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>the current map
>you're somewhere on the NE coast of Mildania

>>22842711
Go outside quietly. A walk around the village to clear our mind should help. Then suddenly FREAK out that we fucking unmade someones mind. HOLY SHIT!

>>22842858
this. I think massive guilt is in order.

>>22842885
>>22842858
Contemplate what this means.

There is most probably an afterlife. That thing's mind was quite literally disintegrated under that assault; whatever they were, they do not exist in any material form even after death.

Consider that for a horrible long while.

>>22842885

Nthed. We're getting to comfortable with killing people/things.

>>22843048

Granted, that critter was some kind of abomination against the gods and mortals alike...

You get up and head out quietly. You need to clear your mind after those weird, scary dreams you were having last night. The air outside is hot and muggy, the few lanterns outside hazy in the fog. You think you can see the faintest touch of light out over the ocean in the sky, but there's still some time before the sun is actually risen. You idly note your hair going from wavy to curly in the humid air.

You start walking - nowhere in particular, really. Up and down main street a few times, around the docks, around the church. You're just trying to clear your head.

After all, yesterday you unmade someone's mind.

Killing someone for the first time was one thing - and you had nightmares about that for days.

But you unmade someone.

You shredded their mind and left their body alive. This is a fantasy world; is there an afterlife? Did you just send that deep one to it? Or is a mindless soul going to pass on someday?

You can only speculate on the metaphysical consequences of what you did.

But the fact remains that you reached into someone's mind and tore it apart in hot fury.

And last night, you couldn't stop dreaming about it. About the power, the control, the sensation of doing it. As much as anything else, that especially terrifies you.

Does some part of you enjoy what you did?

You sit down at the end of the pier and shiver, despite the warmth.

What do you do now?

Rolled 31

>>22842858
>>22842885
it was a kidnapping murder monster form below the waives

are you kidding me?
I was thinking of building nukes to Finally deal with its entire species

lets try to recharge our wand gun then go back to sleep

>>22843116

well, you could inquire with the priest on how it works in this setting.

Maybe waking him up would be justified if you feel the emotion is strong enough.

Otherwise Nona could just try to ease her mind by playing a sad song. Or a calm song.

>>22843140

Just because someone or something deserves to die does not make the implications any less significant. It might have had a deep one girlfriend (abducted elsewhere) or a deep one tadpole or ... anything. There are cases of people who did all kind of sick shit in their lives only to come out straight at the end.

>>22843140

There's a further implication here, and that is that in this world we're stuck in, the rules of Earth may not apply.

Meaning we, or the ones we care about may be at the receiving end of something like that, or worse, one day.

That alone should be a source of discomfort

>>22843116
Distract yourself with something productive! That wandgun is probably low on power. And our clothes, my, when have they been last magically cleaned?

>>22843151
I second with a calming song.

>yay character development!!

>>22843190
so are we going to be a mopey cunt every time we kill an monster in self defense ?

or do we take this experience and grow study mind magic harder so if this ever happens to some one we care for we can un do it

with great power comes great responsibility its time to read!

>>22843307
>are we going to be a mopey cunt every time we kill an monster in self defense
No, but it's good to check to see if what we're doing is worse than murder at times, even if it's justified.

Would Nona do it again? Yes. But it's a good idea to deliberate over it and see if there was a better way to do things.

>>22843279

Strip down and do some SEXY WASHING UP?

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>>22843307

Having regrets or emotions besides burning RAGE does not automatically make you a mopey cunt. I'd say it's fine to feel some internal turmoil.

Rolled 31

>>22843307

I vote for this mindset. We need to take
This and make ourselves a goal from it.

You can't remember how many shots you fired with your wand pistol back on the ship. You take it out and decide to try recharging it. You can feel that it has about half of its charges left. You get it most of the way refilled before you start feeling tired from it, and stop there. You stash it back away in your belt holster.

You sit for a few more minutes before you decide to vent some of what you're feeling through song. You pull out your guitar and just sort of let all of your feelings pour out into the chords. The result is haunting. The song is delicate and haunting and lingering with just enough intentional discord and clash to make you feel uncomfortable listening to it. You're not sure if it makes you feel sad or angry or fearful, but it definitely makes you uncomfortable.

You feel, more than hear, someone sitting down beside you. Then the banjo joins your guitar. Aliade's song is more fear and relief and loss, but it flows with your magnificently, and they both play off of each other.

When you finish, he says, "It's the survivor's guilt for me. And knowing how close I came to dying. You?"

What do you say?

Rolled 57

I destroyed someone. I didn't just kill them. they were a shell... I could see it's memories... It was a living being. Sure it was taking my friend but I... I didn't know I was capable of such power. It's terrifying.

>>22843527

Add a killer's guilt for me.

I destroyed one of those creatures with enchanting attack.

I refuse to regret what I've done. I would've done it again. But it's... still troubling.

I'm glad I did not do that to the elemental.

>>22843527
Shrug, and state that you're learning the hard way to not play god.

>>22843527

>>22843527

>>22843570
and this line form >>22843618
I refuse to regret what I've done. I would've done it again. But it's... still troubling.

seam perfect

>>22843527
Thankfully everyone I care about made it out alive. But I'm not really sure I did everything that I could have done to save more people. Sure I was terrified myself, I saw with my own eyes what they did. The women they took and the men they killed.
But one thing's haunted me in my dreams. I completely destroyed a mind yesterday. And given the same circunstances I'd do it again. But it still makes you think. Couldn't I just have made it let go of my friend instead?

"I destroyed someone," you say.

You heard Aliade give a slight intake of breath.

