Archive: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?searchall=paranormal+investigator

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Rapey_Lemons

>>39978918
>Hail taxi, head back
>Ask Liza if you can ask someone about her condition for advice
Didn't we have this vote already?

Fuck yeah PIQ! Feels like so long...

>>39978944
Yeah, but I figured that there were a lot of options and people might not remember. Also, there wasn't really a consensus on what people were going to do.

>>39978918
>Hail taxi, head back
>Ask Liza if you can ask someone about her condition for advice
Is it even safe to call Summer? What if they still have her and the phone in custody?

>>39978918
>Ask Liza if you can ask someone about her condition for advice
If we have the money for a taxi,
>Hail taxi, head back

>>39978918
>>Call Summer and ask for advice

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This quest is so confusing to me.

It's not exciting, all of the choices seem kind of dull, and I don't really feel much progress. We argue about whether our hair should stay neon, like that is our biggest concern.

...It makes no sense that I really like the quest. I've been agonizing over this for the last 2-3 threads, but I have no idea why I always get excited when this thing shows up. What is our goal? What do we do? Investigate? It feels like we've been let loose in a sandbox world after a prologue, but none of our options are available yet.

But I'm still so concerned about what is happening. What the hell is this.

>>39979008
I don't think we should chance calling Fae-mom until after we've discretely confirmed whether or not she's been released or not.

>>39978918
>Get her number and text her questions so no one overhears (Write-in)
>Ask Liza if you can ask someone about her condition for advice

>>39978918
>Tell Liza about the Bureau
>Ask Liza if you can ask someone about her condition for advice
>>39979106
I guess we can try that. But they might notice messages too if they've got the phone.

>>39978918
>Hail taxi, head back
>Investigate whoever followed you

Calling Summer's risky, and calling the Bureau isn't useful (will they even know anything?) and is pointing a huge arrow to Liza

>>39979177
Can we text her with a phone that isn't government issued? That might be better.

>>39979178
Correct me if I'm wrong anon, but isn't it confirmed that the government actually doesn't have any information about zombies yet? I think that got stated somewhere; Summer is probably our only real option for information.

Informing them about Liza seems like a quick way to get her quarantined immediately for study.

Hail taxi, ask Liza if we can ask people about her
>>39978944
>>39979008
>>39979017
>>39979106
>>39979177
>>39979178

Ask Summer
>>39979043

Just taxi and then asking Liza for permission first.

Roll a 1d100, best of three please!

>>39979178
I think the Bureau could be very useful, it just comes with the risk of quarantine or worse (like outright execution) depending on how they deal with...whatever Liza is. Summer doesn't really have that risk.

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>>39979106
>We argue about whether our hair should stay neon, like that is our biggest concern.
>like that is our biggest concern.
>Implying it isn't.

Rolled 1 (1d100)

Rolled 23 (1d100)

>>39979246
Heave ho!

>>39979271
Well.

Rolled 60 (1d100)

>>39979246
Time to bail on this tail!

>>39979271
...or not.

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>>39979271

>>39979271
A
N
O
N

P
L
S

>>39979271
>>39979277
>>39979286

So uh, wow. Okay.

Writing!

So did we completely fuck up on calling a taxi, or make Liza incredibly distrustful of us?

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I AM SO SORRY, ANONS.

>>39979354
We hail a taxi that was part of a car bombing and now the CIA adds us to their most wanted list.

>>39979370
You can make it up to us by rolling good from now on.

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>>39979354
Both, and in the process knocked the brains out of her bag and all over us.

>>39979446
Ghoulfu noooo

Man, why you gotta run when I must sleep, huh? Good luck with the session, steer us well anons! I better not wake up to ded thred.

"Alright, let's go home," you say.

As you step out onto the sidewalk, you immediately see a white car with a taxi sign on its roof heading down the street. You hail the taxi and it quickly pulls over, coming to a stop in front of you and Liza.

As you climb in, you're grateful that this taxi actually doesn't smell too bad, considering your previous two taxi rides. You and Liza sit in the back seat, the seats a welcome relief from all of the walking you've done today.

"Where to?" the driver gruffly asks. His voice is a little muffled by the thick plastic divider.

You give him the address of the train station, then lean back into your seat and sink into its cushions. Liza tries to say something, but you tell her to hush for a second as you close your eyes and try to get some rest. Liza shrugs, muttering something to herself, and does likewise, relaxing a bit and shutting her eyes.

You're on the verge of passing out when you realize that you wanted to ask Liza something.

"Hey, Liza?" you whisper to her.

She mumbles in response.

"Can I ask someone about your, uh, condition?"

She yawns. "Whaddya' mean?"

"I have a few... associates who might be able to help you with your problem," you say. "I don't think they'll tell anyone else."

She looks a little uneasy, but nods. "Someone who knows about this weird shit that I'm going through? Go for it. But yes, secrecy would be really appreciated." She sighs. "Hopefully I'm just having weird cravings or something."

"Cravings?" You can't resist. "Maybe you're pregnant," you suggest, giggling.

She looks at you, horrified, before breaking into a smile and shaking her head. "God, I hope not."

The two of your relax for a bit, letting the taxi slowly take you to your destination.

>Relax more.
>Call Summer, tell her about Liza (Write-in if you want)
>Call Susan, tell her about Liza (Write-in if you want)
>Tell Liza about the Bureau
>Tell Liza about your mysterious stalker
>Investigate whoever followed you
>Write-in.

>>39978918
>being Chinese yourself

...huh. go figure.

>>39979775
>Tell Liza about your mysterious stalker
>Investigate whoever followed you

>>39979775
DRIVER IS VAMPIRE

I REPEAT, DRIVER IS PROBABLY A MONSTER

Or, you know, the guy who was following us earlier. The probably-fae.

>>39979775
>>Call Susan, tell her about Liza (Write-in if you want)

>>39979775
>Text Summer, see if we get a response.

>>39979828
Yyyyeah.

>>39979775
>Investigate whoever followed you

Discreetly. As in, don't tell her about the bureau or the tail we've picked up. She's freaking out enough as she is and I'm still not convinced she won't get worse.

>>39979775
>Call Summer, tell her about Liza (Write-in if you want)
Not detailed dialogue, but ask her about Liza's symptoms and mention a friend has them (but not name), and ask if she could tell us more and if the Bureau would be likely to harm her if we went there for help.
Also, be VERY wary of driver, and where we're going. VERY.

>>39979805
Our protagonist's last name IS Li. And she looks vaguely Asian if the OP is meant to be representative. I hope so, it's cute.

>>39979775
>Call Susan, tell her about Liza ('yo, I met a girl with a ghoulish appetite. We got that under control, though I don't think I'm the only person interested in her')
>Watch on the window (or maybe using phone's gps), see if we're actually going to the train station.

>>39979811
>>39979869

If you guys want to investigate your (maybe) stalker, do you have any ideas on how you're going to do it?

Else I'll let Rachel take the wheel.

>>39979935

I remember fiddling with the phone, taking pictures and stuff from earlier. That'll do. Plate numbers are a thing for a reason.

>>39979935
Shit man I ain't no detective!
Some anon who watches serials will have to take charge here. I'm sure CSI showed something at some point!

>>39979935
We got the license plate, yeah?

It might be a bit jumpy, but we could put our government resources to work here tracking it down, if we mention that it seemed to be following us while we were looking around chinatown?

We don't need an impounding, but some information couldn't hurt. If they ask what we're doing in the first place, we could just claim we were scouting around - Or, we're chinese ourselves - maybe meeting friends.

Investigate
>>39979811
>>39979869

Call Susan
>>39979837
>>39979925

Call Summer
>>39979852
>>39979896

Check to see where you're going
>>39979925

Is investigating, calling Susan (and being vague) and calling Summer (also being vague) okay?

Writing.

>>39980111
Call susan first to get discrete confirmation about Fae-mom's release status before calling her!

>>39980111
I dunno, on one hand it's not like calling Summer is more legitimate than calling Susan given vote results, but on the other hand there's no point calling Summer if we're calling Susan first since the only real reason (barring bad news from Susan) is to hear how the Bureau might take Liza's situation.

