>>44183501
Reposting this >>44183512
>You are River the Southhand, and you have chosen to be tried by the dead.
I don't want her for a party member. At all. But I do want her to live.

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>>44183501
The woman who'd saved your life - Brianna la Croix, that was her name - had been so...so frank. So gentle. You remember the pain of your healing, remember wanting, so desperately, to live - and that soft, reassuring voice, treating you like a person and not an enemy.

You cry like you haven't felt anything in years. Maybe you haven't. Gods, where had it all gone so wrong?

When had you become so soulless?

You feel your ears pressed miserably against your skull, just over your hair. You'd faced death before, in battle. You'd been surrounded and woken up in medical tents; you'd felt knives in your gut, loosing your life's blood into the dirt and grass. You knew the hate and fury of the melee, when there was only vengeance and the cold, bitter promise of heavy coins on wooden counters and the booze that lulled you to forget.

You cry, and you mourn a little girl who dreamed of a grand adventure.

By the time Brianna steps back in, alone, with her hat off of her head in respect for your sorrow, you've dried your eyes, and even tried some of the coffee.

"The people I've wronged amongst the living don't know my name," you whisper. "They'll never know who took their husbands and daughters from them, who stole the bread from their mouths and the clothes from their backs. They cannot hold me accountable." You take in a deep, shuddering breath. "I will face the judgement of the dead."

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>>44183658
"You know why I've asked this of you?" Brianna asks softly.

"I know," you agree, your pained voice resolute. "I am ready."

The dark necromancer leads you outside, to the graves outside the cottage. Her compatriots are already waiting; the dark-haired girl that makes the bird noises perches watchfully on a headstone, while the handsome boy leans against a crypt.

"Ancestors, cousins," Brianna calls to the graves. "I have a family matter to discuss. Before you is a mercenary, bought with gold stolen from the dead, who has fought for the one that desecrated this Lichyard. I saved her life, when she would have died. She seeks the judgement of the dead upon her crimes."

The ghostly congregation that arises brings a lump of fear to your throat that you swallow with difficulty. Every spectral eye is upon you. Watching. Judging.

One, an old woman with a noose 'round her neck, steps forward formally. "Let the accused speak her name and her crimes, that they be known to the dead."

> Tell the tale of your life
> Focus only on your crimes in the Lichyard
> Beg for mercy

>>44183772
>> Tell the tale of your life

They're dead, its not like you can bore them to death again.

> Tell the tale of your life

Storytime.

>>44183772
>> Tell the tale of your life
but uh, Bri should probably just go. Things to do, River's not THAT important, etc.

>>44183772
>the handsome boy leans against a crypt
Man, Nathan really upped that Cha score, didn't he.

>> Tell the tale of your life

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>>44183772
>> Tell the tale of your life

>> Tell the tale of your life

>>44183826
i bet it's the SMOLDERING LOOKS he can do with his barely restrained eyes.

>>44183849
What is it with bad girls and creatures of the night, seriously this is the reason we can't have nice things.

>>44183772
> Tell the tale of your life
Might as well name ourselves properly with as much of a tale as we told Bri. Past that, we can probably focus though.

>>44183826
Life is 3d6, straight down. No such thing as dump stats when you don't have a choice.

Oh, and
> Tell the tale of your life

>>44183826
>>44183849
>>44183866
You ever had the attention of an attractive person and known that you have their attention because they respect you, are listening to you, and care about what's going on and what you think and feel?

Nathan treats everyone like that. All the time. People can tell.

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>>44183849
>Everywhere he looks, that boy is unintentionally seducing people
He's like a sexy, male medusa, only he turns people hard in very particular ways
>>44183896
seducing them with KINDNESS

>>44183896
he needs to get a hobby. Heroes...what can you do?

Votes called, writing.

>>44183772
>Tell the tale of your life

>>44183183
>I'm trying to keep the main cast of characters - that is, the party - relatively small. I'll entertain *one* more member - just one. That doesn't mean other characters won't be, or can't be, significant, but if you add River to the party that's it until or unless someone dies - this'll be your group.
Can we have temporary companions?
I.e. have River with us while dealing with the mercs, then settle her down for example in Lakehallow and then go deeper into dungeon with just old foursome?

Just that votes are pretty unanimously in favour of not perma-membering her, but we still may got practical situation on hand in which she may be useful. Depending on how the info we get from her goes down and how we plan.

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>>44183772
You step forward, next to Brianna, and fold your hands behind your back formally. Your ears twitch, wanting to press against your head in fear, but you force them to stay where they are.

After all this time being a soldier, the least you can do is show some fucking backbone.

"My name is River," you say, with an odd sense of calm. "Much later in my life, I would be called the Southhand, for I favor my left and killed my first man with it. He struggled, when I choked him out. He suffered."

You let out a shuddering breath.

"If you asked me about the little girl who grew up in a village in the high trees, where the sunlight was like stars and the stillness more sacred than any god, I could not tell you about her. She is gone, and dead, and done, and I can mouth the words of the stories she read until I wither and die, but I cannot remember the wonder that gripped her breast. When the soldiers came through, with their shiny blades and their polished armor, promising a life of adventure, she left with them, and she never went back home, to that place where the sun was stars and the wind smelled of flowers."

"I lied about my age. I killed my first man before I was of age to marry, in my culture. I drowned his face in drink, and I kept at it. For a year, and then I would retire. For two years, and then I would retire. Places, faces, axes in the dark and the curses of dying men looking to drag a few last gifts for the gods with them. My coin when to drink and pleasurable company, and to keeping my blades honed and ready."

You duck your head, so your red, red hair can hide the tears.

"I stopped caring who I hurt, or why, a long time ago."

>>44184180
Hmm, yeah. This is not prime waifu material.

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>>44184180
"Sometimes we fought for righteous causes. Sometimes we fought for ignoble ones. We raided, at times, when the pickings were lean and we needed food in our bellies. We told ourselves we didn't know any other kind of work. We lied."

Your ears twitch, and it's all you can do to focus on restraining them. Someone puts a warm hand on your shoulder, and it makes you shake that much harder.

You don't deserve their /pity/.

"When we were approached by Lisa the Seeker, she told us she'd found a massive, untapped tomb in the Dungeon. So what that we were stealing from the dead? We stole from those we killed. So what that the tomb was guarded? It was soldier's work, for a soldier's pay. None of us were expecting /this/, but we all agreed to it. I dug up the graves, with a shovel and a pick. I broke the crypts, with a hammer and with my brethren. Sometimes I killed their guardians. Sometimes I delivered them to Lisa. They always lived, for a few days. And then their moving corpses got assigned to squads, for muscle, with those silver nails in their eyes and the maggots, crawling, always crawling in their wounds..."

That warm hand on your shoulder squeezes you gently, and you have to force down the sob.

"I knew the laws. I ignored them. I offer no defense. My guilt is beyond question."

A hollow, male voice - you cannot see its speaker, with your head down and your hair hiding you from the world - speaks up. "What is it you want, River the Southhand?"

> I want to die
> I want to make it right
> I want to go home
> I want to stop feeling like this

Phew. I hope I did that okay, I'm kinda drunk off my ass here.

>>44184087
I'm fine with temporary companions, aye.

>>44183913
>>44183934
Comprehension achieved?

>>44184298
>> I want to stop feeling like this
>> I want to go home

>>44184298
>I want to stop feeling like this
>I want to make it right

>>44184298
> I want to stop feeling like this

>>44184298
> I want to make it right
> I want to stop feeling like this

>>44184316
Comprehension NEVER achieved! Out of SPITE!

>I want to make it right
>> I want to go home

> I want to make it right.

>>44184298

> I want to make it right
> I want to stop feeling like this

She's said that she thinks the girl from her home is dead, so I doubt she could honestly say she wants to return there.

>>44184385
>She's said that she thinks the girl from her home is dead, so I doubt she could honestly say she wants to return there.
Exactly.

>>44184298
> I want to stop feeling like this
We want to live, though we feel unworthy.
We cannot return home, that is the unreachable past; perhaps we can find a home though.
Though we do not want to, we know that we must be punished or make things right.
> I Should make it right

>>44184385
>
Oh good point. Amending my vote here: >>44184322

>>44184385
>>44184420
Whether she thinks it is possible does not necessarily prevent her from wanting what she cannot have.

Calling in seven. I want to finish my drink and find PJs.

> I want to make it right

Called. Tallying, writing.

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>>44184298
What is it you want? What kind of question is that to ask, during a trial? You don't know where the flash of anger comes from, but you raise your tearstained face to the dead.

It feels like something cold is melting in your heart, and you're not sure if this pounding in your chest is fury, or joy.