"I didn't just kill them. I turned them into a shell. I took its memories and its thoughts and just shredded them. It was taking my friend, and I would do it again to save her. But still, I can't help thinking, couldn't I have made it let her ago instead? And last night, I couldn't stop dreaming about the feeling when I did it."

Aliade's looking at you with an odd look. You're not sure what it is, exactly. Shock, disgust, fear?

"I can understand doing extreme things for loved ones," he says, slowly, carefully. "But to do that to someone... That's just wrong. I forgot, I think, that you really were Unseelie after all."

That's a disturbing thought that hadn't occurred to you. Something that hadn't occurred to you in over a month, really. You're a 30 year old human man. You look down at yourself - petite, elven, female. You've grown so comfortable with it. And your personality - you're charming, outgoing, attracted to men. You have skills that seem natural and knowledge from nowhere. And you're Unseelie - is that why ruining that mind felt so RIGHT in that moment?

How much has this magic, this world, been affecting who you are? How far has it already gone?

You recall all of the things you've done in the past month - things you never would have done.

Aliade sees the look on your face and gives your shoulder a quick squeeze before looking out at the rising sun.

What now?

>>22843914
Let Adiade see how much it bothers you, and head back. the others might be up and looking for you...

>>22843952
I second this.

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>>22843914

Resume playing and fail to forget the whole incident.

Make a mental note to learn how to Hold Creature and Hold Person before resorting to mental sledgehammer. Yeah we all know that's not gonna happen

>>22843527
Dicksuckers guilt for me.

>>22844004
See:
>>22843914

>>22843952
Yeah, this. Let's put up our brave little bard face back on.

>>22843914
I... I think I ..iam become more like one

I wish i still had a penis (say this under our breath)

>>22843914
Ask some questions.
"Were you born Seelie, or did you get adopted into the court? Would you have these urges if you'd been unseelie, or am I just a worse person? How much of your life and belief have been shaped by your court, and how much is truly you?"

>>22844044a

Lolno.

>>22844044
Do we though? I mean, I think the main issue here is knowing for an absolute fact that we should be horrified about how we've been changed, but being okay with it, and more than anything else being horrified with how okay with it we are.

Or maybe we do want our dick back. That's not where the real personal horror is at the moment, at least for me, though.

>>22844103
Yeah, I think the greatest trauma in that department right now is the fact that we're not a shivering, sniveling wreck. That we've just accepted the change as an inconvenience and moved on. That's an incredibly mature and adult attitude, not at all like how a normal person would behave. We need to do some serious introspection and figure out how far this change has affected our personality.

>>22844069

This sounds good. (samefag from >>22843997
here)

>>22844170
nervous breakdown ahoy?
fine, but make it snappy, I want to get back to the adventure

>>22844231

If we have a nervous breakdown it needs to include music somehow.

>>22844231
I wouldn't go that far, but setting aside some time every day for rudimentary meditation and introspection wouldn't be a bad idea. Compartmentalize what we know of our old life and our new one, sort out which bits come from where, and parse the two together as best we can while being aware of what is and is not a natural part of our mind.

Mind need to hire a Divination/Enchantment specialist to help. Someone capable of Therapeutic Telepathy. Who knows, we may invent rudimentary Psychology on this world.

>>22844251
Bohemian rhapsody. The most schizophrenic song I can think of and somehow a lot of the lyrics fit our current predicament.

"Mama.... Just killed a man.....

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>>22844231

I agree. Let's not break down entirely. It WAS an abomination after all. Some questioning of self is good, but let's not go overboard.

>>22844284

I like this. Incorporate music since music can sooth the soul.

>>22844231
true lets have a good old fashion extensional crises and go climb a tree

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>>22844284

I can already tell what he's going to say.

On a more serious note, we've two (and potential third) good friends to rely on for now. Let's see how the situation unfolds.

>>22844313
I can just see it now:
Jack and Vararia trying to coax nona out of a tree, while the latter howls to the heavens "I'M A MAAAAANNNNNN, A FAT HAIRY MAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN"

>>22843914
Now it just feels forced.

>>22844395
as tears stream down the pretty elven girls face

>>22844332
I think what's bothering us is that the Deep One had no defense against it. Bullets and wands and swords, well they could wear armor or dodge or just rely on their natural toughness. Normal injuries can be healed. But there is no doctor that can fix what we did. No armor or defense can protect someone from it. True, it's tiring, but nobody could stop us from doing it again, and nobody could resist it. Well, Mab and Titania and other similarly powerful and vast intellects, maybe, but monsters? Criminals? Soldiers? The common folk? If we had to, we could turn that power on anyone, and I think we're coming to grips with the responsibility of having a weapon against which there is no defense in our hands. I get the feeling our old self wasn't used to responsibility. And this is a big one.

You feel like your own body is alien suddenly. You haven't felt that way in months - since before you even left Salvation. Your hands are too narrow. You're too short. You're slim - you don't even have your dick. But what really bothers you - what's pulling your stomach into a twisting knot - is how okay with it you are.

You wouldn't have been this okay with it before these personality fragments, these skills, got crammed in your head, right? Or would you have? You know your mind's been changed, in small or big ways, and you're not entirely sure whether certain parts have been with you all along or are relatively new.

You need to get yourself back under control before this self-doubt spirals too far. You pick your guitar back up and start playing and singing the first, most appropriate song that comes to mind.

"Is this the real life... Is this just fantasy?" you start.

Aliade looks away from the sunrise and at you. He looks ready to join in, but stops when he can tell that the song isn't improv, and that he doesn't know it.

"Mama! Just killed a man... Put a gun against his head - pulled my trigger, now he's de~ad."

