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>>44500450

It's a bright morning – or, considering how long you slept, early afternoon – and the world is starting to show signs of new life. It's warmer here than it has ever been, with the snow clinging on for dear life and the sky growing lighter. Still the dead of Winter compared with the perpetual warmth found within the fairy kingdom, of course, but perhaps that is to be expected. The cold, either way, does not seem to bother Cernunnos in the slightest – even taking his continued defiance of pants into account.

He stands a fair distance away, leaning on his stone tipped spear as the wind stirs his long, straggly hair into lashing tendrils. Six of his best warriors stand with him, any nobility in their features lost beneath barbarism and feral decorations. With hair woven into filthy dreadlocks and bone totems festooning their wiry frames, they are a perfect match for their leader. At least, you think wryly to yourself, they have yet to discard clothes entirely.

“Mia dear, it's so good to see you up and about,” Elliot tells you, regarding the gathered warriors with a dubious eye, “We've been talking, Joseph and I, and it might be prudent to leave someone behind. Just to, ah, make sure things are kept under control. Leon is well enough to be walking about, now, and we can't ignore the possibility of him...”

Running off, you suggest, does he think Leon is likely to do that?

“Well,” Joseph adds, “He's got history.”

“I volunteer,” Elliot offers graciously, “Don't look so surprised, you two, I've built up quite the rapport with our Scottish friend. We understand each other, I'd like to think.”

Elliot is useful, there's no denying it, but he might have a point. Plus, if the two of them are already friends, it might look less like you're posting a guard.

>Leave Elliot here
>Take Elliot with you
>Other

>>44500456
I'm awake!

>Leave Elliot here
They are so going to fuck.

>>44500456
>>Leave Elliot here
>>44500563
Elliot has class. They'll go out on a date first.

>>44500579
This is the same girl who hooked up with a drunk Leon at the club and got laid the same night.

>>44500579
>>44500563

You give Elliot a dubious look here – you're almost certain that he has some underlying motive going on, but you can't quite think what – but consider his request. Joseph, when you glance across at him, merely shrugs helplessly. You don't think Leon has much in the way of money, so there's nothing for Elliot to swindle out of him, and what other reason could Elliot have for remaining behind with his former enemy?

“Oh come now!” Elliot replies, feigning outrage, “We're the best of friends, these days!”

Well, they DID play a few card games without killing each other, so that has to count for something. Sighing, you nod – Elliot can remain here, since he's so fond of the idea. You'd feel a little better, as well, to know that there was someone keeping Leon company. It's not that you're expecting him to run amok or anything, but...

“I shall take very good care of him!” the foppish young man promises, “Don't you worry about that!”

“Eh...” Joseph shrugs again, shaking his head in weary exasperation, “I suppose we might as well leave them to it. Leon doesn't have any demons on his side, so that puts a pretty hard limit on how much damage he can cause – not to imply that he's harmless, though.”

He sounds like a man speaking from bitter experience.

“I suppose I do,” he sighs, watching as Elliot scurries away, back into the kingdom. “I just hope Elliot knows that he's getting himself into.”

Before you can offer an opinion on that little point, you are interrupted by Cernunnos, splitting off from his barbarous army to greet you. “Greetings, little worm!” he shouts, still sticking with that irritating little nickname, “A fine day for battle, would you not agree?”

>>44500680

Frankly, you couldn't say one way or another. Although you do have some experience with battles – quite a lot, actually, considering how long you've been in this world – you've never really stopped to notice the weather, or any relationship between fighting and the climate. He probably wasn't speaking literally, in any case. Sticking with the safe answer, you mumble something non-committal and let your gaze pass across the ranks of his warriors. An intimidating bunch, and no doubt about it.

“The finest warriors in the kingdom!” Cernunnos boasts, causing his listening minions to howl and pound their chests, “And MY kind of warriors – not pampered heroes, or lapdogs of the court!”

