>>43094494

She smiles while still looking up. "All the other kids and I in the Order would always try to make it over the top of our swing set. Day after day, week after week, we would never succeed no matter what we did, but we really enjoyed trying." She looks forward again. "Then we forgot about the whole entire thing one day, or... they did."

You never knew that such an idyllic childhood was possible anymore.

"But we never really considered what would happen when one of us finally did make it over the top." She continues. "The view must be amazing for that precious moment, but after that you're right back where you started, only this time you have less chain to help you over again."

Carmina swings fiercely, dress ruffling around her legs, shaking the entire carcass with her spurt of vigor, but she stops as quickly as she started, and drifts apathetically in the air. "Carmina is dead." She pauses before elaborating. "She died months ago and only a husk of her memories remains, and there's less and less of that every passing battle. Her enthusiasm was the most recent loss."

The price to pay for her apparent immortality, you doubt she fully understood what she was getting into when she first accepted The Broodmother's gift, but soon she won’t know how to object even if she wanted to.

[2/3]

>>43094545

Her feet kick at the sickly dust hanging on the ground. "Her faith and ambition are just blurred memories, the same with her goals.” She places a hand on her chest. “My goals are one with countless others, yet here I am, swinging."

"You're caught in between wanting to fight, but not wanting to lose what little of Carmina remains, and not wanting to fight, but betraying your loyalties." You summarize.

A mindless enemy is usually much easier to defeat anyway.

"Either way...fight and die, run and live, I want neither." She gives one last feeble kick to the dust. “Where’s the good fortune that she would always go on about?”

“Gone with her, perhaps.” You’re about to pull yourself to your feet, but the state of your left hand sends to sliding back down.”

Carmina notices your pain. “I can fix that hand.” She rises to her feet immediately.

You throw her a skeptical look.

She shakes her head. “I felt pain from every single one of us that you’ve killed, every single one. But regardless of how we feel, she never hated you, and whatever tiny part of her still lingers wants to help you.” She holds out her small hand.

>Accept her offer.

>Decline her offer.

>Write in.

>>43094580
>>Accept her offer.
>seal our ability to get infected before we accept.

>>43094580
>Counteroffer
Ask what kind of edge she wants in the coming fight. Anything we could get away with but will not ultimately harm us personally.

>>43094580
>>43094688
Seconding

>>43094580
>>43094688
Seconding. Hello auri

Hello and welcome to another run, everyone!

>>43094688
>>43094754
>>43094760
Accepting and:
>>43094731
Offering something of our own.

>Writing~

>>43094794

You offer your own hand but remain wary of her attempting to infect you in the same way the soldiers were, but it’s certainly not like you can’t do any harm to her from this position.

“It might sting a little.” She smiles slightly. Her normal delicate hand twists into thin fibers of sinew and slide effortlessly under the skin of your hand.

You feel the dull ache and heat of your bones being mended and torn muscles regenerated, but feel no attempts to corrupt your body in any sort of way. “You know, I’m perfectly fine offering a sort of advantage any future battles, so long, of course, that it doesn’t harm me personally.”

She warm and knowing smile forms on her face. “It’s not very nice to harm those who depend on you, or who trust you, Sophia.” She lightly taps your wrist as punishment.

You look over Carmina’s face and realize the one speaking right now is the same person that you met months ago, or perhaps better put, the voice of her memory

Her eyes redden and her mouth contorts slightly. “I’m leaving soon, so you’re going to have to keep that in mind. Remember it.” Tears fall on her hand and yours.

She looks away towards the distant dilapidated buildings. “I trusted them all.” She lets out a messy and choked laugh. “I trusted and loved them all so much…and they all lied to me.” She sobs tightly clenching your still mending hand. “But, Sophia.” She turns back to you. “You’re still my friend, right? Right!?” Her voice goes high.

Her wide eyes beg you for an answer.

You smile calmly. “I am.” You lie.