"He's just a poor boy, from a poor family; spare him his life from this monstrosity."

When you finish Aliade's looking at you with an open mouth and you're breathing hard, your hands shaking. You feel like you could cry - or laugh, or scream, or something, anything.

"Where did that come from?" asks Aliade, shock in his voice.

What do you do?

>>22844465
"Sometimes you just hold your breathe, listen to your heart, and open your mouth. Your heart and the song do the rest."

>>22844465
Home

>>22844465

It came from a part of me I had forgotten.

>>22844465
look at him with equal shock
"long story. don't ask. you wouldn't believe it. *I* don't believe it."
Then stagger back to the church.

>>22844465
Wow, this just got really stupid.

Rolled 52

>>22844465


"It's a... it's a song from my homeland. Pretty far away. You probably never heard of it, it's pretty down to earth."

Try to ignore the tears.

Struggle to regain composure. We have a gang to disperse, we can't walk in like that.

Repeat to self - what the creature wanted to do was no better.

Perhaps consult the priest.

>>22844542
Were you not here for when we played Star Wars using illusion magic or when we tamed a bear while having an existential crisis? Or maybe you weren't here for when we died and had an existential crisis? But I guess Queen and freaking out about our identity is just stupid.

>>22844465
Its from my home, I don't think I can ever go back

>>22844566
Honestly, its dumber than breaking in your new body by going down on an orc

I change my mind.
Tavern.
We drink our sorrows away, then spend the day playing for the crowd in drunken abandon.

>>22844542
>>22844585
how so?

personally I am starting yo like this Aliade guy I think we should form a band at some point in the future

>>22844633
Because its like someone just suddenly flipped on a Bitch Switch out of nowhere. Its reminiscent of that scene in Other M where Samus spots Ridley and freaks the fuck out for no reason.

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>>22844671

>>22844671
To be fair, there has been a lot of self questioning in the past, and even some near breakdown experiences.

I'm still not a fan of us just freaking out like that, though, but I can't say much because I stopped voting a long while ago. I'm just here for the story, at this point.

>>22844671
When was the last time you mindfucked a deep one, saw his memories flash before your eyes, before utterly destroying his mind?

After spending weeks having a different body to one you've had your whole life and only realising that everything should feel utterly, utterly wrong and that it doesn't when it *should* be.

>>22844671
emotions are weird hit you hardest when you least expect a few words a smell or any thing really could set some one off who has been through enough minds are wears fragile yet elastic repairing things

"From... Well, it's from home, I guess," you say.

"From on the road?" asks Aliade. That's right, you never told him anything more than that. He knows so much less about you than your actual companions do - why are you confiding in him instead of them?

"No from where I was from before that," you say. "It's from somewhere far, far away." You take a deep breath and calm yourself down. What you did to the deep one happened, and you would do it again. And regardless of whether or not you should be freaking out, you are who you are now. You don't know whether or not this is something you're going to have to confront about yourself later, but there's nothing for it right now. "I'll see you later, Aliade," you say. "I'm going to go see if Varaia and Jack are up yet."

"And I'll see you, Nona," he says, before looking back out to the sunrise and starting to play more on his banjo.

You walk back up to the church and head inside. The Father is up and doing simple chores. He nods at you as you enter. In the quiet of the building, you can hear Jack and Varaia talking in the back room, but you can't make out what it is that they're saying.

What do you do now?

>sit on a dock
>play music
>have conversation about what's bothering us
>play more music

JESUS CHRIST WHY ARE WE FREAKING OUT SO BAD

>>22844817
Approach and ask what's up

>>22844817

"Can magic destroy a soul?"

"Of the one who wields it - and the one it's wielded against?"

alternatively:

Pass by him and rejoin your friends.

I'd say the former might help put PC's mind to rest. The latter would get us back on track for adventure faster, but with possible backlash

>>22844917
the former might as well.
What if we somehow incur wrath over this? You saw how uncomfortable it made Aliede...

>>22844894
No, we should try to listen secretly. Maybe they are having similar fears than us, but don't know how to tell us.

>>22844956

If the orcish religion in this settings revolves about absolution, he's definitely the go-to person. He would be pretty poor priest if he's gone all "smite and cleave" over this. Maybe he suggests some sort of penance.

>>22844894
this

>>22844817

Let's go to confession.

>>22844817
Approach them. If they mention that we don't look okay say: "It's nothing just some existentialist angst". And if they remark about our word choice crack a joke about having a college education which technically won't be a lie.

>>22844971
I think we should trust them to respect us enough to bring any concerns to us and talk to us honestly.

I say we talk to the priest. Explain what happened on the boat, and what we did to save Varaia, and the guilt and fear and temptation we've been feeling ever since.

Rolled 19

>>22845079

Exactly. This.

Voting to talk to the priest as well.

You approach Father Johnson. As you get close, you manage to pick up Jack and Varaia's conversation.

"...arm should be okay in a couple of days if I keep working at it like that. I'm glad Nona got me that book."

"I'm just glad she saved me. If she didn't... She's my hero right now. I hope she's okay."

"We should talk to her later, see if she needs help dealing with anything."

You smile. It warms your heart to have people who care.

"Father," you say to the priest.

"Yes, child?" he asks.

"I need to talk."

He leads you into his office, in case you wanted privacy. "Whatever you want to talk about, I'll listen."

"Father, can magic destroy a soul?"

He looks startled at the question, but lets you continue.

"On the boat, when the deep ones were attacking, one of them tried to take Varaia, the wild elf that Jack and I are travelling with. I tore its mind apart - I didn't leave anything. Ever since, I've been feeling guilty and afraid of what I've done - and worse, guilt and fear over how right it felt."