Subtle. You're glad Cassandra isn't around to hear that little comment. Still, looking across them, you feel like you should make SOME comment, at least.

>Only six of them?
>Titania said that we're all expendable. Did you know that?
>They certainly look... fearsome
>Other

>>44500701
>They certainly look... fearsome
But uh
>Only six of them?

>>44500701
>>They certainly look... fearsome
>>Only six of them?
The dirty half dozen?

>>44500751
>>44500728

Well, they certainly look fearsome, you can't really deny that – but, and you say this with a certain degree of trepidation, only six of them? Does he really think that's going to be enough to storm into hostile territory and do... whatever it is they're planning on doing?

“There are more, of course,” Cernunnos glowers, with the sensitive voice of someone nursing a bruised ego. You get the impression, somehow, that he would have preferred a great many more soldiers. Perhaps these are the only ones he trusts to come along with him – or, perhaps, these are the only ones that trust HIM enough to follow the horned god into battle. “These are my guards, the rest of the army has already marched forth to scout the area. They will cut a path through whatever filth stands between us and our objective.”

That's more like it. So, you ask, how many soldiers is he expecting to be waiting at the forest?

“The other six,” Cernunnos growls, his voice echoing out from beneath that ominous deer skull.

Right, you decide after an awkward moment, that's fine. You can work with that. Some instinct tells you that you're going to end up doing most of the work, whatever happens – not that you're getting cynical or anything.

“Morning,” Petra says from behind you, thankfully offering a respite from this awful conversation, “Elliot seems happy, yes? We passed on the way here, and he was practically skipping. I don't like it – men should not skip, yes? Not grown men, certainly!”

You brief the redhead on recent changes. Elliot will be staying here, while Joseph will be coming along with you.

“Good, I suppose,” Petra shrugs, “Time to pull your weight, yes? Ah, but we should get a move on. No way of knowing how long we'll be out – anything you need to do before we leave?”

>I'm good to go
>There was something... (Write in)

>>44500877
>>I'm good to go
Can't think of anything.

>>44500877
>I'm good to go

>>44500877
>>I'm good to go
If there's anything else, I can't think of it.

>>44500982
>>44500914
>>44500899

Nothing, you reply with a firm shake of your head, you're good to go.

“Good!” Petra announces, grinning broadly, “There has been enough time wasted already, yes? This is the start of something, I think, something productive!”

Her enthusiasm, you must admit, is infectious. When Cernunnos blows his great hunting horn to signal the advance, you can't help but join in as his warriors howl and whoop along with it. You stop short of pounding your fist into your chest, though, for fear of opening up your most recent injuries. You're not THAT eager to see blood spilled, after all. Cernunnos takes off with great, loping strides, marching through the glistening snow as if it was no obstacle at all. His warriors are equally light footed, practically dancing across the white surface. By comparison, you feel slow and clumsy, putting an absurd amount of effort into every one of your steps.

With such a disparity in speed, the fairy war party quickly gains a lead on you, leaving you following in their footsteps. Honestly, it's an improvement – you tended to keep your eyes on the ground anyway, for fear of looking up and getting a look at Cernunnos' bare backside. When the horned god has finally faded into the distance, you allow yourself a glance up at the scenery around you.

Cutting through the snow, painting lines of green against the white backdrop you had grown so accustomed to seeing, thick trails of lichen and moss probe out into the world. Creeping up the sides of crooked buildings, even reaching into empty windows and doorways, the vegetation looks more like an invading organism than anything else. Colour it red, and you could call it a scene from War of the Worlds. The buildings themselves grow more and more desolate as you walk further and further from the city, as if the greenery is pulling them slowly apart.

>>44501065

Eventually, you find yourself walking around ruins – even walking over the crumbling piles of shattered stone, at times. If this is what the new forest is capable of doing, pulling apart even the grandest structures mankind was capable of building, you're not surprised that Titania had her concerns about it. It might not be spreading very quickly, but with a few more divine fragments, the master of this dark forest might just be able to strangle the whole world.