Carmina lets out a relieved breath and her hand pulls away from yours. “Then I’m really, truly lucky to die in the company of my friend.” Her brilliant smile lingers for a moment and then fades.

[1/2]

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206 KB JPG

>>43095471

“While I thank you for finally freeing us from that girl, I’m afraid your offer just isn’t good enough for us.” Carmina shakes her head. “No, no, no.” She looks deep into your eyes, tears already drying up. “You’re the one we want to harm the most.”

A sharp spur of bone shoots out from Carmina’s abdomen. You react immediately by teleporting away, but it managed to pierce shallowly into your upper arm before that.

She burrows into the ground and only a few moments later does a massive insect-like creature explode from the ground. It’s exoskeleton pulsing like the flesh that makes up this realm and it stretches for dozens of feet in front of you.

There’s no such thing as walk to clear your mind in this realm, it seems.

You grab your right arm, which begins to sting more and more with every passing second and let out a bolt of flame directly into its face.

It lets out a shrill shriek of pain just as you collapse to your knees from the sudden shockwave of agony from your arm. You watch as the large hole your flame carved is slowly filled in by flesh.

It’s going to take more than one shot to finish the thing off, but you’re not sure if want to endure that amount of pain in the exhausted state you’re in.

>Continue hurling bolts of flame at it.

>Seal it the best you can and fall back to the army.

>Write in.

>>43095492
>Caustic/Sticky flame, whichever chases on its own

>>43095492
Take wing and leave, Seal the corruption in our arm.

>>43095492
>>43095597
Seconding falling back.

>>43095492
>>43095597
Seconding

>>43095597
>>43095637
>>43095654

Taking off and sealing our arm.

>Writing~

While Justina is alive we should use the izu thing to create a regenerating flesh golem with all of our blood tablets in it. A bodyguard.

Also when we kill Justina we need to be extra sure. She is a necromancer after all.

>>43095880
Good point, she would for sure run away in one of her dolls bodies if were not careful.

>>43095661

You’re not going to put yourself through any unneeded pain when you have a perfectly capable army a short distance away from you.

You attempt to take off, but your right wing locks up in pain, sending you crashing into the ground. Whatever was injected into you has begun to spread, so you make the decision to seal the foreign substance the best you can. Unfortunately, this also has the effect of making both your arm and wing more useless than they already are.

The colossal insect takes to the underground once again with startling speed, and almost immediately you feel the dirt underneath your feet quake with activity.

You force the dirt to lock into place just moments before it smashes into the obstruction, and then teleport away as far as you can manage.

You land shakily, knees almost buckling underneath you, but you quickly recover. However, you’re given little time to catch your breath, as you already feel the creature surging toward where you landed on the ground. The insect bursts from the ground near you, learning from its last mistake. Cold dirt rains down upon you as the creature encircles you very closely with its extensive body.

With a hasty seal, you lock as much of it as you can in place, causing the remaining unsealed portions to write and wriggle ferociously. You pull out your dagger and invoke your flame through your left hand, an unfamiliar sensation, but you’re more than capable of controlling the new facets that arise.

[1/2]

>>43096229

Pungent juices shoot out as you awkwardly carve your way through the creature’s carapace, they either boil on contact with your flame or stick heavily to your body. Once light appears again, you sprint as hard your body will allow, only to hear the thundering beat of many legs chasing after you.

You turn to see two portions of creature running toward you independently, the headless portion clumsily stomping on the ground without any grace.

Fascinating, but now you’re surrounded with only insect body in sight.

Another long sprint will put you in sight of the army, but you’re going to need quite a bit of energy to manage that, so you consider your options. Two large seals on both parts of the body and another round with your flame or… You look up and consider the logistics of teleporting directly into the air, mainly the issues of landing with only one good wing...Impossible, two would definitely be needed for that plan.

>Seal the creature, carve through with your flames, and sprint to the army.

>Teleport up, unseal your wing, and glide through the pain.

>Write in.

>>43096245

>Seal the creature, carve through with your flames, and sprint to the army.