>>39980111
No calling Summer.

>>39980147
Nah, Summer might know more about zombies than the Bureau does. Or she might have ideas on how she got infected, which could give us something new to investigate when we find the time.

Not that I voted for calling her, nor am I a fan of involving Summer at all (I still think very wary of her), but there's certainly an argument to be made for calling her.

We should call Summer, she is the most likely to be able to help.

Remember that Susan told you that the Bureau has never seen a zombie before.

>>39980676
True, although it's possible they simply don't categorize whatever Liza is as a zombie.
Still, most likely.

>>39980676
>We should call Summer, she is the most likely to be able to help.
We just gotta make damn sure Summer doesn't take this asking as us cashing in our favor.

>>39980698
I don't know what else they could classify Liza's condition as, assuming it is paranormal.

I think Susan would have said something if that was the case; something like no zombies, but we do have creatures that want to eat brains.

>>39980703
If Summer helps us stop the zombie apocalypse, I might consider that a debt paid.

>>39980833
I don't know what else they could classify Liza's condition as, assuming it is paranormal.
Ghoul(fu)!

>>39980676
Doesn't mean Susan wouldn't be able to help with supplying Liza. And considering that vampires and werewolves are apparently a thing, I'm sure the Bureau has given at least some thought to the idea of how to deal with zombies if they were to start popping up. Whether or not that's a good thing for Liza is another matter.

You decide that you have more important things to do than to just sit in the taxi and laze around. The immediate problem of Liza's hunger is over, but you still need to do something about the situation as a whole.

You dial Susan's number and pull up the picture of the license plate on your phone. She picks up after a few rings.

"What do you need?" Summer immediately says in a businesslike tone.

You realize that you are technically on the job at the moment, and reply in the same manner. "I kind of remember you saying something about it before, but do you have any information on zombies or ghouls? Things that used to be human?"

There's a pause. "There are monsters out there that would eat humans, given a chance, but the closest thing we have to flesh-eating supernatural creatures that used to be human would be your standard vampires. There might be some cannibalistic—if you can call it that—weres, but nothing that's been confirmed yet. Is this related to your current situation?"

You glance at Liza, who looks like she's struggling between eavesdropping and pretending to ignore your conversation. "...Partially, yes, but I've got it under control. Nothing that would cause an apocalypse or something like that."

"Then I'll trust your judgement," she says. "But I expect a thorough report of the what happened when you are finished dealing with the issue."

(1/2)

Shit. "Uh, yeah, I can do that," you tell her. "By the way, can you look up this license number for me?"

You glance down at your phone and read it out to her.

"Give me a moment," she says, the clattering of keys in the background.

"By the way, what did you guys do with Summer?" you ask her.

"I was wondering when you would ask," she chuckles. "She's still being held on suspicion of aggravated assault. Also, your license number didn't turn up any results. You sure you gave it to me correctly?"

You look down at your phone, confused, and repeat the number to her again.

"Must be a fake license plate then," Susan says. "Do you need anything else at the moment?"

"I don't think so," you tell her. "I'll call you back if I do."

You say your goodbyes and hang up. As you glance out the windows, something feels a little off to you. On a whim, you open up your phone and check your location with the GPS.

You're still quite far from the station, even though it's already been almost half an hour. You could blame the traffic around you, but it isn't as dense as before.

>"Hey, stop taking the long way! We're not going to pay you more for wasting time."
>Stay in the car, tell the driver to hurry up
>Wait for a traffic stop, get out of the car.
>Call Summer anyways, make sure she knows you're not cashing in her favor
>Call Susan again
>Write-in.

>>39981064
>You dial Susan's number
>"What do you need?" Summer immediately says
Wut.

>>39981100
FUCK

SUSAN

>>39981078
>Text Susan, inform her that our taxi driver is acting extremely suspicious just in case we happen to disappear in the near future.
>Wait for a traffic stop, get out of the car.
Summer call can wait then.

>>39981064
>You dial Susan's number
>"What do you need?" Summer immediately says
Goddamned fae

>>39981078
>>39981132
this

>>39981132
Second

>>39981078
>Wait for a traffic stop, get out of the car.
Shit shit shit shit shit

>>39981078
>>39981132
Ayup.
Question is, try to whisper our plan to Liza, pull her out without letting her know (seatbelt might fuck it up?), or get her number normally and text the plan to her. Or, do we have her number already?

>>39981202
Pretty sure you don't have her number yet, but you can always just ask her for it.

>>39981222
That seems like a good idea to me, we really could use it independent of any current plans anyway.

Also, with that I'm off to doze, thanks for running!

HERE COMES THAT NAT 1 ANAL PAIN

>>39981289
Hush, you.

Call Susan, tell her about suspicious driver, text Liza plan, get out when car stops.
>>39981132
>>39981142
>>39981156
>>39981162
>>39981202
>>39981275

Writing!

>>39981372
> *if the car stops

>>39981372
Text Susan, text!

>>39981413
I assume he won't run red lights anon.

>>39981422
Oh? Texting then, I suppose?

I'll go with this unless you guys don't want it.

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>>39981422
> You never know, anon

>>39981462
Texting definitely supported. Last thing we want is to tip off the driver!

>>39981462
Unless we can whisper-call so driver won't her, texting sounds smarter.

>>39981615
>whisper-call
I wouldn't chance that even if we could. We're possibly dealing with the paranormal here, can't be too cautious.

Bah, this abduction is so unprofessional. Using a taxi instead of a van, picking people up from chinatown instead of a playground. Guy hasn't even offered us any candy! He's not getting a favorable yelp review, is all I'm saying.

>>39981799
Right? Could go for some nice candy, to be honest.

>>39981816
We could go for some candy, Liza could go for some brains

>>39981839
If shit goes down we just rely on Liza to devour the brains of our enemies.

This taxi ride is becoming a little too shady for you. You quickly send Susan a text about how the driver is acting suspicious and not taking you to your destination.

"Hey, Liza?" you say out loud.

"Yeah?"

You hand her your personal phone. "I don't think I have your number yet. Mind putting it in for me?"

"Uh, sure," she says, quickly typing it in and handing it back to you.

"Thanks." You smile and immediately begin writing a text message to her.

You type: "driver acting suspicious. open your door and get out at next traffic stop" and hit send.

You hear Liza's phone vibrate a few seconds later. You put a finger over her lips, shushing her as she nods and takes the phone out of her backpack. She reads your message and bites her lip worriedly, looking up at you with wide eyes.

You give her a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

"might be nothing we can pay if misunderstanding" you text her. "driver going too slow anyways probably wants us to pay more".

She takes a shuddering breath and nods, putting the phone back into her backpack. You do the same and look out of the window, waiting for the taxi to reach the traffic light ahead.

The light turns yellow and then red just in time, thanks to the slow car ahead of you. You and Liza both pull at the interior door handles, only to find that they're moving freely without unlocking the door at all. The lock on the handle doesn't do anything as you move it.

Liza uselessly pulls at the handle. "Seriously? Child safety locks?"

Probably something more sinister than that, you think to yourself.

>Grab a shirt, wrap your arm or leg, try to smash the window or kick through it
>Ask Liza to try too
>Attack plastic divider between your and driver
>Yell at driver to stop
>Sit tight, it's just a misunderstanding.
>Use power(?)(Write-in)
>Write-in.

>>39981896
> Just ask the driver what's up
> If shady, then smash through plastic and choke him

>>39981896
>>39981943
this

>>39981896
How inconvenient.
>Grab a shirt, wrap your arm or leg, try to smash the window or kick through it
>Ask Liza to try too

>>39981896
We have powers?!

>>39981943
seconding these votes. Maybe use our fae power to manifest pointy hand armor to do the divide-smashing and hold driver hostage.

Can we do that? What powers do we even have.

>>39981896
>Knock on plastic divider, politely inquire regarding subterfuge.
Might as well get some information out of this.

>>39981971
Fae powers we haven't tried to use yet, yes.

I wouldn't recomend trying them if we don't know what the fuck they do yet. Might end up slicing somebody in half or something.

