File: adventuretime.png (704 KB, 2000x1500)

704 KB PNG

Character and setting info: http://pastebin.com/u/MagicalPrincess
Archives: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Start+Over+Quest
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MagicalMarquise
Ask.fm: http://ask.fm/MagicalMarquise
Collection of character descriptions (WIP, courtesy of anon): http://pastebin.com/pzYffs0R

Do we have to travel? It seems more and more a terrible idea.

Also, did anything ever came up from the Ishtar dream?

>>38769646
>Take the route by the lake, practically zero chances of getting lost.

>>38769646
>Cross the jungle outskirts but keep the lake in sight. Might be slower, but you’ll be more hidden.
Best quest is back!

>>38769646
>Take the route by the lake, practically zero chances of getting lost.

>>38769646
>Brave the thick of the jungle even if you might get lost.
It'll be fiiiine.

>>38769646
>Cross the jungle outskirts but keep the lake in sight. Might be slower, but you’ll be more hidden.

>>38769646
>>Cross the jungle outskirts but keep the lake in sight. Might be slower, but you’ll be more hidden.

>Other: Promise the ones who stays that you'll be back as soon as possible

>tying it
Sasuga anons
>almost immediately breaking the tie
How are we meant to bully MP like this!?

"If we get lost, we're going to lose time, and we can't afford that", you declare, "The longer we stay out in the wilderness, the greater our chances of being caught by the undead".

You get signs of approval by those present, even though nobody makes it abundantly clear whether they agree with you or not. Can't really blame them, it is a tough call to make after all.

"If anything, you should be grateful if you face undead in broad daylight", Susanna offers, as if trying to cheer you up, "At least you have a fighting chance. You have a necromancer with you, don't forget about that".

As a matter of fact, Tahenohan points at herself with that sort of manic smile that shows absolutely no sign of concern at all. "Leave it to me! If we find some undead and I'm not asleep, I have some stuff I can do to counter them".

"Really?", Bryld instantly clings to that hope, "You can defeat them?".

"Well, unless they're a neverending horde or immense, grotesque necromorphs or necromachines. Or liches", she lists, "I'm going to have serious problems with these".

"That... Is probably not going to happen", even Susanna briefly shivers at the mention of those things, "Besides, you would hear them coming long before they'd get the drop on you".

That's somewhat reassuring.

"We're going to cross the jungle outskirts and keep the lake within sight, then", you decide, "Bryld, Tahenohan, are you ready?".

The two of them smile and nod, even Bryld musters all the courage she has to show some optimism. Susanna seems somewhat relieved, too, “Just don’t do anything rash or stupid and you’ll get back alive”.

“We’ll be back for you”, you promise her, “We’re not leaving you alone”.

She heartily chuckles, which produces quite a booming sound, as usual, “We can take care of ourselves. Now go, your people are waiting for you”.

>March as fast as possible, no breaks
>Move quickly but keep an eye on your surroundings
>Advance carefully and keep eyes and ears open
>Other?

>>38770091
>>Move quickly but keep an eye on your surroundings

>>38770091
>>Move quickly but keep an eye on your surroundings
THIS
TENSION
Internet do captcha faster pls

>>38770091
>Move quickly but keep an eye on your surroundings

>>38770091
>March as fast as possible, no breaks
Shit I forgot this updates pretty quick.

>>38770296
Pffffft, it's like a picnic of horror!

>>38770091
>Advance carefully and keep eyes and ears open

>>38770091
>Move quickly but keep an eye on your surroundings

You go as fast as you can, but without losing your minds. Mistakes at this point might easily cost you more than slowing down; speed is welcome, but too much haste will ruin you.

There was unfortunately little Susanna and the others could give to help you in your travel, but Tahenohan assures you that some chalk will be just fine assuming you can find an even enough place to set up camp. She also asks you to keep an eye on the ground for rocks with a flat face, or flat enough at least.

Unfortunately there's not many of those, so you can only collect a very select few of such mineral specimen before night falls upon you. You're surprised at how quickly it came, you guess it's only when you have to make the most of daylight that it ends so soon and never seems to be enough, because when you had to wait or work in the fields, days were so long you would swear the sun was holding still in the sky just to mess with you and make your life miserable.

This makes you find out what Tahenohan needed those rocks for: she draws some odd-looking runes on the flat surfaces and then makes an unbroken circle around your tent. Well, as unbroken as it can be considering you got so few of them.

Where the soil is flat enough, she just rips the grass out and stomps the dirt until it's solid enough for her to draw on it, continuing the rune circle. "Salt would work better", she explains while she works, merrily humming an incongruous tune, "Pity the lake is freshwater".

It was no pity when you had to fill your canteens, though. You guess you can't have everything from life.

“Is it really going to be safe out here?”, Bryld wonders, looking warily at the shadows your firepit casts, turning the surroundings into an eerie land of nightmares. Although honestly, you’ve seen no trace of undead until now...

>Trust Tahenohan’s warding circle completely and just go to sleep
>Take turns keeping watch from inside the tent
>Take turns keeping watch from outside the tent
>Other?

>>38770541
>Trust Tahenohan’s warding circle completely and just go to sleep
Tahe knows what she's doing.

>>38770541
>Take turns keeping watch from inside the tent

>>38770541
>Trust Tahenohan’s warding circle completely and just go to sleep

>>38770541
>Take turns keeping watch from outside the tent

>>38770541
>Take turns keeping watch from outside the tent

>>38770541
>Trust Tahenohan’s warding circle completely and just go to sleep
As long as Bryld is able to, at least.