A good thing, then, that you're here to stop them. Passing the last piles of rubble – the last things that could, perhaps, be recognised as human constructions – you notice the first of many trees. Tall, twisted and blackened, the thing looks more like the product of a hideous corruption than anything nature could have created. Worse still, the trees are WARM, as if hot blood is flowing beneath their gnarled bark. Pulling your hand back from the tree you were touching, you find yourself wiping your hand on your trousers. How disgusting.

And then, seemingly in the blink of an eye, the great forest is rising up before you. Trees bend and buckle to form an abhorrent gateway, while further in they reach up into the sky and blot out any light from above. Of the hunting party, there is no sign.

“This is a blasphemous place,” Joseph breathes, looking ahead with fear and wonder, “The worst kind of hell.”

“It should be burned,” Petra agrees, “Ah, but that's our job, yes?”

Yes it is, you murmur, stepping through that “natural” gateway. Inside, shrouded in gloom, the forest seems to stretch out all around you. There is a path – of sorts – to one side, and a shallow stream leading the other way. Then, as you glance about, you hear distant shouting from deep within the undergrowth.

>Follow the path
>Follow the stream
>Chase after the shouting

>>44501093
>Chase after the shouting
Cern's men might have made contact.

>>44501093
>Chase after the shouting

>>44501093
>>Chase after the shouting
This could be a trap but I think we can risk it.

>>44501186
>>44501126
>>44501106

That shouting must be from one of Cernunnos' warriors, one of the advanced scouts, perhaps. They must have made contact with... something. The Intoxicating One had filled his fortress with mindless slaves – perhaps the master of this domain created a more dangerous form of life to patrol these shadowed pathways. Whatever the cause, you can't just leave one of the warriors there to fend for themselves. You need to track them down!

Which, ultimately, proves to be harder than you expected. As you hurry off into the undergrowth, brushing through vast ferns and stepping over patches of clinging thorns, you notice the voice growing more distant still. They could be fleeing, or this otherworldly forest might be twisting their voice and casting it wildly abroad. All you can do is chase it as best you can, fighting through branches that claw at you and towering sheets of moss that blanket any flat surface. Eventually, the voice leads you to a clearing – or, at least, the closest thing you're likely to get to a clearing. It takes a moment for you to realise that the lumpen forms dotted about here are tombstones, drowned under moss and lichen. This is a graveyard.

“Spooky,” Petra breathes, drawing her sword and holding it close. Before she can say anything else, though, a low groan rolls out through the clearing. Following the sound, you find one of Cernunnos' warriors – his skin is covered in bloody wounds and his eyes are wild with madness – slumped against one of the stones.

“Trees,” he rambles when you draw closer, “They move! They called me in, but these are no trees, not sane ones! They're hungry, the scent of blood draws them. It draws them in!”

And the scent of blood, you realise, hand heavily over this entire clearing. Slowly, as his rambling fades into sobbing, you hear the rustle of movement within the undergrowth.

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>>44501276

What emerges from the tree line is not human, and not quite a fairy either. Dark women, their skin mottled with patches of bark and lichen, shamble out of the trees and stalk towards you, their limbs contorting with the kind of dexterity that no normal human should possess. Wind curls around you as they approach, carrying a thin mist with it that clings to your feet. You count, perhaps, six of them, although the faint signs of movement within the forest suggests even more lying in wait.

“I don't think we're welcome here,” Joseph mutters, “But if they follow the scent of blood...”

Then you've got a distraction, right here. The thought turns your stomach, but nevertheless, the idea does come to you – you might be able to slip quietly from the clearing, while the creatures are busy with their prey. After all, Titania DID say that the warriors were expendable...

“It could work,” Petra admits softly, thinking the exact same thoughts, “But...”

>We're fighting. Two each, okay?
>Let's make a quiet exit
>Other

>>44501284
Eh, I don't like the idea of just leaving him, Demon or no.
>We're fighting. Two each, okay?