We're dead either way.

>>43096245
>Teleport up, unseal your wing, and glide through the pain.

Rolled 2 (1d2)

>>43096271
Seal and carve=1
>>43096301
Teleport and glide=2

>Writing the winner.

>>43096393
So death via infection and/or mercy kill instead of death via getting mauled.

>>43096427
No one likes a Debbie Downer, anon.

>>43096646
We're infected by something that turns people in seconds, and we're heavily using an infected limb, which will make it worse. We're already dead.

>>43096706
We aren't people though.

>>43096759
Neither technically are impel soldiers, and they fell in seconds.

>>43096867
We also aren't impel soldiers.

>>43096954
Your point? There were many different races and all of them fell in seconds. We're strong but it spread from our arm to our wing in seconds. By the time we reach the army which is rather far away we're going to be fully infected, and thus either dead, or killed of by the Usurper or Izu.

>>43096989
I'm pretty sure it's poison, not those burrowing flesh monsters.

>>43097024
Pretty sure it's the necromantic infection Carmilla hit us with when she possessed our scouts bodies.

>>43096393

The fact that the creature’s severed parts can act autonomously of its head would mean that carving through yet again would give you three bodies to deal with, so that only leaves up…

You find yourself high above the dusty landscape and immediately free your wing from its seal. It rigidly wants to cling to your body, but you force it straight with sheer willpower. With teeth clenched you sail far through the air above the creature, the masses of the army growing larger as you progress. You let out a small but bright burst of flame in front of you, signaling them the best you can, before clumsily sliding across the ground.

In the distance you see the portion of the creature with the head still attached advancing toward you with less vigor, while the severed part crawls far behind at a sluggish pace.

The hurried footsteps of many soldiers can be felt through the ground, then heard rushing toward you, before they are finally all around you, creating a wall between you and the creature that was once Carmina.

Izu suddenly appears near you and immediately begins to channel his flames into your wound.

“Have a nice nap?” You laugh lightly as you watch him do his work.

“Not really.” His eyes still locked on your arm. “Worried thoughts kept bugging me while I was asleep.” A knowing grin forms on his face.

“Well hurry up with that, and then we’ll both get some sleep that isn’t on the ground.” You close your eyes and let the soothing flames fill your body, but your eyes shoot open upon sensing a certain person approach.

[1/2]

>>43097121

“Doesn’t seem that you got the chance to clear your mind, Sophia.” The Empress crosses her arms disapprovingly and then leans over to observe your wound. “A pain agent…Likely to paralyze enemies.” She straightens herself out. “You’re ordered to rest for the day. I’ll take care of any threats that may come up in the meantime.” She walks away assuming that you might object if she stayed around.

You’re not complaining.

Izu finishes, helps you back to your feet, and leads you off. “So, what’s a swing like?”

~

You awake in a haze, mouth dry, and limbs slightly sore. Without the slightest clue about how long you’ve been asleep, you rise quietly, as to not disturb the sleeping mound next to you, and dress yourself.

You finally slip your cloak over your armor and hear its voice call out to you.

“The final steps. Chose how you’ll use your knowledge so that you might reach them.”

Immediately you shake Izu awake, and receive an annoyed groan in response. He rises with his hair mashed to one side. “I’m ready.” He yawns.

With your future filled with plans involving The Broodmother, Aya, and then eventually The Empress, you carefully make your choice of how you'll grow your knowledge.

>Write in.

>>43097245
Nah son.
>>43097170
Pyromancy.

>>43097170
How to mind control without that entity in or head, or failing that making it completely subservient to us with no flash backs.

All completely different choices. I will wait a few minutes and hopefully a tie-breaker will show up.

>>43097369
I'm delving, I'll back pyromancy I guess. Will delete other.

>>43097270
>>43097387
Pyromancy it is. Anyone feel free to post details of stuff you want to include. If it comes early enough, and isn't terribly outlandish it might just be added, as this is a very high level upgrade.