He gives a long sigh. "Magic can destroy a soul. But a soul and a mind are not the same thing. What you did was a dark thing, but it takes blacker magics than that to harm something's soul. You will find forgiveness in the eyes of the lord for what you did - and for confessing them - as long as you are penitent. This guilt, this fear - do you feel sorry for what you did? Are you seeking forgiveness?" asks the priest.

What do you say to that?

>>22845079
This is good.

>>22845212
>do you feel sorry for what you did? Are you seeking forgiveness?

I can imagine a couple sarcastic answer that would be out of character, so lets sum it up like:

"Fuck, yeah!"

Also: what can we do to not fall to the temptation of this power again? How we can avoid (ab)using this power if the chances ever raise?

>>22845212
we certainly are sorry.
!!!
Ask if we can get forgiveness by helping Jack on his pilgramage!

>>22845212
"I don't know. I don't necessarily regret it, but if I could go back I would show more restraint. I don't think, even if I find myself in a desperate situation, I'll ever do something like that again. I guess I'm more scared by what I'm capable of. I don't think I would ever be able to forgive myself if I'd done that to something that wasn't a deep one."

We racist now.

>>22845212

"I... I don't know. I feel bad about it... but when I recall that it wanted to harm my friend... I think I would have done it again."

>>22845297
Seconding this. Don''t really want to lie to a priest.

>>22845310
this

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>>22845275

Meditation, search for self and maintaining peace of mind, I imagine.

All of which seem quite difficult for a bard to accomplish.

>>22845212
"Do I regret doing it? Not really. Varaia is safe, and that particular Deep One can't hurt anyone else. I didn't like doing it, i don't want to do it again, and i don't want to want it. It scares me, but it's better than the alternative. The only thing i regret is the urge to do it again. The dreams are.... Disturbing."

Rolled 51

>>22845512

This.

"I don't know," you say after some time thinking. "It was worth it to save Varaia. I would probably be willing to do it again too in such a dire circumstance. What I regret, what I feel guilty over, is how right it felt. The urge to do it again."

The priest looks at you sadly. "Then God forgives that, at least. If you ever decide to see forgiveness for the dark thing you did, or for any you have killed, or any other sin done, for good reasons or bad, He will forgive you too. You have a long life ahead of you, and a long one behind you, I expect. I am glad that you are going with Johnathon on his pilgrimage - perhaps it will do even more good for you than it will for him. Remember, God - and I - am always here when you're in need."

"Thank you, Father," you say. His words certainly had weight to you, but you're not sure exactly how much they did, and did not, help.

You get up and head out back into the church. Varaia's standing there, still looking vaguely awkward to be there, while Jack is sitting in one of the pews, his head bowed in prayer. Varaia sort of jogs up to you and puts her good arm around you in a long hug.

"How are you doing?" she asks you. Her face is close to yours, her brown eyes locked onto your face. "You look tired. Did you get enough sleep?"

What do you do?

Rolled 15

>>22845770
I'm doing better. How's the arm?

>>22845770

Shrug.

"I've had some bad dreams. Because of the fight. Let's not get into such situation again."

Smile.

"I'm glad we all made it."

>>22845770
smile weakly and tell her you'll survive.
but seriously, you should get Jack a proper disguise for Mild.

>>22846015
>Party rolls up in his hometown on cart.
>Jack wearing obvious fake moustache.
>His family all WTF.

>>22846106
>Fake mustache.
>Not fake nose/glasses/mustache combo.

>>22846164
>not including fake tusks and a funny wig

>>22846164
and a gaudy poncho.

>>22846106
>>22846164
>>22846178
>>22846189
Okay, so we need to buy a wig, fake moustache, colorful poncho, fake tusk, fake nose, and fake glasses.

>>22846015
>>22846106
>>22846164
>>22846178
>>22846189
>>22846221
We should actually see if there's any bodysculpting magic. If there is, we could have Jack's face temporarily rearranged.

We might also be able to get our penis back that way if we ever decide that we want to.

>>22846250
>genderbent elf with bodysculpting magic on a quest to get his dick back
Geeze, rip off Ass Quest more why dont you.

>>22846270
What's Ass Quest? I keep hearing about it but I haven't seen it.

>>22846270
That's the plot of Ass Quest? I thought it was about waifus or harems or something.

>>22846294
>I thought it was about waifus or harems or something.
How fucking hypocritical.

>>22845770
"Not enough. I've had some disturbing dreams that I need to work through. Nightmares about the Deep Ones and what I had to do to save you. As long as you and Jack are safe, I'll be fine."

>>22846302
Dude, I don't have a problem with either of those things. I just didn't realize that Ass Quest's plot extended beyond that.

>>22846250

Let's not go there.

I'd rather stay out of transformations entirely, with possible exception of completely regaining original form should the plot warrant it. Nona's a female elf now. Thou shall deal with it.

>>22846250

Ass quest or Succubus Lord quest?

You decide!

>>22846250

I'd say - are we capable of putting a long-lasting illusion on Jack? It's still risky, because magic.

Why the fuck would Nona WANT to go back to being a self-confessed loser?

>>22846357
That's actually a really good idea. Would it just be enough small changes to make him look like a different person, or would we do anything more dramatic?

>>22846396

Nah, I prefer this one:

>>22846221

>>22846388
She licks orc dong too much to go back to being a man.

"I'm doing - well, I'm doing better," you tell Varaia. "More importantly, how's your arm doing?"

Varaia lifts it, then winces. "Better. The priest helped it along quite a bit last night, and Jack says it should be pretty much okay in a few days - a week at most. I want to get supplies to make more arrows - or just get new arrows - sometime before then. I don't like not having my bow as an option."