"Want? I want to go back and stop myself from leaving that little village. I want to wake up and learn that I fell asleep, weeping, when the company turned me away. But that's a stupid, selfish fantasy. More than anything else, I want to stop feeling...feeling like /this/, like I'm a corpse shambling her way to her next drink, like I died already and I'm still living on my own body. I'm sick of being numb."

You clench your fist and let it go. "I'm tired. Gods, I'm so fucking tired. Of not caring. Of...of everything. I want to make it right but I can't do that. I can't bring back all the people I hurt. I can't undo all the pain."

A man with his chest run through with spears folds his arms. "If this family pronounced your death?"

"Then I'd tell Brianna everything I know, and then submit. It's what I deserve. It's better than what I deserve."

There is murmuring, amongst the dead. You look, and see warmth in Brianna's eyes.

"Why do you /care/?" you ask, almost pleadingly.

"Because death doesn't," comes her frank, solemn answer. "The scythe swings and those that remain are left to pick up the pieces, for good or for ill. Life...life is for the living, River. You didn't ask for this."

"No," you agree. "...But I did choose it."

"River the Southhand," the woman with the noose 'round her neck says, speaking up in formal judgement. "The assembled dead of the la Croix are ready to proclaim their judgement. Be ye ready to submit to our will?"

"I am."

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>>44184896
"It is the finding of this court that your crimes are born of ignorance, not malice; that you were drawn into a life unfit for a child, be they human or elf, and encouraged to become the wretch we find before us. You have sinned against the sacred laws of death and the dead, and in your ignorance you have cut short the lives of the innocent. This, then, is the flaw that requires correction."

The man with the spears through his chest, his shredded tabard emblazoned with a rose, speaks up. "You will train as a necromancer."

A tall, stooped ghost, wrapped in shrouds. "I will teach you."

As one, the court shifts their gaze to Brianna. "Will you perform the haunting?"

"Of course," Brianna agrees.

"Then let the accused never again be known as River the Southhand," proclaims the woman with the noose 'round her neck.

"Welcome to the family, River la Croix," the congregation says, in chorus.

The ghosts fade back into their graves, leaving you with silence, and the stunned stares of the bird girl and the handsome young man. Brianna digs a pipe from her pocket and packs its bowl, as though this sort of thing happens every day.

> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?
> You are relieved. You get to live. You can make up for what you've done.
> You are angry. How dare they decide your future for you?

>>44184965
>> You are relieved. You get to live.
Followed by
>> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?

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>>44184965
>> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?
lolwut

>>44184965
> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?
>> You are relieved. You get to live. You can make up for what you've done.
>> You are angry. How dare they decide your future for you?
Mostly confused, though the other two seem entirely viable expressions of said confusion. But the confusion wins out.

regarding:
> You are angry. How dare they decide your future for you?
Uh, no. That boat has sailed, and is probably arriving at its destination by now.

my vote:
> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?
Poor girl has no idea what she's just gotten herself into. Still, she does need to make this right, and it won't happen any other way.

>>44185010
What is it with anon and voting for literally every option? Why you do this to me?

> You are relieved. You get to live. You can make up for what you've done.

> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?

>>44185025
because none of those options are honestly too contradictory. a person could feel all of them

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>>44185025
to frustrate you
>Be Vox
> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?

>>44184965
>> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?


Huh, thats a new one. Its also interesting for the long term.

>>44184965

> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?
> You are relieved. You get to live. You can make up for what you've done.

The angry one is just stupid; she went in fully expecting to die, but when she's allowed to live she gets pissed that they expect her to live her life a certain way?

>>44184965
> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?
Vote

>The man with the spears through his chest, his shredded tabard emblazoned with a rose, speaks up. "You will train as a necromancer."
Rose guy advocating for necromancy? What.

>>44184965
>You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?
This seems like the best reaction. She expected to die, and now is being told she's not only going to live, but has been drafted into the family that was judging her

>>44185068
It's almost like death has given him some perspective.

Also while Aria's a bit of a bitch there's plenty of Rose la Croixs for whom family comes first, and foremost, and always.

>>44185068
>Rose guy advocating for necromancy? What.
Well, he IS a ghost, and it seems like there are some things that only a necromancer can fix. So, I'm guessing they were watching her sincerity or something. Plus he seems like he's sort of this branch's spokesman.

>> You are confused. What just happened? Why? Is this even a punishment?

>>44184965
Supporting
>>44184988
Seems the most realistic

Votes called. Tallying, writing last update of the night.

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>>44184965
You watch Brianna light her pipe with a certain numb shock entirely unrelated to your normal soul-deep numbess.

"Please tell me you're this calm because you expected that," you say, at last.

"Not even a little," Brianna admits, trickling smoke from her nostrils. "Welcome to the family, sis."

"...Sis?"

"I have problems with my cousins," the necromancer answers with a shrug. "...And it feels better anyway. I always wanted a sister."

"How can you want -"

Brianna cuts you off with a gesture of her pipe. "As a certain someone who's about to look entirely too smug told me, you don't get to tell me how I feel. You're part of the family now. You have any objection to being my adopted sister?"

Your ruffle your own hair, nervously. "I. I guess not?"

"Then welcome to the family, sis. Come on, there's some things I need to explain about your sentence."

You trail after Brianna. "Wait. So that's a punishment? It's meant to be a punishment?"

"Ohhhh yes," Bri agrees. "But it's also a shot at redemption."

>>44185025
Youve never read holy sword quest, have you?

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>>44185266
You are Brianna la Croix, in a cottage within your family's sacred burial grounds in the Lichyard, and you have just acquired a sister.

And it's kinda low-key the best thing ever.

River's confusion has made her forget how miserable she's feeling; the elf sits in a chair, staring wide-eyed at the floor and trying to work her way through what just happened to her. The coffee pot is put back on to heat.

"Okay sis," you begin patiently, trying not to smile at getting to use the word. "First things. This is Nathan," the Hero waves, "and that's Amy." The bird girl beams and runs her fingers through your hair in restrained excitement; it's like she picked up on your inner joy and feels the need to express it with you. "And my faithful familiar is Sir Fetch the Nightfeather."

"Charmed," Fetch says regally. River holds a hand out to him, and he extends a wing to shake with her.

"We should probably start with..."

> The haunting, and what it means for your apprenticeship
> The family name, and what it means to wear it
> The art of necromancy, and what it means to practice it
> Seeing to your wounds the rest of the way, because merciful gods it would suck to have done all of this just to watch you keel over and fucking die.

>>44185292
I'm afraid not. I've only really read Maverick Hunter Quest and KCQ.

> The haunting, and what it means for your apprenticeship
> The family name, and what it means to wear it
> The art of necromancy, and what it means to practice it
> Seeing to your wounds the rest of the way, because merciful gods it would suck to have done all of this just to watch you keel over and fucking die.

But more seriously >The haunting, and what it means for your apprenticeship

>>44185025
>>44185292
>>44185353
I haven't read Holy Sword, but in Re:Monster, SpiderQM also pretty much accepted his fate that anons will try to get ALL THE THINGS in votes.

>>44185339
> The family name, and what it means to wear it
It's what sets us apart from people like Lisa. Kinda important in the grand scheme of things.

We can see to her wounds as we talk.

>>44185339
> The haunting, and what it means for your apprenticeship
With a little side order of
>health problems and whether it will exacerbate them

>>44185372
As lamb puts it, thats the "I only want one more update tonight" option.

>>44185339
>Seeing to your wounds the rest of the way, because merciful gods it would suck to have done all of this just to watch you keel over and fucking die.

We definitely need to cover all four of those options, eventually, so lets make sure to not forget any of them, yea? But lets start with the one that's gonna make all the others moot if we take too long getting to it.

>>44185339
> The family name, and what it means to wear it

Alright folks, I need to catch some bed. I'ma leave the vote open overnight and archive the thread.

Thanks again for reading and participating! I hope these semi-regular perspective switches have been working out well for you; I kinda try to do them when they feel right, so I don't always quite have them planned or mapped out.

Also if at all possible I'll be running on Christmas Day, mostly because the few relatives I like canceled their plans and I watched the remainder cut a man's finger off over a game of Monopoly (not kidding) and I kinda don't want to be in striking distance of them.

>>44185339
> The family name, and what it means to wear it
> Seeing to your wounds the rest of the way, because merciful gods it would suck to have done all of this just to watch you keel over and fucking die.

>>44185372
There's a quest I haven't seen in a while. QM on break,or just disappear?

>>44185353
If you like worldbuilding, try Banished Quest. You can also see how terrible anon can be to each other, but you probably already know that.

Homeless Mutant Quest is pretty good with character interactions, and has a nice pace to it.

Could also try Hellborn Quest and Ryuzaka Quest.

...Trying to figure out which quests to recommend made me realize I read way too many quests. I need to get some actual books every once in a while.