>Writing~

>>43097442
Flames come with little to no effort, flames that seek a target and will course correct to only hit that target. Flames that negate or eat other magic. Immunity to fire.

>>43097442
Liquid/sticky flame?

>>43097442
Purifying flames like Izu has
Or corrupting flames that are super effective against the Broodmothers massive amounts of flesh

>>43097442

Your flames have always served you well and if you want to take claim of Aya’s army then you will need to leave little doubt about who the strongest Pyromancer is.

With your thoughts steered toward those goals, you find yourself far removed from your tent and now completely alone in a large void with only a single small flame to keep you company. The flame feels familiar, but you can’t quite place where you may have seen it before.

Its warmth isn’t comforting and soothing like Izu’s, nor is it caustic and wild like your own, it’s simply a flame without any influence of a user. You step closer and try to manipulate its form to your own will.

Without any warning, a massive bellow of an unseen creature wails in protest at your attempts, the flame perturbs from sheer irritation.

“Are you the original?” You ask, slowly moving your own hand toward the flame, trying to take it as your own.

It furiously screams in protest at your great blasphemy.

“Then…” You grin wildly. “I’ll leave you some of it.”

You immediately absorb a large portion of the being’s flame in your body and feel every detail as it merges with your own. You hadn’t noticed, but the being somehow managed to flee taking its remaining flame with it, but you’ve gotten more than you wanted.

You invoke your flame.

[1/2]

>>43098037

Gruesome gray flames pour from your hand with the greatest of ease, leaving behind a hideous tar that spreads far, seeps into, and corrupts everything that it touches. The heat bites with unprecedented fury and voraciously seeks to feed. All of its raw power is completely under your control.

Your consciousness fades back into your tent, but to your surprise, Izu isn’t channeling his healing flames into you.

“That’s good.” He breathes a sigh of relief. “But I really liked that you flames were blue.”

You invoke a very small flame in the palm of your hand and watch as Izu recoils from the sudden heat. “Those kinds of details don’t matter, even if I could control them” You snuff the flame.

“Really~?” He invokes a small cloud of his flame and you watch as it turns from its normal pale yellow color into a soft green, then to a light purple.

“What are the differences?” You ask, curiosity not hidden from your voice.

“Just the color.” He grins in response. “I’ve been practicing while hanging out with the soldiers.”

“Practice something more useful.” You scold and push him onto the bed.

He sits up and wags his finger at you. “Surely you of all people can see the hidden use embedded within.”

You can hear him snickering in your mind, but then he stops suddenly as if sensing something.

He quietly starts speaking. “That thing that took the place of that girl…Maybe I could talk to it... to see what it’s like. That way you don’t have any surprises if you ever need to use it.”

You quite fine without hearing its distorted voice, but he does bring up a good point. You can force it to be obedient, but you’re still not sure what it might be capable of. However, you wonder if letting Izu speak to it is the best choice.

>Speak to it yourself.

>Allow Izu to take the lead.

>Keep the being silenced for now.

>Write in.

>>43098066
We both speak to it, as equals.

>>43098066
>>43098082
Seconding.

>>43098082
>>43098105
Three-way chat.

>Writing~

>>43098167

“I’m going to speak with it myself, but I’m not going to stop you from voicing in, if you wish.” You state, already searching for where the being might be hiding.

Izu nods in agreement and waits patiently.

When you finally do find it, you can immediately tell that it wishes to have nothing to do with you, but you force it to speak.

“Unnatural. Disgusting. Sealed to such limited reach.”

“What can you do to my enemies?” You immediately ask, ignoring its words.

“Disgusting. To be ordered by a single-“

“You’re a stain.” You interject immediately. “One that can erased easily, so tell me how you’re any more useful than that crybaby you replaced.” You order it firmly.

“Thoughts from the past…Learned, remembered. Gone.”

You can see potential uses of making someone forget what they know, so that makes it a bit more useful than that little girl.