Jack finishes praying and stands up. "We should get going soon. The father said that the merchant and his cart should be ready to go whenever we are."

"We need to get you a disguise," you say.

That makes everyone stop for a second.

"I mean, you're wanted by the law, and probably by the Blackmountains too. We won't get anywhere if you don't hide your identity."

"What, like a mask?" asks Jack.

"Or some kind of magic - an illusion or transformation magic to change your face a little - even just a wide-brimmed hat worn low would be better than nothing," you say.

"Well, I'm sure we could find a hat in town," says Jack, thinking. "Or you could try to put an illusion on me. Anything else and we would would probably have to wait until we're in a city to find. What do you think?"

What do you think?

>>22846458
We haven't licked any orc dong since the train. That was almost half the entire quest ago.

>>22846316
It isn't even remotely about either of those things. The closest thing to a waifu is a succubus who wants your magic above all else.

Thats like saying this quest is about nothing more than angst and lickin orc dicks except not because even that has a greater kernel of truth to it than your statement.

>>22846559
I meant to say like, but either one is a valid reason to stay smokin elf.

>>22846546
Lets go for a light illusion on the face, nothing too taxing but enough to make him look like a different orc to passerby

>>22846388

Why would anyone want that?
Why would anyone jump off a cliff?
Why would a professional killer want a PTSD?

Besides, she's a transformed neckbeard. He wasn't a manly man in first place.

I think the character is taking it pretty well, as is OP handling it.

At any rate, let's get on our way. How long will a trip to Mild take? And are we going for illusionary disguise, or poncho with fake hair and glasses?

>>22846584
Like I said, I didn't know shit about it.

>>22846546
Get a hat and some materials for arrows now. Then we can say our good-byes and leave.

(We've spent enough time out here already)

>>22846614
if its a long trip, we can practice daily on the way there, so that we can keep up a minor illusion for long periods of time....but a hat will do as well.

My humble suggestion for the song to play on the cart:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fzab_LKC5v8

You answer by whipping up a small illusion. You change his skin colour to give him a blush and freckles. You change the apparent shape of his jaw, nose, lips, and eyebrows. You even change his hair from black to brown. Nobody should recognize his face, and it should be quite easy to keep active - a lot easier than playing Star Wars for hours on end. You make it purely visual too to reduce the load on yourself even further - anyone touching his face will feel the real thing, and his voice is still his own.

He finds a small mirror to look into and gives a little snort of laughter. "Yeah, that should work pretty well," he says. "I doubt even my mum would recognize me now."

Varaia nods in agreement. Something about changing his face bothers you - maybe because his was the first face you saw in this world? Still, he'll be a lot safer like that, so you put the thought aside for now.

"Are we ready to go, then?" you ask.

"I am," says Jack.

"Yeah, I don't expect to find the things I need until we're further inland," replies Varaia.

So, the three of you head out to meet the merchant who will be conveying you to Greenhillshire. He's an unassuming dwarven man with a cart loaded up with this and that - rural goods important to small towns and villages. "Should take us about three days to get where we're going. Four if the weather turns bad or we need to make a detour," he says.

Do you do anything in particular on this trip?

>>22846872
>this was me, by the way
>I take my name and trip off for other threads

>>22846872
Be vigilant. If we learned anything it's that travelling and us don't mesh too well.

And try to learn something from Varaia and Jack about wilderness survival while we're at it.

>>22846872
Read more from our enchanting book. After all, we put that to good use back on the ship.

What? I still think ruining that deep one was a good idea.

I say we work on our illusions and on splitting our focus. Maintain Jack's facial illusion while reading the enchanting book. While the sledgehammer approach isn't wwhat we want to do, learning how to make subtle or positive changes couldn't hurt. Atte very least we should try to learn The Doctor's shushing trick.

>>22847009

Yes, it was certainly good idea at the time, but let's be more subtle from now on.

Additional education might help in that respect, but I say watch the scenery as well, maybe play a song - that might make the steps a bit sprightlier.

>>22847162
>The Doctor's shushing trick
Holy shit yes. Single word or even wordless simple commands. Could be SO useful in practice.

>>22847187
Just the power to temporarily make someone stop talking and calm down. Or simple Jedi Mind Trick stuff. "This is not the orc you're looking for."

But anon had a point: some music would be appropriate. Help make the journey more pleasant.

>>22846872

Question: does anti-magic exist in this world? There are guard-mage or, some kind of wand to dispel illusions and enchantment, or some form of scrying to look after the bad guys?

Does everybody have access to that kind of magic?

I think is important to not rely too much on pure illusion. Maybe once we get there, we should try to look after some makeup or stuff for disguises.

Yeah, secretly, all this was about buying fake mustache, nose and glasses.

>>22846872

Maybe we should walk. The train derailed and the boat was swarmed by fish dudes, vehicles aren't for us.

>>22847162
this. focus split and the shhhh trick are great ideas.

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>>22847288

Yes. It must be an omen. Or just really shitty luck on OP's random encounter rolls.

Also, instead of "Travelling song", how about this one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmOe27SJ3Yc

You read more of your enchanting book. You've already gotten quite good at illusions, but are much less experienced with enchantments. Considering how useful they proved to be back on the boat, you do your best to fix that. Plus, it gives you some more practice at splitting your attention, focusing on your reading while still maintaining the illusions on Jack.

Later in the day, Varaia has the cart stop so that Jack can cut her some wood. She promptly begins carving it down with an extremely practiced precision into perfectly straight arrow shafts. Jack is rereading his book on magical first aid to see if there's anything he missed, stopping occasionally to cast a little bit on Varaia's arm.