>>39981971
>We have powers?!
Due to our relatively recent infection, we'll probably get some at some point. Since we do not know if there's any obvious indication for when they do manifest, it's possible we already have one and don't know it.

>>39982044
They're belief-based body morph powers aren't they? Wouldn't that be similar to Venom/Carnage/Blacklight in potential use without the whole symbiote going on.

>>39981896
>>39981943
Yeah, this seems good to me.

>>39982064
>venom
Eh.
>carnage
Eeh.
>Blacklight
Hell yes, lets do this.

>>39981943
Second

Regarding powers, we got them yesterday and have no idea what they are or how to use them. Might not be a good idea.

>>39982064
>>39982084
All the possibilities!

> Ey yo summer, heard you been talkin shit
> Suddenly sword arm
> Steb repeatedly
> CONSUME.jpg

>>39982133
But Summer's a good girl anon, and also our mom.

>>39982133
This kills the fae-mom.
and then us, after she stops being being amused by her adorable daughter's rebellious phase.

>>39982154
Nah she is our fairy godmother.

Ask driver what's going on, shady response = attack divider
>>39981943
>>39981968
>>39982124
>>39982074
>>39981971
>>39981976

Attack window with Liza
>>39981969

Use powers? Yes or no?

>>39982191
not just yet, we still don't know whats going on

>>39982169
Ha

>>39982154
>>39982162
I, for one, don't like her at all. We should burn her when we get the chance, but only when we know she won't come back to Alex Mercer us in the back.

So I guess we're her James Heller, then.

>>39982191
Use powers if things go badly.

Liza trusts us with her secret, give her a secret of ours to hold in return.

>>39982191
>No
Too much of a variable at this point.

>>39982191
Nope, too risky

>>39982225
your the only one who wants to do that

right now we've got no reason to do that

>>39982209
>>39982251
>>39982277
>>39982230


Seems like a No overall so far.

Can you guys roll a 1d100, best of three?

>>39982133
>> Steb repeatedly
>> CONSUME.jpg
>not kiss and mind rape
Step up, senpai. We gotta take inspiration where it's needed.
>>39982162
Anon pls, fae-mum will probably spank us for being such a naughty girl before breaking us into her sex slave if we tried any overt moves. We caught her by surprise last time

Rolled 2 (1d100)

Redeem my failures, dice!

Rolled 100 (1d100)

>>39982294
Time to prove that we cannot have nice things!

Rolled 72 (1d100)

>>39982294

>>39982324
don't you ever dare rolling ever again, your banned from rolling

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>>39982324
NO....

>>39982338
WOO

>>39982338
>>39982324
>>39982342

Wot

Jeez wow okay

>>39982338
...

>>39982324
...

>>39982278
If I were in her position I would have plenty of reason, really.

Without our permission, she sliced open our back (Which she didn't have to do, mind you - she just wanted to leave a mark so we would remember her) and injected some weird fae nanites into our body that had a high chance of killing us. Also, the fae nanites will make us do stupid, crazy fae things, like Summer said, which might include losing control of ourselves and becoming something we're not.

I'd be pretty mad, honestly. But that's just me.

I know /tg/, and 4chan in general, so I suppose >>39982307 would be the most common response here. But above is my personal opinion and I encourage you to have something different.

>>39982338
Bless your soul

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>>39982338

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>>39982338
...welp, looks like I found my spirit animal.

What does everyone think is wrong with Liza?
Do you think she is really a zombie?
Is there anyone who doesn't think this is paranormal?

Liza's growing a little more panicked as she alternates between pulling at the door and glancing at you.

You think for a moment, then knock on the plastic divider. "Hey, what's going on?"

The driver doesn't respond.

"Where are we going?" you ask a little more forcefully.

"Your destination," the driver replies.

You glance at the traffic light, your heart pounding at the ominous response. You need to do something before the light changes.

You shove your hand into your backpack and grab your clothes, wrapping it around your hand, and slam your palm into the plastic partition. Your hand is jolted a little, your bones definitely feeling the impact, but you grit your teeth and hit the divider again.

The plastic sheet explodes into a flurry of shards, the entire divider collapsing as you lunge forward and wrap your hands around the driver's throat. You can distantly hear Liza's surprised scream in the background, but you ignore her as you throttle the bald man, his cap falling off of his head.

"Let us out of this car!" you shout into his ear.

He doesn't seem to be reacting much, despite the fact that you're squeezing his neck with all of your strength. You can feel your fingers digging deeply into his flesh, crushing his windpipe, but he just sits motionless.

For a moment, you think that you might have accidentally killed him as you feel something give way beneath your fingers, the feeling surprisingly nice. As if on cue, the driver suddenly twists his head at an unnatural angle and opens his mouth, allowing you to glimpse a flash of yellowed and rotting teeth as he tries to bite down on your upper arm.

(1/2)

Before he even gets close, you pull your arm back and slam your palm into the side of his head, smashing his skull into the frame of the car and forcing him to him to raise his arms to defend himself. You take advantage of the momentary distraction and reach past him, fumbling around the panel on the driver's side before you manage to disengage the car locks.

You strike his head against the window again, a small, satisfying crack audible as his head bounces, then open your side of the door and kick it open. Liza yelps as you drag her out of the car and into the middle of the road.

A few drivers honk at you, but no one moves to get out of their cars, apparently deciding that two young girls running out of a taxi wasn't their concern.

You run between the stationary cars, thankful for the long red light, with Liza on your heels. When you make it to the sidewalk, you glance back at the taxi as the light turns green. For a moment, you think that the driver ditched the car, but someone behind the taxi honks and the vehicle moves forward, disappearing in the flow of traffic.

You take a few seconds to gather your thoughts and take a few breaths. "Sorry for not warning you about what I was going to do," you pant.

Liza manages to laugh. "It's okay, that was pretty awesome," she says. "What are we going to do now?"

(2/2)

>Get another taxi
>Hide before reinforcements arrive
>Go to train station by foot
>Call Susan for help
>Call Summer for help
>Write-in.

>>39983327
>Go to train station by foot
>Call Susan for help

>>39983327
>>Call Susan for help

>>39983327
>Call Susan for help with the people following you
>Call Summer for help with Liza
>Try to get to the train station by a roundabout way

Rachel a boss

>>39983327
>Go to train station by foot
So, apparently zombies are not only a thing, and they've managed to avoid the Bureau even knowing they exist. Interesting.

>>39983327
Try and reach the station via crowded areas to help try and hide our potential presence and call Susan for help. Perhaps when we're at the station or in an alley in a crowded area.
Whatever we do, we gotta make sure nothing happens to Liza.

>>39983327
>Call Susan for help
>Go to train station by foot

>>39983445
>zombies
How do you know that was a zombie, could have been a windingo or some other shit.

>>39983367
>>39983424
>>39983441
>>39983445
>>39983457
>>39983483

Go to train station by foot, call Susan for help, stay in crowded areas and go in a roundabout way.

Writing!

Roll 1d100, best of three please.

Rolled 84 (1d100)

>>39983584

Rolled 24 (1d100)

>>39983584

Rolled 47 (1d100)

>>39983584

>>39983594
that's better

I... I didn't roll, anons.

I couldn't do that to you guys again.

>>39983785
Thankyou

>>39983691
So if we roll a 1 and a 100 do they just cancel out?

>>39983817
They override each other

>>39983826
So the one rolled second takes precedence?

>>39983850
wut?

it's always been that the crit success overcomes the crit fail unless your QM a shit, then they merely cancel out and you are stuck with whats left

>>39983826
Isn't that the same thing as cancel out?

>>39984087
What >>39983895 said

>>39983485
I don't, it's just an assumption. But considering the guy's relative frailness, how he didn't die even after having his throat crushed, and that one of the two people he abducted appears to be a fledgling zombie, it seems like the easier assumption to make.

I'm mostly interested in how, in our fight for survival, we might have managed (for now) to avoid a plot hook involving the zombie mafia / the zombie progenitors / Liza's zombie godfather.

>>39984180
We don't know that Liza is a zombie, or what type of creature the taxi driver was.