>>44185425
...Can we hear the cut-off-a-finger-why-god-why story?

>>44185438
Personally, I lost interest in Hellborn and HMQ when the main characters were clearly obscenely powerful to the point where nothing really mattered anymore. Also Anons are sex addicted idiots far too often.

Also don't forget Princess Guard Quest for the greatest waifu war this board has ever seen, to the point where the QM decided to go full retard over it.

>>44185425
Thanks for running!

Yeah, switches work fine.

>>44185438
>QM on break,or just disappear?
Gone on break, but has been long overdue and silent.

>I need to get some actual books every once in a while.
Did that some time ago, nice to feel the difference.

>>44185339
>The haunting, and what it means for your apprenticeship
>> The family name, and what it means to wear it


>>44185438
...Become The Vampire will eventually be a book, if anons can restrain themselves from driving it into the ground with excessive lewds and waifuism.

>>44185461
>Also don't forget Princess Guard Quest for the greatest waifu war this board has ever seen, to the point where the QM decided to go full retard over it.
That sounds hilarious, some more detail?

Guns For Hire was pretty good in the early parts.

> Seeing to your wounds the rest of the way, because merciful gods it would suck to have done all of this just to watch you keel over and fucking die.

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>>44185446
...I suppose I can tell it before I go to bed.

My family has a reunion every other year. There are sharp generational divides, with the oldest members forming one 'tier', their children beneath them, and my generation in turn. My own kids are too young to merit consideration here.

The oldest members of the family have been playing the same game of Monopoly for, as they say it, the last 30 years. Money is no longer doled out in physical form - it is kept in ledgers that have to be moved with wagons, passed between the players each reunion as a form of roving responsibility. The state of the board mostly doesn't change, except during those rare times a player dies, and their property comes up for sale.

I was fourteen when they found out Uncle Tom had been fudging the books. An argument broke out, and then the ledgers. The other players reviewed them, and then forced another uncle, an accountant, to review them. And the books were found to be fudged.

Uncle Tom's hand went down on the table. So did the knife, at the middle knuckle of his ring finger. We were in the middle of nowhere, so he got to scream nice and loud, especially after they cauterized the wound.

I stopped going to reunions after that.

>>44185489
...wtf. And I thought mine were bad with my mom and grandma hinting I should marry one of my cousins.

>>44185438

REQM said in October that he'd gotten a solid 9-5 schedule at his job that prevented him from running on weekdays but he'd be available on weekends, and then on Oct 10th said that some shit was being rearranged and he had to wait for it to settle down before he could run again. He answered some Asks within the next few days, but has otherwise disappeared.

Which fucking sucks, because he clearly cared for the quest and his fans and Re:Monster was the quest that introduced me to questing and /tg/ as a whole.

>>44185466
Its midterms atm, the last of which for me personally is tomorrow, presumably if REQMis in similar circumstances we'll be hearing from them soon. In addition hopefully Questdrone had a similar issue.

Really, the big QMs you are seeing now are the lesser part of the QM demograph, which is bored people who work shitty shifts and are overqualified. Other than that you have college students with too much time on there hands.
>>44185470
Thats what every QM says.

>>44185480
Everyone was militantly supporting either side, including a bizzare group supporting a semi-sapient bracelet and people actively trying to spite one another.

QM started writing depressing or angry reactions by NPCs to punish people for there actions.

Also he later pulled out bullshit at other parts and had a habit of stirring up drama. He's done that with his other big thread to the point where I gave up on it to. Its hillarious, threads upon threads of blind autistic nerd rage.

Thread archived, folks. I need to use the sleep.

Thanks again for participating! Like, I honestly cannot express my surprise and gratitude enough, anons. Thanks for being here.

As always, taking feedback, questions, commentary. I'll adress it in the morning.

>>44185489
Huh, and I thought my family reuinions sucked with bad food and my grandparents being massive closeted racists and supporting my convict uncle who committed a serious crime and everyone knows he was at fault in it.

Of course, there are rapists and murderers out there still so clearly he should get a free pass

>>44185521
It's all a matter of perspective really.

>>44185461

>main characters were clearly obscenely overpowered

Lolwut

Sierra and JJ both still have their shit routinely handed to them. The dice and player stupidity have far too much say in both quests to allow them to become OP.

>>44185461
Fair enough on Hellborn and HMQ. Stopped following Hellborn for a bit, have yet to pick it back up. Still follow HMQ since I'm interested in what path anon will take to the end.

Ducked out of PGQ before the waifu wars hit their zenith. Heard Psion Quest was almost as big a clusterfuck, never touched that one.

>>44185489
That's on the same level of fucked up as when my dad found a skinned cat hanging in the showers of his dorm room because his Vietnam vet roommates apparently got bored that day.

He was out of those dorms in the next couple days.

>>44185505
That's a shame. Can't blame him, I suppose, but I am disappointed.

Sorceress Quest was what got me on /tg/ to start with, and I'd forgotten it for a while. I'm now re-reading it to rediscover my first ever post on /tg/, to get a rough idea of how long I've been lurking.

>>44185506
>Thats what every QM says
I'm the rewriter, but not the QM. As long as the story keeps moving along, I'm gonna keep it up. Idk how good it'll end up, this is the first time I've done something like this, but e-pub is free, and I'm enjoying myself.

>>44185537
Exabytes actually a decent QM, sure he reuses names and fucked up and caused drama a few times but hes a consistently fun writer. Also I now get unacceptably paranoid whenever cats are brought up in quests in passing by the QM.

>>44185538
Editing/rewriting is pretty fun. Don't have the drive to finish writing projects I start (barring rare exceptions), but helping others with what they've done is a lot easier.

>>44185489
Vox are you sure you're not a protagonist in a story of some sort?

>>44185556
Yea, I'm not good at putting together a plot, I always get hung up on a point or two.

And I'm just taking it a scene at a time for now.

>>44185588
Plots are fun for me. Start with the backbone; figure out what is essential to the story. Then work on connecting those pieces together; it's a tiny little puzzle figuring out how the characters can interact with each other and the world to drive the plot along as you'd like. And I like puzzles.

I've done a lot of good as an editor, even as a co-writer at points, but I'll never try to write my own stuff or run a quest here. When I get stressed, I can't write. Writing isn't relaxing, and it's more important to me that I stay relaxed. I'm also a wordy motherfucker when writing, so stories I handle on my own take a bit to write/work out, and that's just more opportunities for something to happen in real life that'll make me stop writing for a bit.

I tend not to pick stuff back up once I drop it too, so I don't bother writing my own stuff very often. Just help out with constructing stories and background, fleshing out characters, being a grammar nazi as necessary. All stuff that takes considerably less time and therefore has a much higher chance of actually getting done.

>>44185339
Hmm. While we should probably focus on getting her fixed up, she needs to know what her new life will be. Starting with:
>The haunting, and what it means for your apprenticeship.

We've already learned a lot about necromancy via Brianna's own wisdom and flashbacks. This is the time to see how it all starts.

By the way, how is the adoption of little River going to go with the cousins? Aria is going to have a full-scale, foam-mouthed conniption, and we are going to love every second of it.

>>44185339
>>44185829
On a related note, do the Roses like Aria just not listen to the dead or something? Seems like a very un-la Croix attitude.

On an unrelated note, one of the people shitposting after the vote to save her was me. That was mostly because I missed the vote and was bored.I would have voted to save her as well because it was IC

At some point I really want to tell Aria "People like you are the reason I got sent down for what is commonly seen as a death sentence, with good reason, and most definitely a life sentence. And you know what my crime was? I saved a man's life. Not brought him back as an abomination, or whatever you want to call it. Saved his life. And he turned me in himself. How's that fit with worshiping life, you self-righteous bitch?".

>>44186216
>How's that fit with worshiping life, you self-righteous bitch?".
"And this is why I have this angel feather and you don't. See ya later."

>>44186308
"Also, how many people have YOU saved? I count four."

(Plus any in backstory. Amy, Nathan, Marsh, and now River. Arguably seven with the three Amy and Nathan got from the Vintner since we were responsible for their being able to get to him so easily, but...)

>>44186546
Er, that could be phrased better. But I think the point is clear.

>>44185339
>> The haunting, and what it means for your apprenticeship

>>44185538
>>44185537
That reminds me, have you all seen that writefaggotry piece where someone in the weekend quest thread described all the QMs as school girls and wrote a brief story about it. Bringing the universe full circle in the process?

>>44187926
No, sounds amusing though.

>>44185339
> The family name, and what it means to wear it.
Because she's not just going to be some necromancer, she's going to be a la Croix necromancer. She needs to know why that's important.