By the time night rolls around, Varaia has three shafts ready for heads and fletching, Jack has done one full review of his book, and you're a few chapters further in, finding focusing on multiple things at once tricky but not impossible. The trip continues like that for the next few days until you arrive at Greenhillshire on the morning of the fourth day. For over an hour before you actually arrive, Jack's visibly excited, grinning and unable to sit still during the trip. When you finally cross a hill enough to see the town, full of brick buildings, wooden cottages, and surrounded by farms in all directions, Jack actually stands up in the cart to try to get a better look of the town, grinning madly.

The merchant drops you off in front of a general store.

What do you do?

>>22846872
Since we've been dwelling upon the power of our enchantments, we should try to learn ones that give simple commands, instead of the sledgehammer we hit them with last time.

If Varaia could learn enough magic to slightly cover up Jack's face as par t of the disguise, that'd be perfect.

>>22847458

Look for means of transportation that would bring us further towards Mild. Coach service, maybe? Or a train station?

Ask Jack whether he knows or wants to visit anyone in town - if there's anyone he trusts well enough.

Does the Family have any operations here? We might want to consider performing some "investigation".

>>22847458
This is Jack's hometown, let's go see if he has any family here. We're going to need a lot of help to take down these Blackmountains.

>>22847458
Make sure the town is not in the hands of our enemies. If no surprise the fuck out of Jack's family.

>>22847458

Jack needs an alias.

"So James," wink, wink, "you sure are excited to be in this town you've never been before!" wink, wink.

Wink, wink, wink.

>>22847582
Maybe we should not trust anyone so fast, not even his family. We should stay low, investigate what happened to our friends and relatives and discover if any of them have any shady relation with the family. Only after checking they are still loyal to us, we go and have a happy familiar meeting.

>>22847663

- Eh... Varaia, I think she is talking to you

>>22847738
>>22847663
these. trust only each other, for now.

Jack starts heading off immediately. "I'm going to go see my mum," he says. "It's been years, and I never got to say a proper goodbye."

"Wait!" you say, jogging to keep up. "Shouldn't we lay low? Maybe use an alias or something? We don't know who we can trust."

Jack gives you a funny look. "She's my mother," he says. "We can trust my family. Remember, this whole mess got started because they were trying to clear my name and keep the family safe. If we can't trust my family... Well, anyway, let's keep a lid on it out and about, but I'm going to say hi to my mum."

You sigh. You're sure if you protest he'll just head to see her without you.

He leads you about fifteen minutes of him walking fast - you jogging - out of town. Varaia trails along after you, looking around at the farms as you go. You come to a medium-sized farmhouse. There are plenty of penned animals - including chickens - and fields with various crops. The back of the farmstead abuts forest - you imagine that's where Jack learned to hunt.

Jack rushes up to the front door and knocks. A short, pudgy orcish woman answers the door. "Yes, what is it?" she asks.

"Mum, it's me," says Jack. "I'm wearing a disguise."

"Jack?" she asks, her eyes going wide. Then she crushes him in a hug - you hear his back popping like cracked knuckles. "Come in, come in," she says, rushing everyone inside. You drop the illusion for the time being.

"Now, who are these girls?" she asks.

What do you do?

>>22848469
"I'm your future daughter in law!"

>>22848469
"It's a long and complicated story, but I'm Nona, this is Varaia, and we're here to help."

>>22848469

"We're his girlfriends!"

>>22848489
hahaha no. "Were Jacks adventuring companions."

>>22848489
That's a little too forward. Nobody's proposed to anyone or anything like it.

>>22848521
This is more accurate.

>>22848513
>>22848531
These are probably for the best.

>>22848513
This works pretty well.

>>22848469
Hi, there! Your son fucked in the ass.

>>22848603
fucked *me* in the ass.
otherwise you're just telling her he likes sodomy.

>>22848603
but seriously, lets just stick with traveling companions.

>>22848623
Both are valid options.

Supporting the "friends" version.

We can divulge more lurid details later. Much later. Maybe after getting drunk ten years later.

Now, let Nona and Varaia introduce themselves and let Jack handle the dialogue. It's his family reunion.

Maybe look around for anything suspicious that might suggest that we're being watched. /paranoia enable.

(What should I write for the archive description?)

We managed to take a voyage on a vehicle without being attacked

>>22849151

"The Bard struggles with some existential issues before continuing her journey."

"I'm Nona, and this is Varaia," you say. She gives you a judgmental, appraising look up and down, then does the same thing to Varaia. Her attention goes completely to Varaia.

"Oh, you poor thing, what happened to your arm?" she asks, moving over to Varaia. She gently guides her down into an armchair by the fireplace. "You poor thing."

"Oh. Uh, it happened when the ship we were on was attacked," says Varaia. Jack's mother freezes and turns to him.

"Attacked? Oh, my baby, you were supposed to be leaving to be safe," she says, moving to him and giving him a hug. "Here, you come with me to the kitchen. I'll make you and your friends something for lunch while you tell me everything that's happened since you left. You girls make yourself right at home."

"Yes, mum," he says as he's literally pulled off by the arm after her.

"She's overbearing," says Varaia frankly, still sitting in the armchair. "I hope we can keep moving. It wouldn't bee good to detour here more than a day or two, no matter how much I'm sure Jack would like to stay and get caught up with family."

What do you say or do?

>>22849525

She's right. It would be best to deal with the problems at hand before having a vacation. Some mobster might see a random orc with two elves visit Jack's mother and put two and two together. And even if not, party like ours is not exactly a common occurence. Any mafia boss worth his salt would keep track of murderhobos entering his or her turf.