Summer may be able to provide the information that the Bureau couldn't.

"Let's stick to the places with more people," you decide. "They didn't run the red light, and the driver didn't chase us, so maybe they don't want to attract attention."

She nods. "So we're going by foot, then? How far is the train station?"

"A few miles," you say. "We'll go in a roundabout way so we won't have people ambushing us. I'm going to make a phone call and see if I can get some help."

"Are you calling the same person you called in the taxi?" she asks.

You find Susan's number and dial it. "Yeah. Sorry if I'm being vague, but I don't know if I can tell you about them."

"Secret organization stuff?" Liza guesses. "So am I actually a zombie?"

You shrug. "I don't know. Apparently there hasn't been a case like yours before."

"Great," Liza sighs.

Susan picks up. "What do you need?"

"I need backup," you say. "Maybe someone to protect me and another person and get us back to UCal?"

There's the usual pause. "I can send one person at the moment," she says. "Remember the man on the helicopter? Short, long blonde hair?"

"Kind of?"

"His name's Hawthorne and he'll be driving a black unmarked SUV. You'll get a call when he gets there. Where are you at the moment?"

You tell her your location and the train station you're trying to get to.

"...Chinatown? He'll be there in an hour. How's your back?"

Your back? You wince as you suddenly feel the aching wound and wonder if you ripped any stitches while punching the driver. "It's fine," you tell her, gritting your teeth. "Tell him that I'll try to meet up with him at the train station, but if he gets there before I do I'll get him to pick me up."

"Will do," Susan says, her tone approving. "I'll text your his number. Take care."

(1/2)

You hang up and put the phone away. Standing still for a moment, you close your eyes and try to remember what it was like a few minutes ago when your back didn't hurt. Your back is fine, you tell yourself. The pain seems to fade as you actively ignore it.

You open your eyes and blink in the sunlight. "Uh, so, we'll have a ride in about an hour," you tell Liza.

"That's good, but are you okay?" Liza asks you. "Did you hurt yourself back there?"

"Nah," you say. "Just an old injury from a few days ago. I'll be fine."

She doesn't seem fully convinced, but she doesn't press you as the two of you walk down the streets.

You make sure to keep an eye on Liza at all times, in case whoever's moving against you wants to kidnap Liza for some reason, and you also make sure to pay attention to your surroundings. A white sedan passes by a few times, but you and Liza wade deeper into the crowds whenever you point it out to her. You don't go directly to the station either, instead cutting a more circular path and taking random turns.

For a while it seems as though you're going to make it to the train station without an incident, but your hopes are dashed when two thuggish-looking men push through the crowd, heading directly toward you.

(2/2)

>Run away through the crowd
>Keep calm, they won't do anything with people around
>Fight them
>Duck into alley, run
>Duck into alley, fight them
>Write-in.

Also:
>Use powers(?)(Write-in.)

>>39984424
>Run away through the crowd

>>39984424
>Keep calm, they won't do anything with people around
Let them make the first move, the crowd is more protection than us running would be, and straight up fighting them seems risky at best.

>>39984424
>Duck into alley, run

>>39984424
>Use powers(?)(Write-in.)
>Run away through the crowd

Can we try and glamour ourselves to look different as we break line of sight?

>>39984424
>Keep calm, they won't do anything with people around

>>39984424
>Use powers(?)(Write-in.)
The Fae are meant to be big time illusionists and mind clouders right, maybe we can hide in the crowd a bit better

>>39984484
we really don't want to try using our powers in a crowd

>>39984424
>Run away through the crowd
>Use powers something subtle.

>>39984500
>mind clouders
>against possible zamblers
I mean the thought is nice but maybe on the surrounding area instead of just them since it could be ineffective

Okay guys, remember that your power as you know it and as Summer described it is "belief-based body modification". You're not really sure what the whole deal is about mind-affecting powers or whether they even exist is because from what you know, fae aren't supposed to be able to do that.

>>39984514

We don't?

>>39984484
>>39984500
>>39984518

Yes we do.

>>39984552
Make us look different. Go out on a limb and see if we can make Liza look different.

BELIEVE HARDER.

>>39984552
Clap your hands so tinkerbell can fly.

>>39984577
we don't want to do anything overt with our powers, that would draw more attention, but if we can glamour us and Liza, then that would be best

>>39984552
Seeing as they're after Liza making ourselves look different isn't really going to help

>>39984424
>Remain calm, proceed on your way and prepare to scream rape at the first hostility from them.

>>39984610
They could be after us, we fucked that guy up good.

>>39984577
You're not counting the votes that simply didn't mention powers, which I think can safetly be assumed not to want to use them.

>>39984552
can we try glamouring both of us or make other people in the crowd look like us?

Run through crowd
>>39984441
>>39984484
>>39984518

Keep calm, scream rape
>>39984460
>>39984492
>>39984637

Run through alley
>>39984464

Use powers in a subtle fashion to glamour yourself and possibly Liza
>>39984484
>>39984500
>>39984518

Okay then, keeping calm and then if they attack you scream rape and run through the crowd.

The powers thing is weird, I should have included an option to say "don't use powers."

Do you guys want to vote on it? Else I'll go with trying to use powers.

>>39984695
You can try.

>>39984706
yeah let's have a vote
I'm voting no powers unless desperate

>>39984706
I'm fine with using powers.

>>39984706
I'll say try and use them for the given suggestions already.

"we should try them in a safer environment" is nice and all, but we didn't - and now we need an edge, so here we go. Maybe next time anon won't pussy around about learning what we can do before its too late.

So vote - Yes to powers.

>>39984706
I'm fine with trying something subtle

>>39984706
We know almost nothing about our powers, how they work or even if we can use them yet.

I vote no powers until it's do or die.

>>39984706
No not unless we're gonna die.

Yes to Powers.

>>39984706
I'd rather not use powers.

>>39984706
Powers, damnit

Not unless desperate
>>39984718
>>39984749
>>39984761
>>39984797

Yes let's do it
>>39984720
>>39984731
>>39984735
>>39984783
>>39984858

I'm gonna cut it off here cause new people keep responding with the opposite and I'm not sure how long it would go on as a tie if I kept waiting.

So attempting powers it is.

Can each person roll 2d100? One for actions, one for trying powers.

Rolled 32, 49 = 81 (2d100)

>>39984897
Yay for turning into a fae....

Rolled 73, 27 = 100 (2d100)

>>39984897

Rolled 11, 63 = 74 (2d100)

>>39984897

>>39984918
>>39984920
>73, 63

decent and not bad

>>39984913
>>39984918
>>39984920
73, 63? Not terrible.

Rolled 54, 65 = 119 (2d100)

Third time's the charm...!

>>39984913
>>39984918
>>39984920

Okay, writing!

"Heads up," you mutter to Liza. "There's two people coming in from in front of us and behind us."

She takes the hint and tries to look at them from the corner of her eyes. "Those two in those sleeveless shirts? Tattoos on their arms?"

You nod. They're lean but with well-defined muscles, and you're pretty sure they could put up a fight. And who knows if they have guns or knives hidden on them.

"Stay calm," you tell her. "I don't think they'll attack us in the middle of a crowd."

You move closer to her, sticking together as you navigate the throngs of people. The hair on the back of your neck stands up as they also continue walking toward you, but you refuse to give ground and instead proceed as though nothing was wrong.

The two men begin shouting as they approach you, something about you and Liza being a thief and stealing from them. Your heart drops as the people around you immediately start moving away, especially when the two thugs pull out knives and begin waving them around.

"I was going to scream 'rape', but I don't think that's going to work anymore," Liza whimpers.

"Shit, I think they're gang members," you whisper urgently to Liza. "We need to run."

"Holy fuck," she whispers back. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah." You suddenly think of something. "Wait, give me a second," you say.

You ignore her protests and think back to your night with Summer and what the fae told you. Something about your fae abilities being powered by... indulging in your desires, and that your abilities respond to your thoughts and beliefs. She said... the more you indulge yourself, the more changes you can make, and the longer you can hold the changes and believe in them without something breaking them, the more permanent they become.