>>44185339
> The family name, and what it means to wear it
I think this is pretty important

>>44185339
>> The family name, and what it means to wear it
>> The art of necromancy, and what it means to practice it

>>44185339
>> Seeing to your wounds the rest of the way, because merciful gods it would suck to have done all of this just to watch you keel over and fucking die.
Seems like the most important, but I don't see any particular reason why
> The family name, and what it means to wear it
can't be covered while she's being treated.

>>44185569
Everyone is the protagonist of their own story. One does well, to recall this at time.

Votes called. I'll tally and write once I have the coffee made and the hangover cure in my belly. Plus the painkillers. Sweet, sweet drugs.

>>44186002
The Roses envision a different relationship with the dead. As far as they're concerned, the affairs of the living are not the affairs of the dead; the dead gave up that chance when they passed. Like other la Croix, they work to keep sacred places sacred and to encourage others to treat both the living and the dead with respect, but where people like Brianna become spiritual advisors and community leaders, the Roses are more likely to become defenders, soldiers, and Heroes. Mind, that particular branch of the family went rogue awhile ago and has had lots of chances to define its own attidutes and traditions.

>>44189068
>Mind, that particular branch of the family went rogue awhile ago and has had lots of chances to define its own attidutes and traditions.
So wait they're DOUBLE schism? (General Necromancery la Croix - Roses in general - These specific Roses.)

>>44189122
Well yeah, they've been living in the Dungeon for a few hundred years. What do you expect? A postal service?

>>44189151
>A postal service?
Yes.
A spooky one, but nonetheless.

>>44189068
So... if we tell them that the ghosts made River a Ia Croix, that won't actually mean much to some of them since that's the dead interfering with the affairs of the living, right?

>>44189210
Technically they have to respect it but it's still not necessarily the best idea to bring up River's past with them. They don't have to know why she's helping, just that she can help.

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>>44185339
"We should probably start with the family name, though there's plenty to talk about and do besides. Amy, Nate, out."

"Aww. Why?" Little fingertips rub your ear, making you shiver in surprise.

"Because I have wounds to treat and River deserves a bit of privacy to go with her toplessness," you say firmly. "And because this is family business. You two know I love ya but get the fuck out."

Nathan nods, and Amy gives you a little pout that she breaks up with a bright smile. "Nice to meet you River," the harpy girl notes while they leave.

"...Is she your lover?" River asks in confusion.

"That's complicated. Shirt."

You begin examining the elf while you talk, feeling her ribs and checking other scars to ensure that they're old wounds and not fresh ones sealed over with leftover sorceries. "The la Croix family is old. Old-old. We've always been related to death and the dead. We invented many of the underpinnings of necromancy, but we've also been embalmers, mourners, investigators, and even vampire hunters for some of the more interesting ancestors."

"What happens to those ones?" River asks curiously.

"They mostly end up turned into vampires."

"...I shouldn't be surprised."

"Alright. More direct potions would be bad at this point; we don't want to overheal. You're familiar with the teas used in long-term care?"

River makes a face, and you hand the elf back the linen shirt.

"Welcome to nasty town," you say with a grin.

"Urrrgh."

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>>44190156
>"They mostly end up turned into vampires."
It is not neceserily the end of their career though.

>>44190214

Didn't that happen in the TV show supernatural also?

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>>44190214
>That awkward moment where you have an entire subgroup of your family dedicated to hunting each other

>>44190253
THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE

>>44190384
It's just an endless parade of La Croix hunting their parents/family, killing a few, and then getting turned and being hunted by their kids in turn

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>>44190156
You let your sister get her top back on before you continue. "Being a la Croix means respecting the dead. More importantly, it means respecting death and the role it plays in life. Nobody asks to live. Very few people ask to die. When people grieve, we console them. When there's something needful to be done, we do it. To be a la Croix is to never get to say, 'somebody do something'. You're the somebody now."

"Sounds complicated," River admits.

"Don't worry, you'll have a voice in your head to help," you answer cheerfully. Then you catch the look of confused horror on her face and remember that this is not normal to other people. "Okay. So. Now's a good time to talk about the haunting. Normally, a more experienced member of the family would mentor you in necromancy, to make sure you're ready, and so you have someone living to talk to. The dead...aren't always great at empathizing."

"Huh. So why don't you teach me?"

You sigh. "I never became a master necromancer. I still need training myself, to be honest. I'm...if this were a guild, we'd call it a journeyman. I'm qualified to practice on my own but..."

"No, I get it," your sister agrees. "So the ghost will handle my education, and...I can come to you for advice, and with problems?"

"Precisely. Traditionally, in cases of haunting, you apprenticeship ends when you can successfully exorcise the ghost. Stronger, more experienced ghosts mean you learn more..."

"But stay an apprentice longer. What does that mean?"

"Apprentices serve their masters."

"...Oh. That's. That's bad."

"It can be," you agree. "We'll need to perform the haunting before we leave to do anything else. The sentence should be served out. You personally also need some rest, but I'm loathe to leave you with the cousins."

"...So what do you want to do?"

> Rest for the day; River needs time to recover after you haunt her.
> Haunt River and press on; there's other places you can rest.
> Haunt River and get back to work.

>>44190516

> Rest for the day; River needs time to recover after you haunt her

Haha just did a final exam in 40 minutes

>>44190516
>> Haunt River and press on; there's other places you can rest.

We can set up camp somewhere can't we?

>>44190563
You probably failed anon

>>44190516
>> Haunt River and press on; there's other places you can rest.
She will not be Mark'd. Not this one.

>>44190516
> Haunt River and press on; there's other places you can rest.

>>44190584

It was 40 multiple choice and a single short answer, and I haven't gotten below an 80 in the course.

Pretty sure I did fine.

>>44190681
what course?
All of mine are just essays, but they're all history courses, so it's to be expected.

> Haunt River and press on; there's other places you can rest.

>>44190704

Social psychology, though the instructor managed to avoid SJW sperging.

Actually covered the way people in different cultures think about death for the few classes between this quest starting and the semester ending, which was neat.

>>44190763
that sounds pretty rad.
My Jap. Civ. teacher is a massive weeb, he's endlessly entertaining to watch. Imagine a scarecrow having a seizure with the head of an 80's chem teacher stereotype. That's him pacing.

>>44190384
>>44190437
Kinda need fresh "Belmonts" managing to off the older vampires before getting chomped by younger in order to maintain equilibrium.

>>44190807
maybe they just believe in fair play? It's just a family tradition.

>>44190826
It'd be entertaining if some of the vampires helped mentor the hunters.

A vamp dad reminding his hunter daughter the proper way of driving a stake into a vampire's heart so she don't damage her wrist... though that isn't as entertaining now that I've typed that out.

>>44190929
Welcome to me writing this family. Every fucking time.

>>44190929

> Remember, solid but mobile, your arm shouldn't be as stiff as the stake-
>>Dammit Dad, you don't have to remind me!
> Just thought I'd remind you given you seem to be having trouble positioning it.
>>That's because you KEEP TALKING!

>>44191005
>Are you sure? Your heartbeat is erratic, you know. Perhaps you should ta-
>STOP TALKING, DAD!
>I'm just remembering, dear. It's be-... ah. Those are tears.
>...
>I'm sorry, honey. It's... hard, to notice these things. After a while, all you see is the blood.
>...I'm sorry, dad.
>So am I, honey. Now, just like I taught you.

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I'ma make more coffee and then call the vote.

>>44191005
>>44191099
Pic related.

>>44191099

Plus the whole "keep talking so he can spend more time with his daughter" thing.

>>44190516
> Haunt River and press on; there's other places you can rest.
GET OUT OF MY HEAD GHOST DAD

Delicious coffee.

Votes called, writing.

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>>44190516
"I think," you decide, "that we're going to want to get you haunted and then camp elsewhere. I don't want to strain my cousins' hospitality, and frankly this isn't the best place for you. Or me. But you need a bit more rest and some time to acclimate to the new voice in your head, so we /will/ find someplace to camp, talk, and plan."

"I do still owe you that intel," River agrees.

"Precisely. As your training progresses you're going to find problems wearing the armor you have at the moment. However, since I'd like you to live, go ahead and put it on. I just need to take care of this thing..." you pluck up River's cloak and toss it into the fireplace, using the poker to jam it into the coals. "No need to confuse anyone."

"You do this sort of thing a lot?"

"One of my jobs is to be level-headed and clever when other people are busy being scared and stupid."

"...Sounds rough."

"Yeah," you agree softly. "Get dressed, sis. I'll meet you outside."

You take up your pack and step outside the cottage. Nathan's reading a book while Amy preens Fetch's feathers; Aria waits a distance from the cottage, with her arms folded.

"Well?" the elder demands.

"Hold your horses. We're leaving shortly," you answer tiredly. "I just need to haunt the elf and we're gone."