>>38770541
>Take turns keeping watch from inside the tent

>>38770573
Wonder what Tahe would advice yeah. She's the expert here!

>>38770712
Clearly we should cuddle her so she can sleep more easily. Yes.

Tahenohan is a necromancer. She knows what she's doing. Besides, she looks so confident and peaceful, to the point she is not concerned in the slightest and goes to sleep like there's no undead rampaging somewhere out in the Shadow Marches.

You look at Bryld and shrug, but she doesn't seem convinced. At that point, you decide to ask your resident half-elf a few questions, "Tahenohan, how do these... Wards work?".

"Eh? Oh, they just repel the undead", she summarily explains, "It's a simple warding circle. Mindless undead can't come in, intelligent or directly controlled ones should be able to break through but I don't think that will be the case", she chuckles, showing no hint of worry, "I don't think we'll find the latter cases though".

"Why? What makes you say that?", even Bryld wants to know, with hope in her eyes.

"Well, see, this isn't the kind of precise, direct control spell you would expect from a necromancer that wants to send silent, untiring, undead assassins to kill random travellers in the jungle", she explains with more than a hint of amusement in her eyes, "This is the kind of spell you cast when you want to raise a horde of undead to march on the lands as a whole. They're going to be the mindless sort, I can bet my skull talismans on that".

You and Bryld look at each other. She sounds very confident, "So... This spell is going to work, right?".

"The wards? Yes", she confirms, "As long as we have even, flat ground and it's not raining, we're going to be okay".

Well it doesn't seem to be raining, and it doesn't smell like raining either. You have to admit that on these conditions, getting back in civilization is going to be easier than you first thought. Of course, as long as it doesn’t start raining, or you can’t find even ground to set up camp on. The latter, however, is unlikely, as you’re leaving both mountains and foothills to get closer to the coast.

In the end, even Bryld manages to force herself to sleep soundly.

>Continue

>>38771185
To clear things up, a larger group of votes for the same general thing (keeping watch in this case) doesn't win if an option against it has the most individual votes?

Although you don't want to go faster than you feel comfortable doing, you also can't afford to stop or deprive yourself of sleep in order to cuddle your friends under the tent. You also for the love of you can't find the tranquillity to, knowing there's undead around, and the fact you haven't seen any yet isn't making any of you more relaxed. Well, apart from Tahenohan, but she's special.

You still wake up clung rather tightly to the half-elf, her messy hair tickling your nose as you take in a deep breath in order to wake up, and feeling Bryld tug at your back, clasping your tail with her thighs. So that was the odd sensation you had while sleeping that your back was trapped. In any other circumstance it would have been pleasant, as your tail is oddly sensitive to certain stimuli, but there's times when you're really not in the mood, and being surrounded by the walking dead is one of such times.

You resume your travels as soon as you're done having breakfast and packing your things up as there's no time to lose. New Royo is going to be safer, and you'll be able to make up for all the cuddles, all the chit-chat, all the campfire moments that you're missing out on due to this situation. You're also going to have time to eat some decent meals that aren't cooked by monsters with huge appetites and that need rather strong flavours to feel any at all.

Beyond the trees, to your right, you can see the glimmer of the sun on the lake's surface. You're on the right direction, and according to Bryld it's going to be somewhat faster if you just head straight West instead or circling around blindly like you did when you first arrived.

Still no sign of the undead, but you do spot another pair of those weird, large flowers amidst the vegetation, which is colourful and varied enough that they're surprisingly difficult to spot.

>You don't have time for this, ignore them.
>You've ignored this for long enough, investigate.
>Better safe than sorry, steer clear from them.
>Other?

>>38771381
>You've ignored this for long enough, investigate.
Fucking flowers man.

>>38771381
>>You've ignored this for long enough, investigate.

>>38771381
>Investigate

File: 1400147376134.jpg (46 KB, 338x450)

46 KB JPG

>>38771336
I'd say it depends on the situation. Since I already knew the outcome of all three options, in this specific case the two that looked similar were actually different enough to warrant different votes and different consideration.

I do realize that to you it might not have looked like that. My bad. I probably should have put the prompts differently in this case.

But don't worry, I'll be clearer if it's a choice with strong(er) consequences.

>>38771381
>Better safe than sorry, steer clear from them.
Tiefling sandwich best sandwich.

>>38771444
Ah, alright.

>>38771381
>You've ignored this for long enough, investigate.

>tfw no little half-elf necromancer girl to cuddle in the mornings

>>38771381
>You've ignored this for long enough, investigate.

You ordinarily would approach this situation differently. Is that the kind of flower you need to sketch for potential use in a guidebook? Does it have uses in medicine, alchemy or whatever else? Can you take it? Is it edible? Can you even physically uproot it? Is it dangerous?

Normally, you could think about it as long as you wanted, maybe even spend a whole day examining the issue, with Bryld and Tahenohan's help, and trying all sorts of stuff with nothing but gleeful interest in science and the burning need to play around with things. Mostly the latter, as you're not really a scientist, but you can pretend to be one if you want and nobody can tell you otherwise.

Except for anyone with common sense, but you're pretty sure neither Bryld or Tahenohan would. Not in peaceful, relaxed circumstances.

But now? Anything could be a threat. Anything.

There's two of them, quite close to each other. One with red and yellow polka dot leaves on a pink background, and another that is emerald green at the base and fades to blood red at the top, both about your size and with plenty of green leaves around their base. There are some solid-looking lianes on the ground, too.