(1/2)

Now that you're thinking about it, you can feel her "gift" applying pressure onto your brain from a corner of your mind. Time to give it a whirl, then. Something that's subtle, something that'll let you blend into the crowd.

"Let's go!" you shout at Liza, and pull her into a run.

The two men begin yelling again as you dash back into the fleeing crowd. As you run past people you shout something in Chinese about them trying to kidnap you. When you break their line of sight, you keep your head down and try to tap into your abilities to change your appearance. Maybe your skin color and eye shape, something that might make you look unrecognisable. You try to change Liza at the same time too.

It's close. You feel your skin bubbling, shifting a little, your eyes going blurry as they try to change positions on your face, but the changes immediately snap back into place when you lose concentration after bumping into someone. Your attempt to change Liza didn't work at all, her body completely closed off to you. Maybe your ability only works on yourself? You suppose that would match up with what you know.

Your pace slows down to a crawl as you begin to run out of breath. Liza doesn't seem too tired, but she slows down in consideration for you. You lost the men quite a while back, but you had to backtrack a bit of distance.

When you focus, you can feel the pressure from your abilities still on your mind, seemingly undiminished.

You glance at your phone. Hawthorne, the man that Susan sent, should be arriving soon.

(2/2)

>Hide in an alley and wait for pickup, call Hawthorne.
>Keep heading toward train station
>Use powers again. (Write-in?)
>Write-in.

>>39985427
Closed off to us. Shit, we need a higher social link with our pet zombie!

>Keep heading towards the train station
>Call hawthorne en route, explain what just happened with the thugs.

Also... If we take a moment to focus on the powers, can we get some kind of hint of any other capabilities we have?

>>39985427
Backing >>39985468 as I have nothing better.

>>39985427
>Keep heading towards the train station
>Call Hawthorne and tell him about the thugs

>>39985427
>Hide in an alley and wait for pickup, call Hawthorne.

>>39985427
Backin >>39985468 and>>39985522, maybe see if he can pick us up on route or something.

>>39985427
>>39985468
this

>Shit, we need a higher social link with our pet zombie!
or we need to not try to physically change us and just weave an illusion over the both of us

>>39985616
Right, but RL told us we had no idea how that worked and our suggestion for it to happen was ruled as metagaming.

So we work with what we have, since evidently we can't do that right now.

>>39985616
>and just weave an illusion over the both of us
But we can't do that. It's not actually magic, after all.

>>39985650
>and our suggestion for it to happen was ruled as metagaming.
What? We tried physically changing us, it didn't work, we know Summer can use illusions, it stands to reason thats possible for us, and if we can't physically alter our form, just an illusion should be a viable alternative.

Keep going, give him a call
>>39985468
>>39985504
>>39985522
>>39985567
>>39985616

Hide in alley and wait
>>39985541

Writing!

>>39985669
Summer can and did, and it's magic enough to be magic anon, it ain't gotta explain shit.

>>39985696
Summer seemed to do mind altering stuff, that's much different than disguising another person to anyone looking.

>>39985707
but thats the thing, it's not disguising them, it's making everything think they are disguised, or making what they see be the disguise

>>39985675
see
>>39984552

We wanted illusions. We got shot down.

>>39985723
Boo.

Before you do anything, you take a quick moment to look inside yourself again and focus on your powers. Maybe there's something else you can do with your abilities? Something like Summer's whole mind-whammy thing?

Mmmmm... Nope. Not that you could sense at the moment. Maybe you could ask Summer sometime.

"Do you think they're after me?" Liza asks, breaking the silence. "Or are they after you because of your secret organization stuff?"

"I don't know," you say. "I mean, we probably attracted a lot of attention when we bought just the brains of five pig heads and you nearly, uh, lost control inside of that butcher shop."

"Shit, you're right," Liza admits, grimacing. "Sorry for dragging you into this."

"Nah," you say. "This was my idea. And technically, this is my job. I think."

She grins. "Right, and you can't tell me about that because it's super secret," she says teasingly.

"Yup."

"Even though I'm the one who's a zombie."

"Yup."

She rolls her eyes and you stick your tongue out at her.

(1/2)

You're a little more relaxed as you pull out your phone and dial Hawthorne's number from the text Susan sent you. It takes a few rings for him to pick up.

"What's up?" he says. "I'll be there in ten minutes."

"That's earlier than Susan said," you reply, surprised.

"Traffic was good and it sounded like you were in trouble."

"Well, thanks," you tell him. "We almost got caught by these two gangsters, but we outran them and we're currently walking toward the train station. You'll get there before we do, so let me tell you where we are at the moment..."

You keep walking until you can make out the signs of the nearest intersection, then give him your address.

"That's fine," he says. "See you in a few. Oh, and I'll have my weapons ready in case they come back again."

You hang up and put away the phone.

"He'll be here in about ten minutes or less," you tell her. "We'll just keep walking until we see a black SUV. The driver's name is Hawthorne, he's kind of short and has long blonde hair, you'll know him when you see him."

"Nice," Liza says, impressed. "So it's your job to help people like me?"

"Sort of." You manage to catch yourself in time. "Hey, stop trying to fish for details."

"I can't help it," she says. "You're being pretty mysterious, and..." She's quiet for a moment. "...I kind of want to know if you were helping me out as a friend, or if it was really just because this is your job."

(2/2)

>Friendly - "I'm here because I saw that you needed help."
>Strictly professional - "This is my job. I'm not responsible for what happens to you after this."
>Write-in.

>>39986018
A little bit of both.

>>39986018
>>39986029
this but an emphasis on friendly

>>39986018
>Friendly - "I'm here because I saw that you needed help."

>Write-In
"It wasn't my job to follow you into the bathroom, Liza. I'll do my best to make sure everything turns out okay, I promise."

>>39986018
>Friendly - "I'm here because I saw that you needed help."
Seconding >>39986042's right-in.

Heck, we're still kinda sorta on medical leave, so if it was just a work thing, we could have just called it in and left the matter alone.

>>39986018
>Friendly
"My job was to be on the lookout for suspicious things, helping you was all friendship."

Bit o both
>>39986029
>>39986037

We are friends!
>>39986042
>>39986065
>>39986118

Writing!

File: 1419854632498.gif (1003 KB, 250x251)

1003 KB GIF

Did RL die?

>>39986796
Nope sorry, it just took a while. Posting very soon.

>>39986800
Don't worry too much, I'd rather wait for quality then rush to shit.

You step up to her and give her a hug before pulling back. "I'm your friend, Liza."

She rubs at her eyes a little. "Really?"

"Really," you promise her. "My job was just to be on the lookout for suspicious things. Heck, I'm actually kind of on sick leave because I got injured a few days ago. If it was just a work thing, I would have called it in and had someone else help you."

Her cheeks are a little splotchy as she smiles. "Well, now I feel bad for making you bring me all the way out here. Sick moves, by the way, when you punched out that taxi driver. You don't move like you're injured."

"Yeah, well, I try to ignore it," you tell her truthfully.

"So what happens after everything?" she asks you. "Do we just go back to college and pretend nothing happened?"

"Well, I think my, uh, superior would want to have a word with you," you tell her. "And she wants me to make a full report of what happened today too."

She looks worried. "A-are they going to take me away?"

You want to say no, but then you remember Summer. "They might want to ask you some questions," you admit. "But no matter what happens, I'll do my best to make sure everything turns out okay, I promise."

"If you say so," she relents. "I trust you."

(1/3)

You spend the next few minutes walking down the street. Liza checks her supply of brains to make sure that they aren't damaged too badly from all the running while you keep an eye out for more gang members.

It's a huge relief when you see Hawthorne's SUV coming down the road. You wave him down and he pulls up next to the two of you. He motions for you to get in and unlocks the door.

The inside of the SUV is quite large and has two rows of spacious black leather seats. Hawthorne waits for you two to buckle your seatbelts before he pulls out of the parking space and drives off.

"Any of them following you?" he asks.

"I don't think so," you tell him. "Do you know anything about these people?"

"Nope," he says. "There usually isn't much activity around these parts. I'd imagine you probably stirred things up quite a bit, at least in terms of supernatural activity."

