hunting this close by. If so, that's dangerous. Shall we sound the call?"
"Nah, no need to get the lord inquisitor on the move over a dead deer. 'Sides, he'd just say it confirmed what he already suspected. Let's keep searching. Whoever did kill it, they left the body behind and still warm so it hasn't been dead long."
The men all turn and walk away from the dead doe and make their way off away from the river. But one of them casts a glance your way and his eyes alight in confusion. He begins to wander over towards you with his eyes fixed on where you lay.

rolled 24 = 24

>>16447612

Oh, just a dead deer? Huh.

Shit, can we slip back into the river and get out of there? Do it fast before they can get a good look at us.

rolled 47 = 47

>>16447612
Jump at him when he bows down, taking us for a corpse, then run towards the others before they get what is happening, taking from their lifes.
Then jump right back into the river.
They will think we were a river spirit or something.
When they sound a call, we can just ambush those to come here and sow more confusion.

rolled 55 = 55

>>16447709

I second this, but instead of hanging around and picking off more people after taking out the first guy, I vote for just GTFOing down the river.

rolled 87 = 87

>>16447723
We must not make the same mistake the Japanese made in Pearl Harbor.
Tinidity against a thunderstruck opponent can cost us victory.
We can collect for our debt here.

With a slight lurch you slip back into the river and out of sight. You hear an exclamation from the soldier as you drift away, but you can only make out a few words over the churning of the river above.
"...dead body...it bloody moved...river..."
After that you hear no more as you drift away in the stream away from the soldiers and the town behind you.
You bump into a large rocky pillar and climb up onto it to find a bridge spanning across the river. And there, sitting upon his horse on the north side of the river is the inquisitor and his two mounted bowmen. They are talking in hushed voices but seem to be alone, perhaps thinking the perimeter secure.

You have finally found him again but even now he is still guarded. You may be able to sneak up on him but you might startle the horses and alert them to your presence as with the dogs.

rolled 92 = 92

>>16447752
Can we make out his soul-connections fromdown here?

rolled 19 = 19

>>16447752

It seems we set the dogs off with our smell or presence or something, so I don't think we're going to get very close with him being guarded right now.

You move closer to the Inquisitor keeping the bridge between you and him so that you won't be spotted. You step out of the water an crouch as low as you can underneath the stone causeway. Peering cautiously around the edge you can see clearly the tendrils from the inquisitor. You begin searching for Arnold's link among the mass of connections.

"I will not allow the men to believe we will tolerate such an invasion into our own sanctum without retribution. I don't care how long it takes. I want a full-blooded elf to parade about as a prisoner. I know that they had nothing to do with the raid last night but the men must not sleep with fear in their hearts." The inquisitor turns to one of the men beside him. "Has there been any word about capturing the escaped monk?"
"None sir," says a voice you recognize as Ranta, the captain of the guard. "We're still looking though. I've doubled the watch on all the gates and even the woodland border. If he moves in or out of town we'll know."
"What about the fugitive that the sentries reported stormed the barrier?"
"No, from what I've been told the one we're looking for isn't the type to be running. He weighs at least double what that little street urchin must have."

There! You find it among a tangle of names. Arnold! If he still has a link that must mean he's alive. It's faint but you think you can trace it. It leads off up the river and back through the woods towards town.
Now you can follow it to him and make sure he's alright or help him if he's in trouble. But there is still the inquisitor and the matter of payment for your vestige...

rolled 51 = 51

>>16447937
We should slip back into the water, slip out on the other side assaulting the group and take what we need from them, then escape under water and run back to where Arnold hides.
This might even distract them from the elves, now hunting some mysterious monk-assailant, holding him responsible for the attack they were talking about.

>>16448001
[[Is this suggesting you attack the inquisitor and his entourage or return upstream to the footmen and attack them?]]

rolled 45 = 45

>>16448039
The Inquisitor, of course.
We have a personal grudge against him as well as him being in the way.
Also he cannot ignore a personal attack as opposed to some strange stories from his soldiers.

rolled 64 = 64

Sounded like a flip onto land, a quick grab of life force, and a silent retreat back into the river before anyone knows what's going on to me. I approve.

>>16448108
Yes, about that.
But hiw much noise we make while fleeing won't matter, theysaw us anyway.