They're poised at the base of a rather large tree, and the red and yellow polka dot one is also tucked next to a rock. You notice they're both pretty good positions to get sunlight, which isn’t something as easy and as granted as you might think in a jungle. As a matter of fact, while you’re no botanist, it’s kind of surprising that some plants get any sunlight and nourishment at all, then again you’ve been told that the Shadow Marches were actually pretty damn fertile since the very moment you arrived at Reboldeux.

And honestly, you’ve eaten enough proof to know it’s true. Food shortage is no issue here.

>Knock on the petals.
>Poke the flowers with a stick.
>Call the flowers out.
>Screw those flowers, they're large enough to eat you, keep walking.
>Other?

>>38771721
>Call the flowers out.
>Poke the flowers with a stick.

>>38771721
>Call the flowers out.

>>38771721
>Poke the flowers with a stick.
These are a little creepy...

>>38771721
>Call the flowers out.
>Knock on the petals.

>>38771721
>Poke the flowers with a stick

We're gonna look crazy to the other two huh...

>>38771721
>Poke the flowers with a stick.
>Call the flowers out.

"Hello?", you call the flowers out. Receiving no answer, of course. Bryld gives you a strange look as you do that, partly because you stopped, as if there might be danger, but she can't see any.

"... Are you talking to a flower?", she asks with visible uncertainty in her eyes, as if she doesn't get what's going on.

"It's two flowers", you reassure her, and slowly approach them. There's no shortage of sticks and similar implements to be found in a jungle, and you quickly grab one that was still half-hanging from a tree, caught in the vegetation that fills plenty of the three-dimensional space. And that's because you're in the outskirts, you don't think you can even enter the thick of the jungle without a machete, or an axe, or several lumberjacks with sharp, magical, fire-breathing axes fighting in formation.

You poke the flowers on their oversized, thick petals. You realize you must look like an idiot to the two behind you, but you have to be absolutely sure about what you're doing as you're too afraid any mistake might cost you.

Unfortunately(?) you don't get any appreciable reaction. Not that you should be surprised, you're poking to vegetation while talking to it, you have to admit it is a little silly.

"Hello? Anyone home?", you poke them again, carefully. You wonder if you have to poke harder, it would make sense if the petals are actually as thick as they look.

"Uh... Lillith?", you hear Bryld behind you.

"I know I look silly but I have to make sure-".

"I think something moved".

That gives you pause. You didn’t hear anything, but then again Bryld’s bunny ears are much better than yours at hearing sounds, and you didn’t see anything either. Granted, it might be paranoia and she might have just imagined it, but still, since you’re the one on the line, you’re going to...

>Step back from the flowers.
>Carefully examine your surroundings.
>Disregard movement, keep poking, maybe harder.
>Run!
>Other?

>>38772064
>Step back from the flowers.
>Carefully examine your surroundings.
Scary!

>>38772064
>Disregard movement, keep poking, definitely harder

>>38772064
>>Step back from the flowers.
>>Carefully examine your surroundings.

>>38772064
>Step back from the flowers.
>Carefully examine your surroundings.

>>38772064
>Disregard movement, keep poking, maybe harder.
Hey, get out here!

You step back from the flowers, just to be on the safe side. You lower your stick too, as if looking for signs of danger on the ground, and then around you.

You're pretty sure there's no undead around you, you can't see any and all you can hear is the chriping of various birds you're starting to get used to. Their calls are somewhat weird compared to what you're used to, especially those of parrots and the local variations of blackbirds, which are quite more colourful than how you remembered them in the continent you were born. And it’s not just birds, you also hear the calls and rustling of various other animals, lemurs and other monkey-like beings in particular, as well as lizard-like reptiles, both big and small, which you can often see on trees and branches, lazily staring at you from safety or scuttling away as soon as you catch sight of them.

So what did just move? You look at Bryld and she shakes her head, but looks around the grass, "I- I don't know, I thought I saw the grass moving, I heard some brushing... I... I don’t think I imagined it".

Tahenohan looks around and sniffs the air, and all she claims is "Nah, no undead".

That's reassuring, but it also doesn't mean undead are the only danger to your expedition, only the most obvious one right now.

You examine the grass once again, but don't see anything particular. Unless the lianes themselves did move, which is likely. And, now that you take a closer look, they're not like those that fall or hang from trees, they're a bit thicker, a bit more vine-like, and they seem to originate from the big flowers themselves.

Now you've heard all sorts of things about tentacles and monsters and none of them were pretty, unless you're some kind of pervert. You also doubt these stories are actually credible.

>You don't have time for this, ignore the flowers.
>Insist and poke them again, you have to make sure.
>Better safe than sorry, back up very carefully and steer clear of them.
>Other?

>>38772599
>Insist and poke them again, you have to make sure.
WE MUST KNOW THE SECRET

>>38772599
>>Better safe than sorry, back up very carefully and steer clear of them.
We got things to worry about!

>>38772599
>Poke them again
>Try to eat one

>>38772599
>Insist and poke them again, you have to make sure.

>>38772599
>Insist and poke them again, you have to make sure.
They've come up too much to be a red herring!

>>38772599
>Insist and poke them again, you have to make sure.

>>38772599
>You don't have time for this, ignore the flowers.

"I have to make sure", you steel yourself for whatever might be waiting for you and raise your stick once again. Wielding it like the rapier from some cloak and dagger novel that had those fantastic illustration of moustached gentlemen duelling at night on rooftops, you attempt to imitate their martial stance and slowly, carefully approach them until you're in striking distance.