He glances at Liza through the rearview mirror. "And who might you be?"

"Uh, I'm Liza," she says. "Nice to meet you."

"I'm Hawthorne. You the zombie girl Rachel was talking about?"

She winces. "Yeah? I thought zombies didn't exist," she says accusingly.

He laughs. "Neither did we. I'm sure Sabrina will be very interested in talking to you."

"Scientist lady," you say upon seeing Liza's questioning experssion.

"She's not going to dissect me or anything, right?" Liza says, laughing nervously.

Hawthorne looks at her appraisingly. "Well, you don't look like a criminal, so probably not."

(2/3)

You frown at him.

"Just kidding," he says, rolling his eyes. "We're just going to ask some questions, maybe do a simple physical examination to see how you changed and why you feel the urge to eat brains. Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah," Liza says quietly. "It'd be good to make sure I don't go crazy and eat people."

"I thought you had it under control?" Hawthorne asks you.

"Yeah," you say. "I think she can eat pig brains to satisfy her cravings, but I'm not sure how long they'll last her."

"And that's why you went all the way out here?" he asks. You nod. "Great idea, by the way. Thinking on the spot is a valuable trait to have in our line of work."

You grin at his praise, feeling a little warmer inside.

The ride passes quickly as the three of you make small talk. Hawthorne is a generally pleasant person and you find it easy to speak with him. Liza warms up to him too, which you hope will put her a little more at ease when you arrive at the headquarters.

After about an hour, you arrive at the bureau. As usual, the outside looks like an office building with a fenced in parking lot that contains a lot of official-looking unmarked cars.

"Susan wants you to give your report right now, if that's alright," Hawthorne says as he parks the car. "And Liza, she wants to ask you a few questions too."

Liza nods, getting out of the car. "You don't have to come, you know," she says. "Finals are starting tomorrow so you're probably busy..."

(3/3)

>Nah, I'm done studying. I can stick around. My finals are tomorrow afternoon anyways.
>Yeah, I got things to do, bank accounts to make. Bye.
>Write-in.

>>39986865
>Nah, I'm done studying. I can stick around. My finals are tomorrow afternoon anyways.

>>39986865
>Nah, I'm done studying. I can stick around. My finals are tomorrow afternoon anyways.

>Write-in
"I told you I'd try and make sure everything went well, right? I'll wander off once we get you settled and I make sure you'll be okay."

>>39986865
>Nah, I'm done studying. I can stick around. My finals are tomorrow afternoon anyways.

>>39986865
What >>39986894 said with the addition of maybe trying to run into Susan and asking her how we'll get paid without a bank account/if she knows a place we can make one

>>39986865
>"Great idea, by the way. Thinking on the spot is a valuable trait to have in our line of work."
Is it bad that my first thought was that he was being a sarcastic smart ass?

>Nah, I'm done studying. I can stick around. My finals are tomorrow afternoon anyways.

>>39986879
>>39986894
>>39986905
>>39986912
>>39986972


Stick around, ask questions, do report. Writing!

File: Berser-Car.png (443 KB, 602x540)

443 KB PNG

>>39986972
Yes. Hawthorne saved us from ghoulthugs in his Minivan of Justice and Deliverance.

>>39986865
>Nah, I'm done studying. I can stick around. My finals are tomorrow afternoon anyways.
Shit, am I late? I'm late aren't I. Fucking sleep.

>>39987288
You are over 200 posts late.
God I hope RL calls the thread soon so I can go to sleep.

>>39987310
Nah I was here at the start!
In fact I'm disappointed in anons for only adding 100-posts and change while I slept. For shame!

"Nah, I'm done studying," you say, jumping out of the car. "I'll stick around for awhile. My finals are tomorrow, anyways."

"Thanks," she says, clearly grateful that you're not leaving her alone with strangers.

Susan's waiting at the front desk when you step inside. You introduce them to each other and ask what she's going to do with Liza.

"Sabrina's waiting for you on the third floor in the lab," Susan tells Liza. "Hawthorne will show you the way."

"Cool," Liza says, trying to remain calm. "Let's go."

When the two of them leave, Susan turns to you. "Come on, we can speak in my office. It's on the second floor."

You let her lead you past the front desk and to a different set of elevators down the white hallways. When you get in, you notice that the elevator has a set of buttons for floors lower than the ground floor.

"What are those for?" you ask her.

"They're mostly for storage," she explains, "Although there is an emergency bunker down there along with a few rudimentary facilities for backup."

(1/2)

The elevator only goes a few feet before it stops on the 2nd floor. The hallway looks the same as the other floors, but most of the doors in this hallway have nameplates on them.

"So when do I get my own office?" you ask her.

"When you're a senior agent and you actually need one," she replies.

She pulls out an identification card and swipes the lock on the door before opening it. A large wooden desk dominates the middle of the room, a laptop and a few monitors on the side of the desk. Filing cabinets take up the back corners of the room, while a few chairs neatly line the walls. You notice a lack of personal decoration on the desk, and you get a vibe of neatness and orderliness from the room as a whole.

Susan closes the door behind you and motions for you to take a seat as she sits down on her side of the desk. You'll admit to yourself that you're a little intimidated, the desk layout making you think of her as a teacher and you as the student.

"So," she says, opening up her laptop. "Give me your report. You don't need to be formal, I'll be the one taking notes. Just tell me what happened today in chronological order."

(2/2)

>Paint Liza in a favorable light
>Describe her as a monster
>Suggest that she's a controllable asset
>Convince Susan you can keep her in control
>Write-in.

>>39987387
>Paint Liza in a favorable light
>Say that in the short term we can keep her in control, but better long term solutions to her issues are needed.

>>39987387
>Suggest that she's a controllable asset
>Convince Susan you can keep her in control

>>39987387
>Paint Liza in a favorable light

>>39987387
>Paint Liza in a favorable light
>Say that in the short term we can keep her in control, but better long term solutions to her issues are needed.
>Also note the cab driver's oddities and the oddities found within chinatown

>>39987387
>>39987441
I'll support this, seems prudent.
Although if pig brains do turn out to work well, can't they be a pretty good solution as long we don't have to go to the butcher's for them all the time? I'm sure the bureau can supply us.

>>39987387
>Paint Liza in a favorable light
She wasn't too bad anyway, worst we got was some close-up ear-whispering. Though that WAS a fierce blush...

>>39987441
>>39987474
>>39987479
>>39987483
>>39987489
>>39987521

Paint her in a favorable light, tell Susan you can keep her in control.

Roll 1d100, best of three please!

>>39987310
I'm so sorry anon, please sleep if you are tired.

Rolled 77 (1d100)

>>39987535

Rolled 40 (1d100)

>>39987535

dice+1d100

Rolled 54 (1d100)

>>39987535

Rolled 39 (1d100)

>>39987587
Ooops, reloading woes.

>>39987549
>>39987554
>>39987590
Thanks

>>39987587
You tried

Writing!

>>39987535
Honestly, we don;t nee to do much to paint Liza in a favourable light. Within 24 hours of whatever caused to to contract zombi-ism she:
-Hasn't attacked anyone
-Immediately started testing for alternate food sources
-Has never needed to be physically restrained
-Only needed to walk a few feet away to reduce the craving for brains
-Can supplant cravings with a readily available food source

Plus with catching her so soon after infection, and having an encounter with a possible-ghoul (unless the walking/driving corpse description matches something else already known) who was clearly stalking us, there's a good chance that whatever caused the infection wasn't an accident and that it can still be traced.

>>39987609
-Showed herself to be an ear-seducing succubus out for innocent maidens everywhere. Recommending death-penalty.

We should totally get a small office at least. This is bullshit!

>>39987638

>Innocent maidens
We are a creature of the fae who may soon experience uncontrollable urges for wanton violence.
If that happens, I hope we can control ourselves as well as Liza has so far controlled herself.

>>39987786
>wanton violence
Anon pls, I hope it's wanton purity

>>39987786
Alright, I suppose some ear-molestation of our own would be a success all in all. Hopefully we don't kill or maim anyone at least.