>>44501284
>>We're fighting. Two each, okay?
We've got all our demons back now, right? Hua Po should be able to handle this.

>>44501284
>We're fighting. Two each, okay?
Though we need to heal and seal his wounds after we are done. Hell, maybe before that get some of his blood on a cloth and throw it in the opposite direction we head.

>>44501348
>We've got all our demons back now, right?

>That's correct. Everyone's demons are back to full health

>>44501349
>>44501348
>>44501324

You're not leaving him here, to whatever awful fate lies ahead, just for the chance to make a clean getaway. No, you're fighting – and, conveniently enough, there are enough of them for two each. If you were alone, as the broken warrior babbling at your feet was, their numbers might be enough to carry the fight. With their advantage stolen away, you should be able to handle them without too much trouble.

“That's what I like to hear!” Petra grins, flames sweeping down her sword as she fires it into life, “Leave no man behind!”

“He's in no position to fight,” Joseph warns, light filling the clearing as he summons Salamander, “I'll keep them away from him as best I can.”

Nodding – even though Joseph has already turned away from you – you focus your attentions on the advancing pair of demons, their juddering gait sending a cold shiver of unease down your spine as they break off from the rest of their kin to prowl around you. It seems they sensed your decision to fight, and reacted accordingly. That's fine with you – the more focussed they are on stalking you, the less attention they'll pay towards the fallen warrior. Moving slowly, keeping both the dryads in sight, you slip a little further away from the wounded fairy. They follow, chittering and giggling to themselves as they circle you.

“Little lost girl...” one of them cackles, the branches growing from her back lashing and biting at the air.

>Summon a demon to fight
>Summon a demon and fight personally
>Other

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>>44501459
>Summon a demon and fight personally
Hua Po.

Though if Petra wants to break out her Berserker and give us all a little of that Tarukaja kick I wouldn't mind.

>>44501459
>Summon a demon and fight personally
Hua Po. And just shoot it, I don't want to get caught in the fire blast.

>Wind curls around you as they approach, carrying a thin mist with it that clings to your feet.
And turn off Wind on the gun. Just in case.

>>44501459
>>Summon a demon and fight personally
Hua Po, yeah

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Rolled 108, 113 = 221 (2d120)

>>44501486
>>44501515
>>44501608

You summon Hua Po – these things are wood, you figure, so they should burn pretty well – before slipping your phone back into your pocket and drawing your gun. Twisting the feathered barrel back into something approaching normality, you aim it at the first of the prowling demons. Staring you down, it giggles again at the sight of the gun. It almost makes you wonder if it doesn't realise what a gun even IS, let alone what it's for.

It's going to be a hell of a lesson.

“I, um, I don't like this place much,” Hua Po whispers to you as her flickering eyes track the dryads, “There's a bad smell here, further in. Like something, um, like something died but kept walking.”

Sounds like a massive ghoul, you think to yourself, and you've got plenty of experience with THOSE awful things. All the more reason to get things cleared up here as quickly – and cleanly – as possible.

>Please roll 2D100, for Hua Po and Mia. I'll take the highest of the first three!

Rolled 60, 48 = 108 (2d100)

>>44501658
Well we're fucked. How are these things as strong as Berserker?

Rolled 97, 92 = 189 (2d100)

>>44501658
Ameliadammit.

Rolled 95, 64 = 159 (2d100)

>>44501658
Moloch pls, I am going to start Tarunda-ing everything now on principle soon.

>>44501681
Least you mitigated it.

>>44501676

>I counted both of them as one enemy of above average strength. I never expected a roll like that, though!

>>44501682

>Well, it is SMT, after all!

>>44501705
So does weaknesses only matter if something hits but doesn't effect their dice pool? Or at least initially?

Cause I remember crippling Pazuzu back in the day with ice so bad that he only rolled a d60.

>>44501735

>Different elements have their own effects on enemies. Ice slows things, reducing their dice pool, while fire generally deals more severe wounds and cancels regeneration. I hope I didn't misunderstand your question, though.