You step up and out from behind the bridge and onto the more solid ground and stride slowly toward the mounted men.
**Is it time now?**
Yes, you think to yourself. Yes it is.
You look down at your hands and see wisps of feint silky blue energy trailing from you fingers and growing longer. They seem to be of the same nature as the soul auras emanating from your victims.
One of the horses catches sight of you and reels up while making a terrible sound, and the others quickly follow suit. Ranta is thrown from his saddle but the inquisitor and his other man manage to keep their seats.
You quickly dart forward between the men and swing your hands towards them. You do not even make contact with them, however, as your hands grab their soul auras themselves. The men freeze in place, even as the Inquisitor raises his sword. You put your focus onto him and watch as the aura diminishes slowly, drained away into your cold, dead hands. The corona of light flows out of him and into the wispy stalks of your fingers, drained by the leash you have him trapped within.
**Twenty years are mine now. Years that he shall never see.**
You release the men just as Ranta charges at you with his knife in hand. Without a second glance you turn and charge into the river, dropping like a stone to the bottom. Even below the surface you hear the hunting horn sound above. It would not be wise to remain here. But which way do you travel? Upstream and back towards the town? Or downstream towards the lowlands and the villages on the other side of the woodlands?

>>16448243
Towards the town, where Arnold is probably waiting already. We should just walk out of sight behind the next bend and then run the fuck out of here.

rolled 71 = 71

>>16448285
Oh, and it would be easier to just remove the cloth and store it into our empty ribcage to reduce our resitence in water.

>>16448285
Or rather, away and likely through things like water that will mask our trail, and then to find Arnold after spending at least some time to keep them from just tracking this strange disturbance right back to Arnold.

>>16448358
I thought that we still had skin and stuff, it was just dead. Not that we are actually a skeleton.

rolled 2 = 2

>>16448380
We are not losing any skin particles the dogs could follow and we are very light, thus should not leave any useful footmarks. How would they follow us?

rolled 24 = 24

>>16448412
Your behaviour is very silly, cease this charade right now.

You trudge as quickly as you can manage through the current upstream. You walk for nearly two hours as the light from above vanishes into night and continue onward, following the rising moon in the east.

You remain undisturbed until you come again to the shallow basin on the eastern side of the castle where you first summoned Acheron a few nights ago. There are no patrols here that you can see and you are hidden from view of the castle above by the steep slope. Your cloak and robe are muddy and wet but you're no worse for wear.

You have the protection of the cover of dark, your debt to the dead is repaid, you don't seem to have been followed, and you know Arnold is alive somewhere. The night is yours.

rolled 7 = 7

>>16448576

Well now that we've got our debt repaid, let's get on tracking down Arnold.

There has to be SOMEONE in town who has a connection to him. Even if it's just the guy who sells wine to him.

[[Going to go ahead and call it a night early this week. We made some good progress and I've got an early morning. Until next week gentlemen. And as always, thanks for playing.]]

rolled 36 = 36

>>16448771
Thanks a lot, dear GM.
6 am is about time for bed, I would say.

I'm just absolutely ecstatic to see this quest back.

thanks again, OP.

>>16448771
Great quest, been waiting for it for a long time now.
But one question, why Tuesday at noon? Seems a bit of an odd starting time, with the majority of people in school/universty or at their jobs.

>>16448844
[[Eh, I work nights and weekends. Hopefully I'll be able to swing some extra sessions some Friday nights though when I don't have other plans.

NEXT SESSION: If not Friday then on Tuesday as scheduled.

Also archived: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/16442647/

Vote it up.]]

Also I should mention that anyone is free to make suggestions about the course of action to begin the next session with. I'll be sure to check the results of this thread in the archives long before starting a new one. If there is a good amount of consensus I'll just get straight into the meat of the action for next time.

rolled 13 = 13

>>16448576
If we still have an eye on the strand connected to Arnold, then I suppose we follow it while doing our best to remain out of sight.

Also, glad to see this quest back again!

rolled 97 = 97

>>16448971
This, and night OP.

Morning bump for anyone that didn't see the thread last night.

rolled 15 = 15

>>16449629
>>16448971
Throwing my vote in with this. Half the reason we went after the Inquisitor was to get a trace on Arnold. We've caused enough trouble. Right now, we need to play it stealthy. Follow the thread, slip back into town quietly, find where he's being kept. Once we find him, we can dismiss Asch and call up a more useful/less demanding vestige. I'm leaning towards Gourmander, Kuzo, and Xepoc at the moment.

bump