>>39987821
"L-Liza? You remember that time you wanted to eat my brains and ended up nibbling on my ear? Can I... return the favour?"

>>39987821
>>39987902
no please, I don't want to waifu the zombie, though she is friend material

>>39987902
It's a good thing we don't have any elves in the party. They'd have to wear ear-protectors.

>>39987916
You're right, we should waifu something potentially far worse

>>39987942
What's worse than brain-eating?

>>39987964
Not a lot of things currently, but they could always be worse

>>39987983
That's the kind of boundless pessimism we don't need! You're h/fired!

So any bets on what kinda supernatural creature our roommate is/will be?
I'm thinking Vampire NEET.

>>39988175
>spoilers
Woulda went berserk because of our back, when we got back so can't be vampire. I'm thinking human or something close to human that it could easily be overlooked. Maybe she's human but there's something extra about her.

>>39988216
Ah, but
>/will be
There's still a chance!

>>39988261
Fair enough I suppose, but either way vampire would present more immediate problems compared to Liza

>>39988261
No thanks.

>>39988279
>no vampire buddy
Are you sure you're in the right quest? This isn't mundane boring adventures quest.

You decide to start from the beginning, from when you noticed that Liza was looking extremely uncomfortable while trying and failing to eat her food. As you go through the list of events that happened, you make sure to emphasize that Liza didn't attack anyone, was receptive to your suggestions of alternate food sources, never needed you to restrain her, and always had enough self control to move away from people whenever she felt like she was about to attack them. And all of this was when she was starving to the point where she was growing extremely lethargic and her body temperature was dropping.

You manage to convince Susan that you'll be able to keep an eye on Liza and make sure she stays in control. You also requisition a supply of pig brains packed in ice and shipped in an unidentifiable container to be sent to you on a schedule you'll probably have to determine sometime based upon how long Liza can go without brains. She agrees, noting that it's a very sensible suggestion.

However, you also say that constantly keeping a supply of pig brains on hand doesn't seem like a good long-term solution. After all, if something happens to the supply and you can't get any more at the time, regrettable accidents could occur. Once again, Susan takes note of your diligence.

(1/5)

"To tell you the truth, you're being a lot more careful and cautious than what I'd expect from a college freshman," she says bluntly. "If you keep this up, I expect that you'll go far in life, whether you decide to continue working with us or not."

You pause in your recollection. "You're not angry that I didn't call for backup earlier?"

"Well, I am a little concerned at how much danger you seem to have gotten into, but no, agents need to be able to handle themselves in the field and make their own decisions." She sighs. "Unfortunately, we're lacking on manpower and funding at the moment, so if you had called at a less fortunate time we might not have even had backup to send to you."

You nod, more than a little relieved. You were afraid that not calling her immediately about Liza might have made her think you were hiding something, but she seems to have taken it as a show of responsibility and reliability. In fact, she seems to trust you a lot more now.

You continue with your recall of events, getting to the point where the driver acted extremely suspiciously and forced you to take action.

"The driver was acting really strange," you tell her. "He didn't seem like he was able to say anything besides single syllable responses, although maybe he just didn't want to tell us anything. He also wouldn't stop the car or let us out, and there were some sort of child safety locks on the doors that wouldn't let us open them."

"So you were being kidnapped?" Susan asks. "What did you do?"

(2/5)

"I waited for a red light and, uh, wrapped my hand in clothes and kind of smashed the plastic barrier between us—" Susan whistles appreciatively "—and started choking him."

Susan laughs at that. "And then he let you out?"

"Nope," you say, shaking your head. "He didn't even flinch while I was choking him. I think he only responded after I, uh, broke something in his throat, maybe his windpipe or something, and then he tried to attack me. He twisted his head all the way to here—" you demonstrate "—and nearly bit my bicep from his sitting position. His teeth were also all yellow and rotted, and his head was completely bald."

"Hmm," Susan murmurs. "Can you recall anything else about him?"

You rack your memories, trying to envision the scene playing out. "I... I guess he smelled really bad? Not just his mouth, but his body overall. I'm not too sure, it was kind of hectic back there."

"Did Liza, at any point, look like she was decaying?" Susan asks.

"Nope," you say, shaking your head. "She didn't smell bad either."

"Interesting," Susan remarks. "So what happened next?"

(3/4)

"I think I cracked his skull against the inside of the car," you say, "and then I reached past him and unlocked our passenger doors while he was distracted."

"Good job thinking of a plan in that situation," Susan says. "How did the driver react after that?"

"We left the car and ran to the sidewalk, but when the light turned green he just drove away like nothing happened."

Your questioning continues like this for a little while longer, up to the point where you arrived back at headquarters with Hawthorne and Liza. It didn't feel like a questioning, really. It was more like a nice chat, with Susan making the appropriate reactions as you got to certain points in your tale.

"Well it's time to wrap it up, I think," Susan says, closing her laptop.

You nod and stand up, stretching out your arms and legs. "Can we go check up on Liza? I kind of want to make sure that Sabrina didn't do anything to her."

Susan nods and is about to reply, but something catches her attention on the large monitors next to her on the desk. "You go ahead," she says, pulling out a keyboard and beginning to type. "Something just came up. The lab is on the third floor, just follow the signs that point to the testing room if you get lost."

She looks busy, so you agree and leave the room, gently closing the door behind you.

It looks like you're free to explore wherever you want. You remember from the elevator trip that the building is five stories tall and has four floors beneath the ground floor.

(4/4)

>Follow Susan's instructions, go to Liza ASAP
>Explore by yourself (Write-in)
>Write-in.

>>39988341
>Follow Susan's instructions, go to Liza ASAP

>>39988341
>Explore by yourself (Write-in)
Let's see what's on one of the other floors! How about the fourth?

>>39988341
>>Follow Susan's instructions, go to Liza ASAP
Everything is card-keyed, and it would be really embarrassing to get stuck in an area that can be entered through one-way doors but not left while wandering around (because those ALWAYS end up in card-keyed buildings).

>>39988341
>follow instructions to the lab.

Time for more friendship, also did we just crush a dead mans throat using our bare hands? Did the nanomachines make us stronger?

>>39988341
>Follow Susan's instructions, go to Liza ASAP

>>39988341
>Follow Susan's instructions, go to Liza ASAP
Must...resist...exploration-urge...

>>39988367
Something something NANOMACHINES

>>39988341
First, gotta check in with our girl

>>39988341
>Follow Susan's instructions, go to Liza ASAP

>>39988376
>>39988367

Well, from my research it seems to take 33 pounds of force to crush a trachea. The average grip strength for females around 20 years of age is about 70 pounds, so I assume that under intense stress and with enough adrenaline you'd be able to crush an unresisting person's throat.

>>39988431
A good point. But I prefer the NANOMACHINES explanation anyway!

>>39988357
Where's your sense of adventure?!

>>39988439
I did not confirm nor deny the assistance of nanomachines. Believe in your strength! Or at least that you have muscles.

>>39988451
Roger!
Frankly, punching through the glass, now THAT'S more impressive.

To Liza!
>>39988353
>>39988357
>>39988367
>>39988371
>>39988376
>>39988407
>>39988413

Explore?
>>39988356

Writing!

>>39988497
Sabrina better not have done anything bad to our new friend!

Despite your urge to explore, you decide that you should probably check in on Liza before Sabrina actually does dissect her or something of that sort.

As you retrace your route back to the elevator, you notice that there aren't that many people walking around. It seems as though this place is really understaffed. You'll probably have to be more careful in the future so you aren't trapped somewhere without reinforcements. At the very least, you'll need to make sure to keep up your reliable image in Susan's eyes and make sure that you aren't a burden to the bureau.

You ignore the other enticing buttons on the elevator panel and hit the button for the third floor. It's a short elevator ride once again, making you wonder if there any stairs you could just take instead.

There's a very distinct sign in front of you as the elevator doors slide open. An arrow points to the right, labeled as the "Testing Room", and another arrow points to the left, labeled as the "Laboratory".

You turn to the right and head down the hallway, pushing a button that opens a set of glass doors that seem to seal the hallway off. After you walk inside, another set of glass doors is in front of you, only this time with a buzzer and a camera lens pointing up from the keypad.