And then you poke.

And poke.

And poke again.

You think the red and yellow polka dots flower is giving some kind of reaction, and a quick glance behind you shows that Bryld's ear are perked up, meaning you didn't imagine that sound. Feeling like you're about to uncover some important secret, you poke it again, harder, to make sure there is an actual, appreciable reaction.

And there is. The world turns upside down and you find yourself being swung rather roughly through the air, hitting quite a bit of vegetation, none of which is fortunately particularly hard. Amongst Bryld's yelping, you also hear a loud, angry voice yelling "STOP BULLYING MY BROTHER YOU RED BITCH!".

The other flower, whom you weren't poking, has opened up, revealing a green-skinned woman with yellow hair with lime highlights looking quite pissed at you, not to mention surrounded by a host of flailing and dangerous looking tentacles of plant origin, one of which is squeezing your ankles without much hope of escape as it keeps you hanging upside down. It’s not currently smacking you against the harder branches, but you did get whacked a little, although it’s nothing serious. Still, your back, chest and face are hurting a bit, but it could be worse. Especially if she suddenly decides to drop you.

You still have your stick in your hand. While swinging uncomfortably you can see that Bryld is pretty scared, while Tahenohan looks suitably impressed at the development.

>Whack the tentacles with your stick.
>Try and free yourself.
>Introduce yourself.
>Apologize.
>Other?

>>38772943
>Apologize.
>Introduce yourself.

>>38772943
>Apologize.
>Introduce yourself.

>>38772943
>Apologize.
Oh lawd

>>38772943
>Introduce yourself.
>Apologize.
P-plantwaifu?

>>38772943
>Other
"I KNEW IT!"

>>38772943
>blush

>>38772943
>>38773066
Hahaha, I'll back this.
But let's add on
>Apologize.
after.

>>38772943
Oh my~

There's an upside and a downside to your situation, and it's not an annoying pun about how you're hanging upside down in the air held by the tentacles of a plant monster. "I KNEW IT!" just escapes from your lips before you can attempt an embarrassed cough and pretend you never said it.

"Hello, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bully your brother", you find out it's very hard to look at someone when you don't actually have control of your position, the fact you have a tail somehow helps you balance yourself but it feels odd and uncomfortable, like you feel your lower back strained from a kind of movement it's not used to doing and should not be used to doing, "I just had to make su-".

"CUT THE CRAP!", well, she doesn't sound like she wants to listen. You can only see the upper half of her body, as she seems to be embedded in the plant itself from waist down. You don't think she has any legs at all, because if she did they would be horribly short. "This is the second time you've been targeting my brother! You're doing it on purpose, you filthy humans!".

"We're not, seriously!", you assure her, "I didn't even know you two were alive. Or, well, intelligent. You looked like ordinary flowers-".

"Ahahaha! Wow!", Tahenohan claps her hands, her manic eyes shining with glee, "This is the first time I see an alraune! They didn't have them at all in my homeland!". You’re not surprised to hear that, Voronia has more sparse vegetation, on average, than even Midgaard, let alone the Shadow Marches, who are literally covered in vegetation.

The green flower woman glares at you with her deep brown eyes, "So what's the deal you filthy red bitch? Came here to rip our petals and squeeze us?".

>"No, why would I ever do that?”.
>”No, I just wanted to see what you really were”.
>”No, I just had to make sure you weren’t carnivore plants”.
>”No, I wanted to ask if you’ve seen any undead around here”.
>”Yes” (truth)
>”Yes” (lie)
>Other?

>>38773347
>”No, I just wanted to see what you really were”.
>"You haven't seen any undead around here, have you?

>>38773347
>>”No, I just had to make sure you weren’t carnivore plants”.

>>38773347
>"No, I came to warn you of this massive horde of undead that have risen throughout the land."

>>38773347
>"No, why would I ever do that?”.
>”No, I wanted to ask if you’ve seen any undead around here”.

>>38773347
>"No, why would I ever do that?”.

>>38773347
>>"No, why would I ever do that?”.
>>”No, I just wanted to see what you really were”.
>>”I wanted to ask if you’ve seen any undead around here”.

>>38773347
>”No, I just wanted to see what you really were”.
>Introduce self properly

>>38773347
>”Yes” (lie)
I just...I want to know what happens...

"No, why would I ever do that?", it feels like she's talking about something oddly specific. Why would you rip a giant plant apart and, most importantly, squeeze it?

"Ah, it's because alraune fluids are very potent aphrodisiacs commonly used in potions", Tahenohan answers your unuttered question for which you may or may not have wanted to hear an answer. "Actually many of their parts have handy uses, the leaves in particular for the treatment of open wounds and as antiseptics".

You look back at the plant in question and get the feeling your half-elf friend didn't do much to help convince her you're not out to rip her apart. You decide to not mention your own curiosity in order to not make her to further misunderstand your intentions by believing you were on an alraune hunt, "A-and I actually wanted to ask if you've seen any undead around here. There's supposedly a horde of them walking throughout the land".

You feel your ankles being squeezed harder until it hurts, but then the grip relaxes as some other tentacles brush against hers and one petal from the other flower lightly peels, revealing a hint of a shy and rather concerned face peeking curiously from the relative safety of its own flower. From what little you can see, it too is green-skinned.

"Hmpf", the woman crosses her arms. Which only serves you as a reminder that apparently alraune don't wear dresses. Not that this surprises you, even Arianna barely wore something on her; tropical monsters are apparently quite chill about being naked. "We don't care about the undead, they don't bother us. All we have to do is close ourselves up and they just ignore us".