"You expect me to -"

"Wanna ask the ghost yourself?" you interrupt. "This is between her and the dead. Not you. We'll be back when we've taken care of your problem."

"Fine. Don't strain yourself visiting otherwise."

Aria walks off, muttering darkly. "What a bitch," comes Amy's mild, cheerful comment. You almost choke on your laughter.

"Amy, be nice," you finally chide. "There's nothing wrong with wanting to do the right thing and having faith. Theirs being a little stupid hasn't stopped them from doing some amazing things."

"Yeah, well...she's mean to you."

"Amy, I'm a little bit of a bitch myself," you remind her.

"Yeah, but - I mean. Damnit Bri, you're not /mean/."

>>44191851
>"Bullshit, you called me mean like two threads ago."

>>44192005
Bad Anon!, no breaking the fourth wall.
*Smack*

>>44192045
Hey man it's not my fault that it's damn hard to keep track of time in the Dungeon.

>>44192005
Yes. This. Bonus points if you can work in an in-story justification for using the terminology "two threads ago" to refer to that point in in-story time without it being an outright break of the fourth wall.

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>>44191851
River emerges from the cottage, and you lead her back into the graveyard. A brief search finds the headstone of the shrouded ghost.

"Not to put too fine a point on it, but the bit where you fucked up big time already makes this whole process a lot easier. It's pretty damn hard to haunt someone who hasn't either wronged the dead in general or one particular dead person involved in the haunting."

"Couldn't you just...force them?" you sister asks slowly. You whap her on the head with your hate.

"There are zombie armies at the end of that line of thought. Ethical necromancy, sis. The dead aren't our slaves."

"Sorry."

You tap the top of the headstone with one of your bone wands and start muttering. The wand clings to the stone when you let it go, slowly standing upright to spin in place, while you cut a lily from the bed of flowers that grows over the grave.

"Him being willing in the first place helps too," you admit, as you tuck the flower behind River's ear. "Up and at 'em, spooky."

River cries out in surprise as the flower melts against her scalp, forming a tattoo with the bloom just over her eyebrow and the stem vanishing past her ear, hidden mostly by her hair. The shrouded ghost, hunched over and dressed in tattered rags, rests bony hands on her shoulders. She looks up at its cowled face with wide eyes before it fades on an ethereal breeze.

You scoop up your wand, feeling dizzy. That...that'd taken a lot out of you. Hauntings were rough work, and this ghost was /old/, well into death and firmly beyond the Veil. Maybe...maybe you just need to...

River catches you before you can fall. "Brianna!"

"I'mfine," you mumble. "Let's go."

Amy and Nathan give you worried looks when they see River supporting you, but you wave them off and stagger slowly out of the compound.

> Seek a camp with a decent view
> Seek a sheltered camp
> Whatever, just find a clearing
> Write-in

>>44192189
With your hat* not your hate.

Fuck I need more coffee.

>>44192189
> Seek a camp with a decent view
rather get a good look at precisely the fuck
>>44192204
addict

>>44192226
decent view is a mixed blessing, sure you can see more but you're also much more noticeable to your enemies.

>>44192189
> Seek a camp with a decent view

>>44192189
>Seek a camp with a decent view

Last thing we need right now is an ambush that we did our enemies' work for them by setting up. Lets find a place with nice clear sight lines where anything coming towards us will be known to us long before it becomes a problem.

>>44192189
> Seek a sheltered camp
We can get strategic view later, our camp gotta be hidden from assorted bad guys.

>>44192189
> Seek a sheltered camp

We can scout with Fetch, no need to expose ourselves.

>>44192347
>>44192367
Seconding. Sir Fetch and his feathered siblings can go scout for us while Brianna takes a breather. Plus, I feel like we still need to talk to River about what it means to be an actual necromancer, and not some asshat with a god-complex.

>>44192189

> Seek a sheltered camp

>>44192189
>Seek a sheltered camp

Called. Eating breakfast, coffee, writing.

Must rev up the stimulants.

> Seek a sheltered camp

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>>44192189
Your group picks its way through the no-mans-land, and eventually you remember how this whole 'walking' idea works and stop leaning on River. Amy flits near you, though, and stays close with a concerned look.

Note to self: figure out if you feel touched or insulted.

Eventually you get a camp going in the shadow of a small hill, with your back shielded and your sightlines in the general direction of the la Croix shrine. The forest presses in around you, omnipresent and old. Someone planted these trees a very long time ago, and you can feel their attention on you.

It is not a happy feeling.

Amy gets food going over a tiny cookfire, and you sit with your back against a tree, letting yourself rest. You can see the telltale signs of River having a conversation in her head - to wit, she's sitting silently but her expression and body language keep changing - and Nathan has elected to take a watch with Fetch.

"Just feel like being alone with my thoughts for a bit," the Hero'd said, with an oddly distant tone, and he'd gone out of the firelight to watch the darkness.

> Talk with Amy
> Talk with River
> Talk with Nate
> Talk with Fetch
> Just fuck me up with flashbacks, Vox

>>44193146
> Talk with Amy

she keeps mother-henning over us, it's cute

> Talk with River

She could probably do with some help adapting; I can't imagine suddenly having a new voice in your head is the most calming of experiences, let alone on top of everything else.

Although I have to say 'Just fuck me up with flashbacks, Vox' is always an appealing option. :P

> Talk with Amy
> Talk with River

>>44193146
> Just fuck me up with flashbacks, Vox
Someone will interrupt us eventually.

>>44193146
> Just fuck me up with flashbacks, Vox

>>44193146
>> Talk with Amy

We need to stop blacking out on her.

>>44193146
> Just fuck me up with flashbacks, Vox

>>44193146
I notice that no one is interested in what is troubling our good Hero.
>Talk with Nate.

>>44193146
>> Talk with Amy

Vox, I'm curious: roughly what percentage of the la Croix have joined the family in this manner, through the years? (centuries? millennia?)

And/or what proportion of that does Bri know about?

>>44193513
By being adopted? Plenty. By being SENTENCED to adoption? This is one for the books.

You don't marry out of the la Croix; you marry into them. Likewise, their attitude on adoption is pretty damn chill. Blood doesn't define their family as much as the bonds of love and respect do, as well as the common duty that comes with the name. More than one la Croix has adopted a kid out of kindness, need, or because they wanted to raise a child but couldn't or wouldn't bear one themselves (such as, for instance, by being infertile, gay, or already a lich).

The family trees are kept meticulously, but that's because the family's full of very smart people who value attention to detail, not because they think less of people who joined the family for reasons other than birth.

>>44193513
I think adoption into the clan, or at least the way River has been, is exceedingly rare.

If anything, they probably took in kids who were already sensitive to necromancy or spirits, or were orphaned early in their lives (which also makes them familiar with death and loss).

>>44193581
Wow, Lord Voxwagen beat me to the punch.

Is it bad that I'm liking a completely fictional and imaginary family of fucking necromancers more than my own?

>>44193631
the entire point of fiction is to be able to relate to the work.
real life doesn't give a god damn what happens to you. that's the banality of life for you.

>>44193146
> Talk with River
Maybe ask how she's taking the whole ghost in her head thing. It could even lead to
> Just fuck me up with flashbacks, Vox
where we talk to her about our first few days being haunted.

>>44193631

Nah. After all, Vox's role here is to write something relatable; things you don't want to kill on sight (I mean, except for the things you're /supposed/ to want to kill on sight).

Real life doesn't really care whether your family are a bunch of unrelatable dicks that you want to punch. (Not that I'm bitter, or anything.)

Votes called, writing.

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Before writing though, a worldbuilding note:

A lot of the culture within the la Croix family has to do both with their self-appointed duties and with the question, "Is there zombies at the end of this?" It's an old family with old traditions, many of which were started in a direct attempt to prevent people from going full supervillain and then because they were often the only people who understood each other's struggles and strife. Family looks out for family, and when someone was having a rough day, the la Croix got together and helped them out.

So stuff like the adoption thing often moved in a progression like this, unless someone was wise enough to shut it down ahead of time.

> Treat adopted kids differently.
> Kids keep going full supervillain.
> "...Radical plan, what if we chilled the fuck out and just treated them the same as all the other kids?"
> Zombies cease.
> "That was it, that was the problem."

>>44193917
well, if at first you don't succeed.... find out what leads to zombies and don't let it happen
or at the very least, try to

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>>44193146
Amy gets food to everyone; River takes hers distractedly, Nathan with a quiet "thanks" that you barely hear over the fire. When she hands you yours you pat the ground next to you; Amy instantly snuggles up and coos softly before she starts in on her meal.

"How'd you get so adorable?" you ask with a quiet chuckle.

"Sold my soul to a demon." She sees the look on your face. "Joking!"