>>44501796
So what does hitting an enemies weakness do? Just straight more damage than normal?

Also what does Wind and Lightning do, effect wise?

>>44501842

>Weaknesses do more damage, yes. I tend to calculate damage with hits - an enemy might need three "hits" to be defeated, for example - and a weakness might count as two hits.
>Wind displaces enemies, potentially knocking them into walls or off high drops. Lightning makes them more vulnerable to subsequent physical attacks.

>>44501681

“Here I go!” Hua Po chirps, scraping together as much confidence as she can and flinging fire at the pair of stalking demons. The flames flicker wildly, lighting up the gloomy clearing and sending the shadows here into thrashing life. In that moment of light, you see eyes glistening all around you, shining out from the trees. A sense of foreboding fills you as the mist suddenly lifts, burned away by the sudden heat. A second later, and the mist comes flooding back – stronger, this time, and thick enough to dampen down Hua Po's fire.

“What?” the little fairy gasps, gawking at the sight of her attack failing, “But... but wood!”

Before she can say anything more, or before you can answer her outraged protest, a wind rises up from the ground to batter you both, spinning the little fairy like someone caught in a blender. It leaves you dizzy, so much so that, when the next dryad rises up before you, all you can do is stumble backwards. You fire as you fall, the gunshot cracking out through the clearing, but the bullet flies wide. Cursing, you scrabble back as the demon before you lashes out with winding, coiling branches. The thin tips, sharp enough to draw blood, miss you, but they nevertheless wrap around your ankle, clinging tightly to you.

“Here...” the demon hisses, leering as it begins to tug at you, dragging you across the rough ground as it slinks back to the tree line, where more of its kin wait for you. Eyes wide with fear, you scrabble for Midnight, gripping the curved blade tightly.

>Attack the demon with Midnight
>Teleport away and resume the attack
>Summon a new demon
>Other

>>44501929
>>Attack the demon with Midnight
Teleport to her side, using the surprise of 'did that girl teleport' to attack her.

Is Hua Po dead?

>>44501952
>Is Hua Po dead?

>No, she's still pretty healthy. Just a little disorientated, really.

>>44501929
>Attack the demon with Midnight
I guess have Hua Po try again.

>>44501929
>>Attack the demon with Midnight
Time to cut a bitch.

>>44501929
>Attack the demon with Midnight
>Hua Po attack the other
I wonder if throwing these little ones at consistently strong demons is teaching them to git gud.

Rolled 69, 21 = 90 (2d100)

>>44502022
>>44502016
>>44501989
>>44501952

>Could I get 2D100 for that? First for Hua Po, second for Mia. Best of the first three

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Rolled 85, 49 = 134 (2d100)

>>44502052

Rolled 5, 1 = 6 (2d100)

>>44502052
Well we won. Let's see how fare we can take it though.

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Rolled 95, 84 = 179 (2d100)

>>44502079
Wrong direction anon! Good thing there is no critfails.

>>44502052

Rolled 80, 32 = 112 (2d100)

>>44502052
>>44502079
ffffffff

>>44502104

Gripping Midnight's hilt tightly, you trigger the magic within the blade and blink – not away from the demon, escaping its clutches – but towards it, hopefully leaping into a blind spot. As you do so, you send a hard command to Hua Po, ordering her to focus on the other demon. Your stomach twists as you slip through space, appearing behind the wooden demon. Without your weight burdening it, the dryad lurches off balance, its feet scrabbling for a secure foothold on the slimy lichen. Recovering quickly, its head begins to twitch back and forth as it searches for you.

You don't give it a chance to lock eyes with you. Throwing yourself into the demon, you thrust Midnight's inhumanly sharp blade through the thing's wooden torso, dragging the blade down with all of your strength. Shrieking, the demon collapses backwards, almost landing on top of you as it falls. Wrenching the blade free – you notice, with a disturbing calmness, that it is smeared with a sticky sap rather than blood – you roll away and let the demon crumble to the ground. Turning to see how Hua Po is doing, you are forced to shield your eyes against a sudden flash of light.