"Are you sure?", you wonder.

"Yes. Just yesterday some skeletons walked right past us".

She's saying it like it's no big deal.

>”How many skeletons?”.
>”Where did they go?”.
>”Did you see any more undead?”.
>”Do you think the way West is safe?”.
>”Can you help us get out of the jungle?”.
>PANIC
>Other?

>>38773781
>PANIC
>”Where did they go?”.
>”Can you help us get out of the jungle?”.

>>38773781
>>PANIC
>>"How many skeletons?"
>>”Where did they go?”

>>38773781
>”How many skeletons?”.
>”Do you think the way West is safe?”.

>>38773781
>>PANIC
>”How many skeletons?”.
>”Did you see any more undead?”.
>”Can you help us get out of the jungle?”.

>>38773781
>”Do you think the way West is safe?”.
>apologize to the boy

>>38773781
>Other?
"Could your brother come out too? I want to apologize."

You feel a sudden surge of panic rise up within you. So there ARE undead around! You've been nearly thinking Tahenohan was mistaken, or that your area was somehow spared from the outbreak, but instead you're hearing a plant woman talking about walking skeletons like it's something perfectly normal and not giving a damn because apparently the undead murder people but don't step on flowers for some odd reason you will have to ask your necromancer friend about some day.

"How many skeletons? Where did they go? Did you see any more? Can you-".

"Whoa, whoa, slow down pipsqueak!", the alraune shakes you a little, squeezing your ankles to make you stop panicking. It doesn't quite work but it does prevent you from panicking any further. "There were four of them, they headed towards the lake, that's all I know".

You're supremely thankful you decided to take the jungle route.

"Do you think the way West is safe?", you then ask, because that's where you need to go and you don't want to have any unwanted encounter until you've reached New Royo.

"How should I know? Go there and find out. Actually, why don't you go away already?", and there she starts looking pissed off again.

"Uhm, you'd have to put me down first", you remind her, mostly because you're starting to feel like your blood's getting to your head, "And I want to apologize to your brother, I meant no harm, really".

Grumbling, the plant woman puts you back on the ground, which of course means she just drops you from a safe height while trying to ensure that it isn’t your head that hits it first. You’re kind of still hurting all over but it could have been way worse.

You see a pair of eyes spying you from behind a partially opened petal, peeking shyly, “I’m sorry I misteated you”, you say, and the flower closes up.

“Alright pipsqueak, now beat it”, the woman urges you.

>Stay, make idle chatter
>Stay, do proper introductions
>Stay, ask for help going West
>Just go already
>Other?

>>38774197
>Stay, do proper introductions
Socializing!

>>38774197
>Stay, ask for help going West

>>38774197
>Stay, do proper introductions

>>38774197
>>Just go already

>>38774197
>Stay, do proper introductions

>>38774197
>Stay, make idle chatter

You need a moment to recover from the rough handling. You never would have expected a tentacle to be so strong as to lift you up in the air so effortlessly, those flowers are pretty dangerous all considered, and the tentacles themselves look rather long and agile too, you suppose your best bet would be to just stay away from something like that, because hopefully they don't move very quickly. You're pretty sure they do move, because you've seen this woman's brother already and he wasn't where he is now, but that does not mean they're fast.

Not that you want to be chased just to test out that theory.

"My name is Lillith Taieart", you introduce yourself, "My two friends here are Bryld Norling and Tahenohan, we-".

"You're still there?", the plant woman's tentacles are still tense and ready to strike, and her arms are still crossed in that kind of position, paired with the kind of expression that doesn't take it kindly to idle conversation.

"I would like to at least know your names. I assure you we mean no harm, we just want to go back safely to our homes in the West".

She stares at you for a few long moments, her tentacles shifting about as if wondering whether she should strike again while Bryld wisely pulls back, dragging Tahenohan along with her. "I'm Elvira, my brother's Timo. Are we done now?".

"Can you do anything to help us go-".

"I can slap your butts until you get your legs moving you lazy bipeds", there she goes, raising her voice again, "Now scram already before I lose my patience".

You don’t really have much of a choice here, you really don’t want to risk angering her again, who knows which height she might drop you from next time.

As your travel resumes, you can’t help but notice that Tahenohan is particularly giddy, even for her standards, and keeps looking back, “So that’s what an alraune looks like!”, she giggles.

>”Do you like them?”.
>”Are they always this aggressive?”.
>”What do you want to do with them?”.
>Other?

>>38774497
>”Are they always this aggressive?”.

>>38774497
>”What do you want to do with them?”.
Yeah Tahe, what?

>>38774497
>”What do you want to do with them?”.

>>38774497
>”Are they always this aggressive?”.
>”Do you like them?”.

>>38774497
>”Do you like them?”.
>”What do you want to do with them?”.
I bet it's lewd magic stuff.

>>38774497
>”Are they always this aggressive?”.

>>38774497
>>”Are they always this aggressive?”
Stop throwing those periods in at the end!

File: 1420624190395.png (40 KB, 184x184)

40 KB PNG

>>38774781
NEVER!

File: you fucking shit.png (111 KB, 722x393)

111 KB PNG

>>38774813

>>38774813
This guy...

"What do you want to do with them?", you wonder.

"Mmmh... That's actually a good question", she ponders herself, "I haven't had much of a chance to think about it because we didn't have them in Voronia, there's not enough plants and not enough green for them to thrive, you know".