"Damnit, Ames, I'm too tired for advanced sarcasm. I need, like, entry-level sarcasm here."

"Sorry," she says again, a little sheepishly. "...Sister, huh?"

"Well yeah. She's family now. She can't very well be a cousin...and besides, most of my immediate cousins were assholes."

"Bri, she's an elf. I'd argue cousin is a little more appropriate."

"Yeah, well, as the qualified person on deck I've adopted her as my sister and that's final," you say haughtily. "What about you? How're you holdin' up?"

"...Pretty well, I think," the part-harpy says thoughtfully. "Having work to do helps. And I haven't exactly slept alone since we started moving, so the nightmares haven't been so bad. Can't wait to hit it, though."

"Eager to fight?" you ask, raising an eyebrow.

"Nah. These people are just the kind of scavengers that give us legitimate scavengers a bad name." Amy flashes you a smile and holds up her fork to share a bite with you. You raise your eyebrows up into outer space, but take the bite anyway; her expression lights up happily, and she looks back down at her bowl with a little chirp.

"I'm glad you saved her," Amy says suddenly, her voice a little shy. "I get that you do hard things sometimes and I'm glad that it's...that it's you doing them, if that makes sense? Because I trust you to do them right. But it's still nice to see something good happen, instead of something rough."

> ...Yeah, I get that.
> I'm glad too.
> She didn't exactly get off light.
> You are too cuddly for serious talk right now.

>>44194352
>> ...Yeah, I get that.
>> You are too cuddly for serious talk right now.

>>44194352
>> ...Yeah, I get that.
>> You are too cuddly for serious talk right now.

Someone had to do something there and it might as well have been us.

Besides, if you killed every idiot who made poor life decisions out there you'd have a lot of people to kill.

>>44194352
>...Yeah, I get that.
> You are too cuddly for serious talk right now.

>>44194352
> She didn't exactly get off light.
She's being made into us, after all. As a general rule, people deserve lives better than that.

Sure, there's the whole 'repenting' thing she's doing it for, but the fact that her life ended up this way... it should have been better. The fact that she'll make due isn't comforting enough, I bet.

>>44194352
> She didn't exactly get off light.

>>44194352
> She didn't exactly get off light.

>...Yeah, I get that.
> You are too cuddly for serious talk right now.

>>44194352
>She didn't exactly get off light.
Being a necromancer of the La Croix means putting the world of the dead before yourself. It also means selling off bits of your own life in order to do your job. Case in point? Nathan. Brianna gave up at least half a decade of her own mortality to bring him back, and as previously stated, she's done it plenty of times before. Though, I wonder if it will be easier or harder for River, since she has a much longer life expectancy (so long as she stays out of trouble) than Brianna as an elf.

Also, Best Bird is in overwhelming cuteness mode.
>You are way too cuddly and adorable for serious talk right now.

>>44194352
> I'm glad too.
> She didn't exactly get off light.

>>44194352
> She didn't exactly get off light.
Because, as others have noted, now she has our job. And if she's any good at it, she'll make the world a better place, but the devil will get his due from her in the process.

I gotta hit some dishes folks. I will return to close the vote when they are done.

>>44194920
nerd

>>44194955
But a responsible nerd!

> ...Yeah, I get that.

>>44194955
Is anyone here /not/ a nerd?

>>44195380
We also have trolls, edgelords, weaboos, autists and faggots.
Or did you mean speecificly this quest readers?

Called, tallying, writing.

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>>44194352
"She didn't exactly get off light," you point out. "I don't have an easy job, and she just inherited it. She's going to deal with rough shit, day in and day out, and be expected to feel compassionate about it. She can't be this numb thing she's become, not for this job."

"...That's kinda good too, though. Isn't it?"

You look down at those wide, icy eyes, and you smile indulgently. "You are being too damn cuddly for serious talk, pretty bird."

Amy's cheeks redden in happy pride. "...Is it weird that I kinda want to kiss and snuggle?"

"Nah. But we can't really snuggle, because you've gotta take your turn helping Fetch with the watch later. And /actually wake me up for mine this time/."

"You'll never knooooow," Amy sings out. She sticks her tongue out playfully at you.

Well now how can you resist that?

She melts into the kiss with a faint sound of surprise. Out of the corner of your eye you see River look up, blink once, and then go back to looking at her bowl. Amy has this vague, dazed look when you pull away.

"Wake me up for my turn," you repeat.

"Mmhmm..."

"Don't fall asleep cuddling me."

"YesBri."

You put your head against the tree, drop your hat over your face, and let yourself sink into the warmth and comfort.

You find Lora in her chains, looking distinctly furious. Hooks bite into her flesh, making her drip blood onto the floor, but try though they might, the chains that try to wrap around her head and chin keep slipping off and falling away.

"Evening," the angel growls. "Having fun, fucker?"

> What's going on?
> Well, I /was/.
> Can I help?

> Can I help?

>>44196028
>I'm going to guess I'm somehow at fault for this. Howso and what can I do?

>>44196028
>> What's going on?
wait, the fuck?

>>44196028
>Can I help?

>>44196028
> Well, I /was/. Sorry you weren't.

>>44196028
What did we do?

We fucked up somehow didn't we. Was it because we didn't reveal the feather?

>>44196028
Wait, did we just inadvertently fuck up Lora's plans of making us the Heritor by making River a necromancer? I hope not. This is probably Lisa and the other masters trying to yank the leash, so to speak, because we eliminated the Vintner.
>Well, I /was/. How can I help?

>>44196028
>> What's going on?
Offering to help immediately might antagonize her since we've clearly fucked her up somehow in spite of trying to help her, and I doubt sarcasm is appropriate right now. Neutral questioning is a go, then.

>>44196028
> Well, I /was/.

One of the chains is angry we didn't give our cousins the feather.

I say we be gruff with her. We respect her and accept that this shit is our job, but we are going to do it our way and she can just bite the pillow if she doesn't like it.

>>44196028
>What's going on?

>>44196028
>> ...Well, shit. Looks like something went down here. Can I help?

>>44196300

I very much doubt we could have inadvertently done something as serious and irrevocable as that seems by making the choices we made, with the information provided to us.

>>44196402
>>44196767
Wait, what if Lora wanted to influence the Rose cult with her feather? Or maybe use their connection to a different god to alert the other angelic choirs?

I honestly have no fucking clue what we could have done to cause this, so I'm just throwing random crap at the wall to see what sticks.

>>44196028
> You're not Lora, are you?

I thought the feather was supposed to be a trump card, something we could play and get full authority with. If she really wanted us to play it she should've given us some emphasis, we're doing what we can.

Called, writing.

Today in Real Life Shit: Interrupting Vote Calls.

Razza frazza...

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>>44196028
"How can I help?" you ask, immediately. Lora sighs; you can see her try to beat her wings, only for the chains to draw tight and let out a gout of blood from the hooks.

"You can't," she snarls. "I'd gentle my fucking tone but this /hurts/. Lisa's trying to keep me from helping you."

You look at the chains that keep slip-sliding from Lora's face. "Not working how she imagined it?"

"She can't prevent me from speaking to the heritor at /all/. So instead she's forcing me to make myself suffer."

".../You/ are doing this to you?"

"NOT EXACTLY BY FUCKING CHOICE, FEATHERFUCKER!"

"Okay, there's no need to yell," you answer, calmly. You dig out the pipe, pack it, and put it in Lora's mouth before you light it. The look in her eyes is grateful. Pained. "As for the accusation, she wishes, I imagine."

"Your love life's not relevant to my goals," Lora mutters around the stem. "Fuck whoever you like. Though honestly, this is some good shit. Give whoever got you this a quickie for me."

"...That'd be the feathers."

"Oh. Well, no need to persuade her. If you wanna talk, talk."

> What ask?

>>44197482
I assume this means you want me to kill her sooner rather than later. I'm personally feeling more inclined to skip steps one and two of my grand plan and go straight to the murdering her part.

Also thank god its not our fault.

>>44197482
>I can't shake the feeling there's some kind of shellgame fuckery going on over my head here. If helping me is the fastest way to me helping you, what do I need to look out for?

>>44197482
> hypothetically, what is buried out here that a money grubbing necromancer would risk a war to get? besides all the gold?

>>44197601
Oh, I like this question. Seconding.

>>44197482
>>44197601
This is pretty good.
> hypothetically, what is buried out here that a money grubbing necromancer would risk a war to get? besides all the gold?

>Do you (the death choir) have anything to do with the 'shovels cannot break the ground' thing? If so, why can Lisa?

Also
@Archivebro
She's being made into us, after all. As a general rule, people deserve lives better than that.

Fucking hell man don't drop that kind of soundbite on me in a quest thread

>>44197601
fuck whatever I suggested, backing this

>>44197613
all the dead bodies?