(Thread Archived Here: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/22842711/ )

>>22849525
We tell her that talking to Jack's family is an important part of taking down the syndicate, and we need to know where his brother went. His family can help us out in this situation quite a bit, so it might be meaningful to tough it out and take their hospitality for a few.

"Let's hope he doesn't get too carried away."

>>22849525
this. if Mama orc asks, we play up the rescuing her kids bit, and play down the going against the mafia bit.

"We shouldn't take too long here, but talking to his family could be important. Remember, we're here trying to rescue his sister and save his brother. His family might know something that could help us," you say.

"Well, that's true," replies Varaia, "But-"

"BOTH OF THEM!?" rings out from the kitchen. You hear a series of slapping sounds. "YOU STUPID, STUPID BOY! AND ON TOP OF MILLIE WAITING FOR YOU TO COME HOME!" Then more slapping. You hear Jack shushing his mother, calming her down from the kitchen.

Varaia furrows her brow and looks at you. "Millie?" she asks.

You give an exaggerated shrug. "I have no clue," you say.

Well, shit. You're not even sure what to think of that.

What do you do now?

>>22850094
masturbate
But seriously, try to hide/stay out of orc momma's way for the next little while.

>>22850094
>Millie
wat
WAT
this better be an arranged marriage we're talking about.

>>22850197
seconding.

>>22850094
HAH! I like this old ladyorc.

>>22850094
Wish that we has popcorn. Stay out of the way until Jack and his mother are finished, chat some with Varaia, give her a few hugs and kisses, maybe an ear rubbing, once Jack is done ask him about who Millie is.

>>22850290
Its kind of hilarious how fast this all devolved into waifushit.

You decide to steer clear of - or at least keep on the good side of - Jack's mother for the time being. You sit in another armchair and wait for them to come out of the kitchen. You would be lying if you said that you weren't feeling awkward from what you just overheard. When they come back out, Jack's forearms and cheeks are a slightly darker green - probably from getting slapped - and he's carrying a tea tray.

"Feel free to make yourselves at home, and come see me if you need anything at all," she says in a perfectly sweet tone while giving you and Varaia the evil eye. She walks off back into the kitchen.

There's an awkward silence.

"Well, she liked that I'm on the pilgrimage," Jack says. "And that I'm leaning some healing magic."

Then another silence.

"Who's Millie?" you ask.

Jack sighs. "Friend of mine. Dwarven girl. Used to babysit me when I was little - I grew up a lot faster. My mother's convinced she has a thing for me, that she has for years, but I don't see it. She changed my diapers - and now she's barely an adult and I'm well into my adulthood. I don't see it, but that doesn't change the fact that my mum's convinced of it," he says. He shrugs. "I would have thought that she would have stopped fixing Millie and me up in her fantasies a long time ago."

What do you say to that?

>>22850642
ha moms ....always in your life
try not to think of our mom try not to be sad a nd realize we will never see her again

>>22850642

Well now its a contest(just like in our JAPANESE ANIME!) to show her mom how good of a match we are.

Also reprimand Jack for telling his mom. seriously guy you just tell your mother that you are dating.

>>22850642
Try to suppress a laugh, fail. Give him a hug.

"I'm not sure your mother likes me and Varaia, she might think we stole her boy away from her.

She probably just wants what she thinks is best for you. Whether you like it or not."

>>22850642
"Once she sees how great I am, she'll forget all about Millie."

>>22850712
Bad plan.

Also unnecessary.

bump

>>22850727
this stuff.

>>22850712
This. Seriously. When dealing with parents, relationship info is classified need-to-know only.

You laugh a little bit. His mother reminds you of yours. Which is actually kind of sad now that you think of it, because you'll probably never see your mother again. You wonder what will happen - did you just disappear? Did she find your body in the basement on your birthday? You force yourself to get back to the matter at hand - down that path lies only tears.

"I don't think your mother likes us very much," you say, teasing Jack.

"No, she probably doesn't," he admits.

"Once she sees how great we are, she'll forget all about Millie," you say.

"I doubt it," he says. "Millie's been helping the family out ever since I left. She's my primary contact in Mild too - and my mother's known her for most of her life too. She babysat Millie back in the day. I think part of it is some romantic notion that she'll be able to unify our two families. Millie's famile - the Greenhills - were the ones who owned our family more than a century ago."

"That's repugnant," says Varaia.

"Yeah, but you can't blame someone for what their ancestors did. My mum's not trying to make nice with Old Man Greenhill, just his daughter. Maybe she sees it as coming full circle - I don't know."

"She probably just wants what she thinks is best for you - whether you like it or not," you say.

"Yeah, probably. Still, Millie's just my oldest, best friend, no matter what my mother says. Now, do you want me to show you around town, or - I guess we should probably lay low, right?"

What do you say?

>>22851108
"Let's stay vigilant as we make a little tour around the town. We don't want to draw attention, and if we do, we at least need to know that we did."

About how big is this town? I've been wondering where we can find another big gunstore.

>>22851108
offer for Vararia and us to stay at the local inn. No need to incur any more motherly wrath than necessary.

I can't imagjne her as anyone but a big black momma. Heh. Tell jack she's probably just concerned and surprised. (This does mean we won't be staying here too long.)

More importantly, what's the deal with his bro and sis?

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>>22851207
Laqueesha be a strong orc woman, who don't need no man!
>mfw his mom's name is Ledasha

>>22851207
From what I can tell, the orcs in this setting are some mix of black people, arabs, mongols, and the Irish. The fact that there are Seelie/Unseelie fae with the elves as Sidhe and the apparently hyper-corporate dwarves are why I really like this setting. I can't help but wonder if there's something cool about the humans, but we haven't really been to any human lands yet - which is refreshing in and of itself, not having the humans be the majority fucking everywhere.