"Well, if it's flowers of that size, they certainly need a huge mass of vegetation to hide inside", Bryld comments, seemingly having recovered from your rough handling; you get the feeling she's getting dangerously used to seeing you mistreated by circumstances and monsters alike, as she doesn't look even remotely as shocked as the first times, "I really couldn't see something like that in a plain that doesn't attract the attention of every human and animal".

"You know what I'd like to do?", Tahenohan then continues, "I'd like to get in their petals".

"You what?".

"Haven't you seen the insides of these flowers?", she stares at you with dreamy eyes, "They look so comfy and fluffy! I want to get inside one! If they have to stay there all their lives it must be comfortable! That means it's a cuddly, fluffy place to be in and I want to get in there".

You were a bit busy being hung upside down to properly appreciate how an alraune looks inside of her petals, but you guess she does have a point, "I'm not sure she would let you inside, though".

"You're right", she concedes, rubbing her chin, "We have to find some more welcoming alraune".

“I... Don’t think this is really a priority, right now”, Bryld reminds you, “We know for sure that there’s undead around and they’re not far, too”.

“If they went to the lake that means they’re North of us, assuming they’re still going in that direction or aren’t just wandering around aimlessly”, which you fear might be quite more likely than you think.

“Do you think we should speed up our pace?”, Bryld wonders.

>Move faster, no more breaks until New Royo.
>Keep your current pace.
>Slow down, you need to be careful.
>Other?

>>38775133
>>Keep your current pace.
We shouldn't rush, or else we'll run headlong into undead.

>>38775133
>Keep your current pace.
Current is fine!

>>38775133
>Keep your current pace.

>>38775133
>Move faster, no more breaks until New Royo.

>>38775133
>Keep your current pace.

>>38775133
>No plantgirl companion
It's probably for the best...probably...

"No", you assure her, "Our current pace is fine, if we rush we might just run headlong into more undead, not to mention overlook any other potential dangers".

"Right", Bryld agrees with your call, "Just don't go and poke those potential dangers, though".

You feel like you should say something back at her but you just can't help but feel that she does have a point.

You proceed westwards until you feel like you're approaching the outskirts of the outskirts. From there on, it's going to be less of a jungle and more of a brushland, with lower vegetation, less and more sparse trees and wide open areas where you can be easily spotted from all around.

Unfortunately, there's no going around it, you need to cross that open area if you want to get to New Royo, or back into any kind of civilization. On the upside, it means you're really, really close. If you're lucky and can keep your pace up, tomorrow night you'll be sleeping on comfortable beds, or the closest approximation thereof, hopefully while being protected by armed forces from the threat of the undead legions, even though they currently amount to four skeletons for all you know.

You begin to setup camp before the sun starts actually setting because you want to make sure you find an even enough ground for Tahenohan's warding circle to work. As far as you know it's the best defense you have against the undead, even though you haven't had a chance to test it. Then again, you don't think you would hate to see her ward go untested another night.

And while your necromancer friend is as peaceful and calm as ever in face of the undead threat, Bryld seems considerably more nervous than last night, most likely because she did receive confirmation that the undead are actually about and a real, tangible threat. Unless you’re a plant, you guess.

>Cuddles will solve everything.
>Talk to her, share your concerns.
>You just need to rest, you have another long day ahead.
>Other?

>>38775591
>Talk to her, share your concerns.
>Cuddles will solve everything.
You'll see.

>>38775591
>Talk to her, share your concerns.

>>38775591
>Talk to her, share your concerns.

>>38775591
>Cuddles will solve everything.
>Talk to her, share your concerns.

>>38775591
>>Talk to her, share your concerns.
>>Cuddles will solve everything.
Talk then hugs.

>>38775591
>Cuddles will solve everything.
Definitely. Cuddle the bunnybutt.

"Hey, Bryld".

"Yea?".

"You doing fine?".

She squirms a little uncomfortably. The inside of the tent is large enough for the three of you, but without much more spare room. Not that this is a problem as you've had the chance to know each other and you're quite comfortable with each other's company by now, even in tent conditions. Bryld has no problem clinging to your back, for example, although she hardly ever hugs you properly.

"I'm fine", she says, "We're close, tomorrow we'll be safe and we can forget about this undead outbreak".

"Sure we are", you're trying to convince her as much as you're trying to convince yourself, "And don't forget we have a necromancer with us, surely she can handle a few skeletons".

"I know", she mumbles, "But I still don't want to see them".

You can't quite blame her, seeing corpses shambling about with the intent of murdering living beings, such as you, is going to be quite an appalling, terrifying sight no matter how you look at it. Not wanting to witness such a sight is common sense.

"Think positively, what's the first thing you'll do once we get back?", you ask.

"Take a bath, have a proper dinner and then sleep in a proper bed", she didn't even need to think about it. To be fair, you've gotten used to each other's scent and you're not new to travelling and especially not to sweating, but that doesn't mean a bath wouldn't benefit the three of you.

Or a shower, since they do have those.

You turn around and hug her, gently pushing her head beneath your chin and stroking her hair, feeling her larger than you’d think chest touch yours as you get this close, the fur on her bunny ears tickling your cheeks, “Now relax and just go to sleep. Everything will be fine, and tomorrow we’ll all be safe again”.

She clutches your sides and takes a deep breath, while Tahenohan seems to be quite content to be the one clinging at your back this time. Then again, her preferred position is actually on top.

>Continue

>>38776082
>Then again, her preferred position is actually on top.
Lewd

>>38776130
Of course, her entire existence is lewd.