>>44197601
this and then >>44197571

Votes called, writing.

>>44197482
how did they do this?

How is Lisa doing this to you right now?

>>44197601
Seconding.

Also, ask her if she can use the clerics of the Rose cult to contact any of her kind. If we could get some outside assistance, even just to interfere with the diabolical plans surrounding the Dungeon, that'd be another advantage for us.

I just feel like the Death Choir and a lot of the other angels would be VERY upset to hear about one of their own being tortured and enslaved.

Hey guys, I just realized something. If you can cut out years of your own life and use it to bring someone back from death, does this mean that you could gain additional years of life by killing people?

In chemistry any reaction can be reversed. Necromancy hopefully works similarly

Notice: This line of thinking DEFINITELY leads to zombie armies.

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>>44197482
"What's Lisa after down here? Besides, you know, the gold and corpses?"

Lora sighs. And then she perks up. The angel starts to laugh giddily - you have to take the pipe from her mouth - and beams with absolute joy. Her hysterical mirth echoes through the tiny room.

"SHE FORGOT TO TELL ME NOT TO TELL YOU!" she yells. "THAT STUPID LITTLE WORM! AHAHAHAHAHAHA! LISTEN THE FUCK UP, IT'S FUCKING STORY TIME!"

You sit back down and smoke your pipe while Lora smiles in savage glee.

"Long ago, so long ago that the elves did not yet know fire and the humanity had not yet been birthed in the forges of heaven, there was a god, and that god was sentenced to death. It is still forbidden to speak the god's name, or its crimes, but for this, the first and only case of death delivered in the name of justice to the gods, a weapon was forged - a spear. And its tip was hammered from the dreams the god's crime had killed, and its shaft carved from the bones of the innocent it had destroyed, and the spear struck it a terrible blow, and the god's life was ended and done."

You listen with rapt attention.

"In those days I was still forming much of the Dungeon. The gods asked me to dispose of the terrible weapon, so I broke it into shards and buried it all through the Lichyard, where the wards I was creating would protect it from any who sought to use what was left of its power, or profit from the divine death that clung to it. Except now my power is being abused to peel those wards away, and Lisa is collecting the shards so that she can extort wealth and power from the realms of the living with the threat of the spear."

"...Are you fucking kidding me?"

Lora laughs, even as the hooks shred her skin. "NO! SHE'S A GREEDY LITTLE WORM, DRUNK ON POWER, AND SHE ALREADY HAS SOME OF THE FRAGMENTS!"

The chains rip tight, and the angel laughs louder, laughs through her scream of pain.

"AHAHAHA, SHE NOTICED! BUT IT'S TOO LATE, LISA! SHE'S COMING FOR YOU NEXT, YOU FILTH!"

>>44198554
Vox has already stated in a previous thread that you can't expand your natural years with necromancy. Immortality through the deathly arts means either lichdom or vampirism.

You can, however, use the life force of others to do necromancy, without having to make the necessary sacrifices of your own life. Of course, this also leads to zombie armies, so its obviously a no-go for Brianna (and now, by extension, River).

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>>44198622
You stand up, taking a step to try and help the angel; the hooks are leaving massive gouges in her body, slathering the floor with red, red blood.

But then you wake up.

> Screaming
> Crying
> Angry

>>44198622
Oh, no biggie, it's just the FUCKING SPEAR OF DESTINY.
FUCK.
FUCK FUCKITTY FUCK FUCKING FUCK

> Screaming

FEAR IS THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE

>>44198665

> Angry

That bitch is torturing an angel and dozens of living being and desecrating graves so she can make money. She doesn't even have a GOOD evil reason for doing it, just profit.
>>44198622

Yeah, that... I think I've read this story before, except instead of a god killing spear it was a few dozen iron golems filled with elemental void being used for extortion. Countless adventurers were sent after the people behind that. They were later ""accidentally"" dropped and ate the entire world and freed the monster trapped in its core by the gods. [Pathfinder]

>>44198665
>Angry
"Oh hey let's desecrate sacred ground for a godly weapon because it probably sells for a lot" jesus christ woman have some common sense

>>44198622
So Lisa is basically after the Spear of Longinus: Fantasy Edition? Y'know, with hindsight, I am not surprised one bit. Each of these 'masters' seems to be an idiot in one way or another.

Also, following that trail of thought, maybe we can take a guess at what each of the other masters are after or stand to gain in the Dungeon by examining their titles.

>>44198735
Not even that, shes stealing it for the purposes of extortion, ignoring the fact that this can't end well for her.

>>44198665
> Screaming Mad

Man, fuck Lisa.

>>44198665
Also, voting:
>RIGHTEOUS FURY

Because we have fucking principles and morals, and we are going to tear that greedy bitch a new asshole with that fucking spear she wants so much.

>>44198622
> Angry

Lisa is desecrating an ancient and sacred graveyard, defiling the living and the dead, and unleashing a fantasy WMD, for fucking MONEY? No. This will not stand. Not that we were planning on letting her live yesterday, but she is a dead woman.

>>44198665
>Angry

We've got too much information for grief or fear right now. We have just enough information for furious resolve.

I'VE GOT YOUR NAME.

I'VE GOT YOUR ASS!

>>44198665
> Angry
I'm pretty sure Bri would be absolutely livid.

>>44198724
Found the story thread, took about 5 seconds. Its a tale of corruption and insanity that escalates to destroying, corrupting, or damaging multiple parts of the universe. As well as taking an already-eldrich abomination and making it go profoundly insane. http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/21445029/

>Angry
YUP
WE'RE GONNA FUCK. YOU. UP.

> Angry

So guys, what if... what if we melted down those gold coins and forged them into something we could stab her with, as a way of returning to sender.

>>44199016
Gold doesn't make a ver y ogod stabbing weapon

...bludgeoning on the other hand

>>44199050
We could always just keep it molten and splash her with it. Actually, that'd be a fitting execution, death by molten gold, Game of Thrones Style.

>>44198665
>> Angry
> But triumphant

We've got her number now, and she's going to go down So. Damn. Hard.

Votes called in overwhelming favor of being angry.

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>>44199244
ALWAYS ANGRY, ALL THE TIME

>>44199080
She's known for doing that pain servant thing to countless people. Grab some nails and maggots, then pour molten gold down her throat then bind the servant to the Lichyard as a warning. It wouldn't even be an eye for an eye, more like her eye for however many hundreds of eyes shes gouged out.

The method is distasteful but as with our aunts lesson was Power is Power and the pain servants are undoubtedly very effective and what better punishment for defiling the resting place for the dead then to restlessly maintain and protect the place for all time?

And then build a shadow out of the death just to rub it all in.

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>>44199342
Well, at least one person's happy with that idea anon.

>>44199342
That sounds like zombies path.

>>44199342
thats not going to work. It doesn't matter what we do to Lisa, her souls going into the sword anyway.

>>44199342
That road leads to zombie armies anon, and I doubt many of the Rose Cultists would be okay with that as much as she deserves it. I'm sure Lora can handle her judgement. She's had a lot of time to meditate on it.

>>44199440
But maybe we can make a shadow out of her final moments of terror, being slowly consumed by the angelic sword of oblivion?

Or, if we run into one of those Oni, we could get a giant semi-demonic shadow with claws, teeth, horns and lots of muscle.

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I think we know what to do now.

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>>44198665
Your eyes snap open. For a moment you feel a wrench in your heart, at the memory of what you just saw.

Then you're angry.

"That BLASPHEMOUS, INSANE, GREEDY LITTLE /WRETCH/!" Nathan rolls out of his bedroll, Verve springing to hand, as you descend into vicious cursing.

You can feel Fetch's confusion at your fury, but right now, you don't care.

"What's wrong?" Amy asks, appearing from the darkness. "Bri?"

"She's digging up the Lichyard for MONEY!" you snarl. "To steal a weapon and force people to drown her in whores and wine and fucking gold! Of all the IDIOTIC, GREEDY, SHORT-SIGHTED SHIT, THIS TAKES THE FUCKING CAKE! I'M GOING TO KILL HER, AND WHEN I DO I'M GOING TO PISS IN THE WOUNDS AND -"

Amy takes your hands in her own and looks at you, close, with those icy eyes of hers. "Love, I need you to calm down," she murmurs. "Remember what you told me. About revenge."

> Don't lecture me!
> Pull out of her grip.
> Try to calm down.
> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!

>>44199644
> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!

>>44199644
> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!

>>44199644
>> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!

We /told/ them to, dammit.

Then,
> Try to calm down.

>>44199644
>>44199702

a bit of clarification here, is option four about them not waking us up to take our turn on the watch?

> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!