“The girl that was there before you, where did you send her?” Izu asks.

“Fragments can’t exist with each other. Shattered. Slip through, gone.”

Izu quietly tries to grasp his meaning for a moment.

“So there isn’t any way to bring her back?” Izu follows up.

“Clear glass in endless ocean. Imposs-”

“That doesn’t mean it’s not possible.” Izu responds defiantly. “What do you know anyway? You’re not even the strongest one around, not by a long shot!”

This time it’s the being who silently broods.

“Answers provided.”

That’s enough for now. You bind the creature back into complete silence.

“I don’t like this one either.” Izu sighs heavily as he throws himself back onto the bed.

You don’t mention the fact that he certainly had a lot of questions to ask about a person another person he said he didn’t like.

Izu crosses his arms having received that thought regardless.

“You should get dressed.” You choose to change the subject. “We’re going to be marching toward the core soon, and there's no one left that's going to make it easy for us..."

~

>>43098713
Okay, that's where I'm going to end it for tonight. The final and true death of Carmina...

As always if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to post them in the thread, and I will do my best to respond to them.

If not, then I wish you a good day/night, and hope to see you again next time!

>(Twitter)
https://twitter.com/QM_Auri

>>43098745
thx 4 runin budi gud thred

rip in peace carmina
2 gud 4 this world


Also I thought this fragment absorbed the other one and gained it's abilities. Was I wrong, and this one just replaced it?

>>43098745
I assume her healing us was the last act she had of her own before she got erased. Izu understand the irony of his line of questioning? Which suggestions did you like most for fire? Will we be able to change our fire's color soon?

>>43098745
Did she ever make it over the top of the swing?

>>43098767
You're very welcome! It did gain its abilities as well, sorry if that wasn't clear.

>>43098770
Her healing you is what severed the final ties she had. Not at the moment. I can't say that I had a particular favorite, but I did want to point out that some of the suggestions were of things we already had. I'm going with no on this final question, mainly because Sophia wouldn't see it as a priority at this point.

>>43098774
Not once.

>>43098837
>Not once.
I don't like these things im feeling, thanks auri.

>>43098837
I would imagine clear fire or chameleonic fire would be harder to see, and thus harder to dodge.

If it gained it's abilities wouldn't it be possible for the absorbed entity to be reborn with aid? Assuming aid was given.


How easily can we shoot fire now?

>>43098857
You're very welcome!

>>43098866
That's an interesting point about it being harder to dodge, but there's certainly other aspects of flame that an experienced fighter will take advantage of.

The abilities were absorbed, but the being itself was completely replaced. At this point there would be nothing that the current being in your mind could do to bring her back, even if he wanted to.

Very easily would be putting it lightly, but your most advanced abilities will still take decent chunks of energy.

>>43098930
We know how the corruptive effect of our fire affects beings?

>>43098953
The effect is that the extremely flammable tar will fill into tissue, force the tissue to create more of the tar until eventually bursting and thus propagating the process.

>>43098994
ouch. Is this at will or involuntary?

>>43098994
I like how we somehow became Izu's complete opposite.

>>43099027
That was in one of the write ins.

>>43099024
Once something is infected, then there's no bringing it back. But you can cease the flow from there.

>>43099027
To be fair, from the very beginning, of Izu's life, Sophia and Izu weren't similar at all.

>>43099061
Yes
It was my write in actually
That's why I like it

>>43099075
I meant due our flames automatically have that aspect, or can we shoot fire without it at will?

>>43099113
You can absolutely invoke flames without the corrupting element present.

Okay, I'll be stepping out for the night. Until next time!

Goddammit, how could I miss two threads in a row.

whelp, I missed a bit. I'd say "told you so" on the fire thing, but I doubt it was going to end well either way.

>>43098837
That's some strong fire. Can we turn into a burning phoenix?

Looking for that mind resident with Izu sounds like a fun adventure after everything is over. More to stave off boredom than out of any goodwill.