The very first thing you're shown in the morning isn't the most reassuring, and Bryld realizes it the moment her finger points out at the sky in the West, which is painted black in the distance.

"Well that's a storm coming this way", someone had to state the obvious, and it might as well be you.

"It's the Levanter", Tahenohan helpfully instructs you, "It's the wind that blows Eastwards, it's carrying that storm from the Crystal Sea".

"Isn't it odd? This is supposed to be the dry season", Bryld protests, although she realizes it's pointless to complain to the wind.

"I don't know, I have no idea how tropics work", the half-elf shrugs.

"It's possible it may only hit the coast or the western part", you point out. You doubt it will reach Susanna's place, seeing what kind of weather the Shadow Marches have, but it will most likely hit New Royo, and it might even do it today. "Tahenohan, you said your wards don't work in the rain, right?".

"Nope, it's going to wash them away", she answers with a smile, as if complimenting you for paying attention.

"Then we absolutely must get there before tomorrow", you declare, "We can't afford to camp out, not without warding against the undead".

Bryld nods in agreement, and looks at the brushland, knowing there's still a long trek waiting for you, "I don't like this...", she mumbles. Even though the storm itself is still quite distant, you feel the morning breeze to be a little stronger than usual, to the point you might actually say it’s kind of windy today. Unfortunately, the wind has that sort of smell that promises quite a downpour, if the colour of the sky wasn’t enough of a preview.

It may start raining before you arrive.

>GOTTA GO FAST.
>Keep your current pace, no panicking, you still have all the lantern oil you need even if night falls on you.
>Go back into the jungle and wait the storm out, it can't last long and you don't want to get risk caught in it.
>Other?

>>38776251
>GOTTA GO FAST.

>>38776251
>>GOTTA GO FAST.
Okay, NOW we gotta rush it.

>>38776251
>Keep your current pace, no panicking, you still have all the lantern oil you need even if night falls on you.
Spooky spooky.

>>38776251
>GOTTA GO FAST.
MP pls. Our wards....

>>38776251
>Go back to the alraune, see if you can hide inside their flowers while it rains.

>>38776251
>Keep current pace
If we burn ourselves out now we'll end up going even slower.

>>38776480
Wow anon, what a dirty mind on you.
And practically, I really don't see us being allowed to.

>>38776251
>Keep your current pace, no panicking, you still have all the lantern oil you need even if night falls on you.

File: 1391677273312.jpg (121 KB, 802x724)

121 KB JPG

>Tied votes.

You're just doing this on purpose aren't you.

>>38776251
>GOTTA GO FAST

>>38776747
Sorry MP!

"Let's leg it", you press the others while hastily recovering your equipment and packing the tent, "We have to rush to safety before the storm hits us, we can't let ourselves get caught in the open, not while there's an outbreak of undead. I don't think skeletons are hindered by heavy rain".

"It sure doesn't annoy them", Tahenohan confirms, and you were actually waiting for her say on the matter, "Even if water gets all over them and slinks in their eye sockets and everything, they just don't care. They also hardly get stuck in the mud since they're very thin and lightweight compared to-".

"I get it, I get it", Bryld isn't interested in necromancy lessons, not in the slightest, "Long distance running it is. It's okay, my body is built for that kind of effort".

You're not really sure if rabbits are supposed to be built for long distance running or if it's just yet another racial stereotype that may or may not be true, but at least she seems to believe in it, which you suppose is a good thing.

You remember the brushland very well, you've been walking around it a lot, especially on the way between Reboldeux and New Royo, except this time there's no road to follow, there's undead all over the place and a storm coming your way. What was a peaceful landscape until just a week ago has become a nightmare to cross right now, because you can see for a very long distance in all directions and this does nothing but give you the feeling you're not getting anywhere.

It's far, New Royo might be farther than you first thought. Maybe you’re not where you think you were, and no matter how fast you go you still have to take breaks every once in a while, and throughout the day they only drag on longer and longer as you get more and more tired.

The wind picks up and, as Tahenohan said, it blows to the East, meaning it’s against you. As if you needed any more complications. The sun is beginning to set and you’re still not at your destination.

>Continue

>>38776843
Well, shit.

Your legs are sore and tired, and every step is getting harder to take. You find yourself to be constantly short on breath and it's not because you ran recently but rather that you spent all day doing so. Bryld is keeping up purely on force of will alone while Tahenohan... You suspect she could carry on all night, unfortunately she'd have to do so alone since you're pretty sure neither of you have the stamina to keep up with her.

The sun starts falling as soon as the vague shape of New Royo is in sight. Well, it has been in sight for a very long time but, as the brushlands and plains typically do, just because you could see something far off in the distance doesn't mean it's going to be a long time before you can actually reach it on foot, and having the wind blow against you doesn't help one bit.

And then it starts raining.

Like every sudden downpour, it is a massive one. Thick, constant, unforgiving. Your sore muscles and tired self are quickly drenched with water, making every movement even more difficult as your clothes stick to your own sweaty body, your boots begin to splash around and sink in the quickly forming mud and you struggle to light your lantern so you won't be left completely in the dark in but a few moments.

With nothing but your lantern to go by, you can only guess your destination, and as soon as you see the very first signs of civilization in the form of wooden buildings, lit by hung lanterns, you hear an unnatural, otherworldly scream behind you.

You turn around and quickly point the lantern towards the source as Bryld jolts behind your back. You can vaguely distinguish the forms of a few skeletons, mostly lit by the reflected light on their ancient-looking swords, armour and shields.

You're not sure you want to stop and count them, or try and discern how exactly they’re armed.