(1/2)

You press the buzzer. A few seconds later, the microphone seems to click on. There seems to be a bit of indistinct noise and shouting in the background, and then the door buzzes and you hear the lock disengage. You quickly push it open, wondering what all of the commotion is about.

You walk down a short hallway that leads into a large room that's filled with all sorts of equipment, including a treadmill and a set of weights. Before you can react, Liza sees you and runs behind you, holding you forward as though you were a human shield.

Sabrina comes to a stop in front of you, her normally straight black hair now wildly framing her dark blue eyes. A pair of thick-framed glasses she wasn't wearing the last time you saw her now rests on her nose, slightly askew. She's holding a huge needle in one hand that's attached by tubing to an empty plastic bag, her lab coat and latex gloves completing her mad scientist look.

"Step aside, Rachel," she says to you. "I just need a sample of her blood."

"Save me," Liza pleads with you. "I'm not getting anywhere near that big-ass needle."

"I just need a pint of blood," she says impatiently. "A small needle would take forever and damage the red blood cells."

You turn around and glance at Liza, who vehemently shakes her head.

(2/2)

>Step aside for science
>I'm gonna tell on you to Susan
>Compromise with a bit of blood and a tiny needle
>Write-in.

>>39988927
>Compromise with a bit of blood and a tiny needle
We can hold her hand and chat with her to distract! Distractions work well when needles are involved.

>>39988927
>Compromise with a bit of blood and a tiny needle
she can get a blood donor setup later to take some blood without using a massive gauge needle

>>39988927
>"Are you scared of needles then? C'mon Sabrina, surely there's some other way to get what you need."

>>39988927
>>Compromise with a bit of blood and a tiny needle
A PINT?!
>>39988939
>>39988942
I'm sure we can find some way to... distract Liza.

>>39988927
>Compromise with a bit of blood and a tiny needle
Distract yes, but...
>>39988961
I'm not sure I like the lewdness of your tone, anon!

A pint does seem excessive. Surely she doesn't need THAT much?

>>39989020
Maybe she's a vampire and is planning to drink most of it!
Her secret, exposed...

Smaller needle, please.
>>39988939
>>39988942
>>39988961
>>39989006
>>39988953

Writing!

>>39989093
Have mercy on the poor zombie/ghoul/whatever!

We can't even promise her ice-cream for being a good girl since she doesn't like anything but brains. This sucks.

>>39989275
She can (and needs to) eat normal food after satisfying her craving. So ice cream is okay.

>>39989291
so a little brain appetizer and then normal food would be a good healthy meal?

>>39989291
Oh, that's nice! Her peculiar tastes can blend in better this way.
So, let's promise ice-cream then.

>>39989300
Err yes, I suppose you could put it that way.

>>39989020
>A pint does seem excessive
The only reason cutting her open and seeing what makes her tick isn't morally mandated is because of a lack of test subjects.

"A pint seems excessive," you quickly say. "Isn't that how much they draw for blood donations?"

"I'm not just doing blood tests here," Sabrina says. "I want to keep some samples in storage in case we need it later."

"How about we just use a smaller needle and take less blood for now?" you suggest. "Would that be okay with you, Liza?"

"I'd rather not have my blood drained at all," Liza says, grimacing. "But if it gets you to stop trying to stab me with that huge needle then I'll do it."

Sabrina doesn't look convinced.

"Come on," you say, trying to cajole her. "It's this or nothing at all."

"Fine," she says, setting the needle down on a nearby table and picking up another apparatus instead. "We'll use this instead. I'll just take a few milliliters, happy?"

Liza eyes the much smaller needle. "Definitely."

You grab a stool and set yourself down next to Liza as she sits and lets Sabrina tie a tourniquet on her upper arm.

"So have you guys done anything besides chasing each other around the room?" you ask.

Liza reluctantly allows Sabrina to straighten her arm. "I lifted some weights and ran on the treadmill."

"Did you get any super cool powers?"

"She's able to bench press around a hundred and eighty pounds," Sabrina says, making circular motions with an alcohol pad on the inside of Liza's elbow. "Unusual for her size and weight, but nothing you'd probably consider supernatural. Her main ability seems to be her stamina."

"I ran the rest of the time before you came and I wasn't even breathing hard," Liza says, grinning.

Her grin quickly turns into a grimace as Sabrina slips the needle underneath her skin.

You rub her back and make soothing noises. "So you can run forever? That is pretty cool. Hey, let's get some ice cream after this," you tell her. "You up for eating normal food?"

(1/2)

Her stomach growls in response. "Yeah, uh, that actually sounds really good," she says. "I'm pretty hungry right now."

"Huh," Sabrina remarks. "Would you look at this."

You lean closer as she points to the tube that's being filled with a slow trickle of dark red fluid.

"Her blood is a lot thicker than normal blood," Sabrina says. "This is going to take longer than usual."

Liza squints at the viscous fluid coming out of the needle. "Does this mean I can't go to normal doctors anymore?"

"I'm afraid so," Sabrina says. "We'd have to do a lot of cover-up work if any 'normal' doctor saw you and your body, so try to come here if you get injured, okay?"

Liza nods. "Oh, and Sabrina says that I've got strengthened jaw muscles and teeth, probably something to do with my fondness of brains. I also look way more buff." She demonstrates by flexing her left arm.

"And you can smell things better too, right?" you ask her, remembering your time in the butcher shop.

"Yeah, but I think it's kinda limited to people smells," Liza says, looking faintly digusted. "Like body odor, blood, flesh, and brains."

You immediately pinch your shirt and take a whiff of yourself, feeling self-conscious. "Body odor? Do I smell bad?"

"Uh..." Liza hesitates. "I wouldn't say you smell bad. More like... delicious?" She blinks. "I mean, uh, everyone smells good in their own way, and you smell distinctly... delicious."

The room is silent for a moment.

"Oh god," she whimpers, burying her face in her free arm.

You can see a faint tinge of pink in the part of her cheek that she's failing to cover. You glance at Sabrina and notice that she looks like she's about to explode with laughter, her cheeks puffed even as she keeps the needle steady.

(2/2)

>...Let's just ignore that and move on.
>Delicious, eh?
>Write-in.

Also:

>It's getting late, go back to college afterwards, stop by ice cream shop
>Explore building
>Talk to Susan about anything? (Write-in.)
>Write-in.

>>39989748
She's like a mini-Hulk. Unimpressive Hulk? Don't Quit Your Day Job Hulk?
>>39989762
"Uh..." Liza hesitates. "I wouldn't say you smell bad. More like... delicious?" She blinks. "I mean, uh, everyone smells good in their own way, and you smell distinctly... delicious."
pls
>Delicious, eh? Not sure if that's relieving or worrying...
>Explore building

>>39989762
>Delicious, eh?
>It's getting late, go back to college afterwards, stop by ice cream shop
Poor girl.

>>39989782
The Credible Hulk.

>>39989762
>Why, thank you~
>Explore building

>>39989782
> Slightly Less Impressive Semi Cannibalistic She Hulk
We gotta start making these jokes, QM. I smell the perfect prey for teasing of all kinds.

>>39989762
>Delicious, eh?
"Want another bite?"
Gotta tease the doctor.
>It's getting late, go back to college afterwards, stop by ice cream shop
We do still have finals tomorrow.

>>39989845
I suppose that's the obvious one anon, hah. We gotta float that past her and see how she likes it.

>>39989851
>Skipped Arm Day Hulk?

>>39989886
Anons please, first the embarrassing confession that we smell amazing, and now she must suffer being teased with Hulk-comparisons? Have you no mercy?

>>39989931
Mercy is for the weak, anon. Only the strong will survive. Much like The Not Green Hulk we have here.

I can see it already: A fae and a ghoul, working together to fight crime. Sometimes helped by that one fortune teller we talked to once, and sometimes our fairy god mother. Hunting down Mr Mulchbreath and all other evils.

>>39989762
>Delicious, eh?
>Check up on our fairy godmother then go back to college afterwards, stop by ice cream shop