>>44199644
>This isn't revenge. Revenge implies that its personal. This bitch is going to die screaming because its what she purchased, and no one can say a la Croix skimped on anything. (except mark, fuck mark)

>>44199713
though in retrospect it's good that they didn't, since we got to talk with lora

>>44199713
Personally, I'd reverse that. Seems more in keeping with our character to start to calm down until she remembers that she was supposed to be woken up.

>>44199739
Yes.

>>44199781
>
Actually yeah, that. Do that. Amending vote >>44199713

>>44199644
>> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!
followed by
>> Try to calm down.

>>44199644
>And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!
>Amy hugs her and lets her cry, just like Brianna let the poor bird cry after finally facing and defeating the man that tortured her for 3 years.

Brianna has a very shitty job, and she deserves to vent. But lets make sure to share what we just learned with the rest of the team, so they can understand and be furious too.

>>44199644
>Try to calm down.
Save the anger for when it's productive
For example, listing off every single thing she has done wrong in her final moments before the angel takes her.

>>44199644
>Try to calm down

>44199781
Which I just realized I should have made more clear was a vote for

> Try to calm down.
Followed about 10 seconds later by
> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!

>>44199868
Oh, for the love of... This is why I hate doing quests on my phone. Curse you, vox, for being such a good QM that I didn't even have a choice to simply read it later

>>44199644
> Try to calm down.
> Fail
> And you! YOU FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!

>>44199644
>Try to calm down.
Into an icy rage though. It's not the bird's fault that lisa's such scum, no need to take it out on her.

>>44199644
What was Rivers reaction to our outburst?

>>44200043
Anon asking the correct question.

River is not in the sightline.

>>44200110
Interesting..

Votes called.

Writing.

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>>44199644
Vote was won by one vote and since this is an immediate reaction I'm not really combining.

You take a deep, steadying breath. Let it out.

Still angry. But Amy's right. You can't let yourself ride this all the way to Zombietown. The sheer outrage of it all makes you shake, even as the bird girl wraps you in a hug.

After a long moment, you hug her back.

"It's okay," you murmur. "...I'm okay. Where's River?"

"She said she'd take your watch. Said the ghost told her you needed the rest."

"..." You sigh. "Not as much as someone who's still healing. Get her back here, I'll make the tea."

Nathan sheathes his sword. "No, I'll make the tea. You...you just sit, and tell us what's going on."

Soon enough everyone is gathered back into the camp. River looks tired but not like she's about to keel over - you can always tell, with elves, because their ears droop like dying flowers no matter how hard they try to deny it.

Telling the tale Lora told you has Nathan shaking in his seat and Amy looking pale. You have to catch River up on some of the context; when you do she just /stares/ at you, in faint disbelief.

"So, yeah," you say in a low voice. "I'm mad."

Amy nods and hands River her healing tea. The elf takes a sip, makes a face, and swallows. You can see the precise moment in her eyes when she resigns herself to suffering and just downs the rest of the cup.

"Just killing Lisa's not going to solve this," River says, trying to scrape the tea flavor off of her tongue with her teeth and failing miserably. "All you'll do is scatter her forces, though it might end up reinstalling those wards if it's this angel's power keeping them down. Mercs want paying, and...well, my company's not even the worst people down here."

"Define worst," Nathan says slowly.

"She's got Red Waerlochs."

It's Nathan's turn to demonstrate how many languages he can curse in.

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>>44201141
When you see that Amy is confused, you explain. "The Red Waerlochs got the name from their very first job. Their employer was a barony, out to the west of Starfall, that tried to cheat them out of their payment. So the company rolled through and killed everything. /Everything/. Every animal, every man, woman, and child. They stormed through the baron's palace, tortured the servants to death, and then dragged the baron through his ravaged lands before staking him out for the crows. This has sort of set the tone for their employment."

"Lady of Ravens," Amy murmurs.

"She's got the dig teams working overtime," River continues. "Even the soldiers dig. The Keepers ambush where they can but even with sappers and superior knowledge they don't have the numbers for this fight. From the sound of it, neither does this Lakehallow place."

"Not really, no," you agree. "...We know a guy who might be able to get us some favors, though."

"Who?" the elf asks.

Amy holds up Miles' rusty shackles. "A friend of mine. He's mostly dead now, but him and his owe us a bit."

"Give me a minute to think here..."

> Free up the la Croix forces first. With the shrine safe, you can commit them to further action.
> Find a demonic altar and finish killing Miles. He said Amy would have friends in hell. Maybe they can help.
> Gun for Lisa first anyway; you can take advantage of the chaos.
> Investigate the town that straddles the river.
> Write-in

>>44201246
>> Free up the la Croix forces first. With the shrine safe, you can commit them to further action.
We do NOT need Hell knowing about the Spear of Fuck.
Better the devil you know than, well, the Devil.

>>44201246
> Free up the la Croix forces first. With the shrine safe, you can commit them to further action.

>>44201246
>> Free up the la Croix forces first. With the shrine safe, you can commit them to further action.

Never let it be said that the La Croix shied from a fight. Also, now that things can't get much worse, we need to let them in on it, they'll want this spear buried more than we do, after all, they've got a god on there side and gods are usually power tripping assholes who don't like dying.

>>44201141
>>44201246
Woa, hold on. You did say Red Waerlochs will be really, really angry about those who cheated them outta payment, right?
How do they feel about haunted money? Cursed payment? Does that count as 'payment cheating'?

>>44201246
> Free up the la Croix forces first. With the shrine safe, you can commit them to further action.

family does for family, and all that.

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>>44201349
Great question.

You should ask one of them.

>>44201349
These are Bad People. I don't think they give a goddamn fuck about what ill will they accrue.

>>44201349
This is a good point. Also, even if this doesn't get to them, might wanna watch for chances to otherwise cut off Lisa's ability to keep paying them.

>>44201246
>Gun for Lisa first anyway; you can take advantage of the chaos.

>>44201246
Tricky. If these Red Waerloch assholes are that bad, we don't want to get caught in a fight we can't win. Even so, we can't leave the cousins on their own for long. If we can find out what's going on in that town, maybe we can find some allies to show us where the weak points in Lisa's forces are (River can do this as well, but I'm not sure she'll like going up against old friends).

>Investigate the town that straddles the river, but quietly.
If any of Lisa's mercs see Bri or River, and she thinks the townspeople are harboring you, the Red's won't hesitate to put the town to the torch.

>>44201371
But they're an effective means of murder. They're a weapon, which can have two edges. Currently that edge is facing us, but what if we can convince it to swing the other way around?

>>44201444
It's an option, I'll admit. Lets weigh it against the others.

Gonna leave this vote open while I get new t hread made.

Also more coffee, painkillers, etc, etc.

> Free up the la Croix forces first. With the shrine safe, you can commit them to further action.

>>44201246
> Free up the la Croix forces first. With the shrine safe, you can commit them to further action.

Wave our magic feather at the assholes who we don't hate.

>>44201246
>Like I've been saying: The mercenary contract. Break it in our favor.

How about we let it slip that the "Shard of the spear" isn't safe in the la Croix shine and should be moved to Lakehallow, send out a group with a box containing the feather not the shard. Lisa steals the feather thinking its the shard, Bad juju ensues.

>>44202520

Who would be in the (inevitably going to die) escort group, though?

I can't think of anyone who a) we'd be willing to sacrifice and (of the few if any we ARE willing to sacrifice) b) isn't of better use to us alive.

And we can't just have them flee at the first sign of an ambush because that'd be too suspicious.

>>44202520
>>44202609
interesting proposition.

Maybe keep the container in a chicken, as a "stealthy" escort that is not supposed to look important?

>>44202647
>>44202609
We could use any number of Merc corpses

>>44202688

So they come across it, with all the guards dead but the treasure untouched? There's suspicious and then there's duct-taping a "PLEEZ TOUCH ME" sign to a beartrap.

Unless you're suggesting the zombie army route, in which case you might want to go back and reread the thread.

>>44202688
humanoid zombies are a lot less unassuming. At most, they should be near but not the actual escorts, acting as "distractions" or maybe even just scouts.

>>44202829
They are undead... Lisa knows we are a Necromancer and undead servants aren't against the rules.

>>44202866
Shades of grey

>>44203241
One problem is our obligations far out way our ability. we aren't a Master Necromancer but we are expected at the end of this road to command the entirety of the dungeon.

Armies of zombies was a benchmark problem before as it was representative of using the dead to encroach on the living. Down here we are facing exactly that, but we are also facing a threat against the dead in the form of all the chain bearers.

Its to early to presume we are ready to wield the powers of a fully operational necromancer, but we should be pushing our limits more then we have been in that regard.

NEW THREAD!

>>44203743
>>44203743
>>44203743
>>44203743