>Run, the town’s in sight!
>Your legs can’t make it. Tahenohan, you better be a real necromancer!
>Other?

>>38777064
>Your legs can’t make it. Tahenohan, you better be a real necromancer!
Yeah, go Tahe!
Anyway, are you running much longer? Just gotta know if I should tough it out for another vote or just go to bed already.

>>38777064
>>Your legs can’t make it. Tahenohan, you better be a real necromancer!
Have faith in our elf!

>>38777064
>Run, the town’s in sight!

>>38777064
>Your legs can’t make it. Tahenohan, you better be a real necromancer!

File: o93zAub.jpg (28 KB, 267x527)

28 KB JPG

>>38777090
One more update or two at the very best.

>>38777064
>Your legs can’t make it. Tahenohan, you better be a real necromancer!

>>38777194
Alright, I'll just sleep then.
Thanks for running!

You can't outrun them.

You're not sure how fast they are, but they feel too close, and your strenght is failing you, your legs are failing you, and Bryld is possibly frozen in terror.

"Tahe!", you call out, trying to hide the panic in your voice, "Do something!".

With but a merry nod of her head, Tahenohan turns around and steps forward, facing the approaching skeletons. Their screams have the unnatural, eerie and profoundly wrong tone only an unliving abomination who is devoid of actual lungs can have. They're not even supposed to be able to do that, and yet they do, just to make sure you will be frozen solid by the scare before gutting you, assuming you don't just get a heart attack.

And just as the skeleton warriors raise their shields and weapons, ready to strike, Tahenohan raises her own hand and commands "HALT!".

Her voice briefly rings in your ears and echoes in the distance. For a long, unending moment the three skeleton warriors remain frozen in place in front of her. They are all carrying old, battered shields and ancient, rusted swords and wearing equally old and worn scale mail armour that barely has enough free metal surface to reflect your lantern's light.

Then, she suddenly raises her hands, and the skeletons do the same. They follow her every weird, awkward movement you would expect to see only from a drunken but still lucid person trying to perform a dance he doesn't know without even knowing how to dance in the first place.

"DANCE, MY MINIONS, DANCE!", she encourages them as she laughs her way into a weird, circle dance with three skeleton warriors, without a care in the world, lit by nothing but your lantern, as the downpour continues.

You hear a splash as Bryld’s knees suddenly hit the ground, her legs giving up as relief blows away the stress, though it leaves her body out of any energy she might have had left.

>Get in New Royo
>Ask Tahenohan to leave the skeletons outside
>Ask Tahenohan to just destroy the skeletons
>Other?

>>38777544
>>Get in New Royo
>>Ask Tahenohan to leave the skeletons outside
and make sure they don't attack any living beings, it would be good if she can get them to help protect New Royo if possible

>>38777544
>Ask Tahenohan to just destroy the skeletons

>>38777544
>>Get in New Royo
>>Ask Tahenohan to leave the skeletons outside
If she can keep them under control, even better.

>>38777544
>>Ask Tahenohan to just destroy the skeletons
They might be a bit disconcerted about "friendly" skeletons, and who knows if they'll remain under her control while she's busy: there's a necromancer about, after all.

File: 1402023242048.png (689 KB, 734x572)

689 KB PNG

>Tied

You of course can't both keep and destroy the skeletons.

>>38778008
>Keep
A skeleton in the hand is worth 3 in the bush

You have to give Tahenohan a bit of time, she's too busy dancing with her new minions. You also take advantage of that fact to let Bryld recover a little from the scare and subsequent shock, and of course give yourself a bit of respite for all the tension accumulated in the past days and the odd, awkward and admittedly somewhat hilarious way it all resolved itself.

Once you realize that Tahenohan is going to keep dancing all night if you don't stop her, and might even start singing in the rain, you take a step forward, "Tahenohan. Do you have the skeletons under control?".

She stops, smiling brightly as the dance stops, "Ah, yes. They were raised but not controlled, I suspect that's the same for every other undead about, which makes sense for a spell that wide".

"So... They're yours now?".

"Yes", well, she certainly can make it sound easy.

"Look, Tahenohan, we cannot bring them in town", you try and explain to her, "There's an outbreak of undead, it's possible people might be already tense and expecting trouble, and I'm pretty sure someone must have heard the screams", those soul-freezing screams, you wonder how could anyone not hear them, "We don't want people to suspect us and I don't want people to hate you for no good reason, so...".

"Ah, want me to hide them?", she keeps her merry smile on, "Sure. HEY MINIONS! DIG UP YOUR GRAVES!".

And without a hint of an objections, the skeletons drop to their knees and start clawing holes in the ground, slowly but surely. "I'll just have them bury themselves in, we'll have to push the dirt back on them, of course. We don't need to have them dig deep, just enough to hide them".

You blink, this feels... Somewhat odd. "Can you keep them under control?".

"Yes".

"Sure?".

"Absolutely".

You resume watching the three skeletons digging their own graves to bury themselves in until they’re needed again, and can’t help but feel like there’s some big joke you’re not sure whether to laugh at or not.

File: 1418938450115.png (183 KB, 447x483)

183 KB PNG

And, wow, this ran for way longer than I expected.

Still, I wanted to get this done so next time we can resume our adventures without leaving things hanging.

I'll archive the thread and then go to bed. It's late.

Thanks for staying with me.

>>38778323
Thanks for the thread MP, I can't wait for the girls to soak in a bath and collapse in a nice bed finally.

>>38778323
THAAAAANK YOU!

>>38778323
thanks for running