>>22851249
You misspelled that that proper name is La - a

>>22851278
Actually it's Le-a
and if anyone axes you why, tell them it's because "The dash don't be silent"

>>22851321
Lehyphena?

>>22851108
"We need information, so a look around might be good. We will just need to come up with a cover in case we get stopped. Coming up with that last minute would be bad."

>>22851394

La dash a now put it all together

"We can go for a quick tour," you say. "We should come up with a quick cover story, just in case, though. Any suggestions?"

"We could say we're a troupe of traveling performers," suggests Varaia. "A strong man, a musician, and a wild woman who performs feats of accuracy."

"Or maybe traveling merchants," says Jack. "Though... I guess we don't have any trade goods. Varaia's idea is good."

"Okay, then" you say. This story suits you just fine. "We're a band of traveling performers."

Jack nods and leads you out into his town for the tour - there's not much to see, so most of it has to do with personal stories. He used to hunt in those woods. He and Millie climbed the church tower to ring the bell by hand once. He saved his little brother from the well in the middle of town once. That sort of thing. The town's not much bigger than Salvation, but it is quite a bit older and better established, built on some pretty major crossroads. Jack points out the general store - which is right across from the tavern - and suggests that you all take the time to buy replacement equipment and ammunition.

What do you say?

>>22851804
"It seems like a nice cozy place. I'm sure you missed it quite a bit.

We won't be able to stay long though, we have places to be, people to rescue."

Then hit the general store and restock on ammo and arrows if they have them.

>>22851804
shopping.

If we've the purse for it.

>>22851804
Yes, let's go!

I'd like to see what sort of rifles we have that can be used to replace Jack's. I'm thinking we should take a look at wand rifles, if they have any.

You head on in to the store. You and Jack both buy new bags. You stock up on a couple boxes of .357, while Jack gets a bunch of ammunition for his rifle and shotgun. He even buys some slugs for the shotgun - just in case something really needs killing, you suppose. Varaia picks up a bunch of arrowheads and whatever feathers they have that are large and stiff enough to serve as proper fletching. It cost you a bit of money, but not too much.

Sadly, you couldn't afford the fancy new staff rifle that the shop had on display. Once you leave, now re-equipped, Jack says, "Next stop should probably be my brother. He's the only one of all of us kids that didn't move to a big city once they got old enough. He can probably give us a ride to Mild. Fair warning, though - he's a bit... eccentric."

>I'm ending it here
>I have a bunch of stuff to do tomorrow, so I won't be on until 6:00 or 7:00 PM EST at the earliest, if at all
>remember to vote the threads up on the archive if you want to see them stay there; don't if you don't
>I'll answer questions for the next half-hour or so until I fall asleep

>>22851199
Hey, Owlface? I don't know if you take suggestions for drawings, but I think a race lineup, like you see in the character creation section in D&D books, would be neat. The almost-identical elf genders, maybe one wild and one courtly, dwarves with carefully-groomed Victorian-style facial hair, massive rural orcs, and so on.

If you do that, though, maybe it would be better to wait until we find out what dwarven women look like. I don't think they've been described yet.

>>22852220
could we get a bunny or cat some kind of small trainable animal to practice mind magic on its probable better than asking people
would that even work?

add skills build tricks and other movement sets?

work our way up to chimps does this world have chimps?

also love the quest don't post on some responses cause i sneak this in during work

>>22852267
I'm game....I have this Wednesday off to devote to drawfaggotry...
>just no more mountain ranges....please god no more mountain ranges....

>>22852334
>you could probably get an animal as a test subject
>the trick would be keeping it from running away and caring for it while on the road, on vehicles, and in hotels

>>22852267
>dwarven women in this setting are going to be short and curvy - wide hips, large breasts, large butts, at least compared to a human woman
>some will have narrow waists, most will be thick in the middle in much the same way as dwarven men
>they won't have beards
>also, don't forget the little folk
>Seelie little folk are basically halflings
>Unseelie little folk are basically goblins

>>22852415
dwarf chicks confirmed for datass.
I like.

>>22852267
>almost-identical elf genders
Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Doesn't Aliade look basically just like us, but with even-less-breasts and presumably a penis? I think MP said they even have feminine hips, faces, and figures.

>>22852267
If we're doing requests, then i ask that you look up the old pick of Andre the Giant carrying his two daughters on his shoulders/biceps, and do a pick of Strong-Man-Jack doing the same to the two elves.

That or a cowboy/indian/paleskin pic.

>>22852220
Thanks for the thread, MP. You rock, as always.

>>22852468
>If we're doing requests, then i ask that you look up the old pick of Andre the Giant carrying his two daughters on his shoulders/biceps, and do a pick of Strong-Man-Jack doing the same to the two elves.
That sounds spectacular.

>>22852468
>That or a cowboy/indian/paleskin pic.
elaborate?
>If we're doing requests, then i ask that you look up the old pick of Andre the Giant carrying his two daughters on his shoulders/biceps, and do a pick of Strong-Man-Jack doing the same to the two elves.
ok.

>>22852415
So, what do we know of WIZARDS in this setting. Sure, we know there are mages, but what about the tower-dwelling, no-sense-of-right-and-wrong, suck-my-massive-power kind of wizard?

>>22852535
Just a pic o the trio. Jack's a settler livin in the wilderness. Varaia is a brown-skinned native girl. Nona is a pale-skinned city slicker out of her element. They're practically a western movie plot setup on their own.