Bending her fire into a tight beam, rather than a loose explosion, Hua Po blasts all of her power into the demon, immolating it with the concentrated energy. It's like watching a statue made out of ice being blasted by a laser, both flesh and wood flashing into vapour in a matter of seconds. When Hua Po relents, panting slightly, there is nothing left but a pair of smouldering feet and the stench of burning. It would almost be cartoonish, if the smell didn't turn your stomach.

As a silence falls across the clearing, you see the twinkling eyes wink out one by one, the other demons clearly thinking better of making an attempt on your life. Smart, for once.

>>44502210

The silence reminds you that the fallen warrior has stopped babbling and sobbing, lapsing instead into a bleary catatonia. Approaching him, you glance across at Petra and Joseph, both humans finished with their own fights. Petra is covered in shallow scratches, but seems unconcerned by the wounds, while Joseph is unharmed. He would have been sticking out of combat, you remind yourself, since his demon had to do the heavy lifting.

“Survived, then,” Petra mutters, as if worried her voice will attract more of the demons.

Nodding and whispering a brief reply, you kneel down next to the wounded fairy. He doesn't seem to be in much danger now, the flow of blood from his wounds having slowed to a crawl, but he could hardly be described as “responsive” either. Other than occasionally shaking his head, he barely moves.

“Gods,” he breaths, “That terrible skull!”

>Have a demon heal his wounds
>Ask about this “skull”
>Ask where Cernunnos is
>Other

>>44502248
>Have a demon heal his wounds
>Ask about this “skull”
>Ask where Cernunnos is

>>44502248
>Have a demon heal his wounds
Have Moh do it since Hua Po is tired.

>Ask about this “skull”
Loa?
>Ask where Cernunnos is

>>44502248
>>Have a demon heal his wounds
>>Ask about this “skull”
>>Ask where Cernunnos is
Yeah, all three. Do we know anyone with a skull for a face?

>>44502392
OOC I know there is Loa, the Fiends, Minotaur kinda. Probably more.

IC I don't think so.

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>>44502266
>>44502268
>>44502392

First, before you get to questioning the poor soul, you need to attend to his wounds. Fully aware that Hua Po is still weary from battle – she just needs a rest, you assume, and then she'll be ready for action – you call up Moh Shuvuu instead, already dreading what the little bird will come out with.

“Ah, the air is thick with the stench of death and darkness!” Moh Shuvuu crows, “A fitting mood for my rebirth – tremble, mortals, as I-”

Not helping, you interrupt softly, before your demon can launch fully into her spiel. You need her to heal people, not traumatise them.

“Then, uh...” Moh Shuvuu's face falls for a second, before she recovers, “Yes, I hold power over life and death! For you, lucky creature, I shall use my vast talents!” Taking a moment to form ludicrously overwrought hand gestures in the air, Moh Shuvuu then lays her hands upon the wounded fairy. With a flash of light, his wounds close up and scab over, leaving him with a few more scars to boast about. “It's, uh, it's done now,” your demon finishes lamely, “Can't do much about his mind though. That's your problem.”

Wonderful, you sigh as you return her to storage. Leaning a little closer, you ask the fairy about this “skull” he mentioned. What did he mean, exactly?

“That terrible face!” he shudders. His voice might be stronger now, but his eyes are still wide and crazed. “Like smoke and shadows, cloaked in death and decay! He spread blight and darkness with a touch, and our blades could not find him! He... he mocked us, as we were scattered and driven into the trees. Cernunnos...”

Yes, you ask patiently, where is Cernunnos?

“He followed it, no matter where that deathly shade fled,” the warrior gasps, “To the furthest corner of the woods, he chased it. Even when he was alone, he chased it! I can sense them now...”

>>44502579

Raising his hand, the warrior points out a direction. The undergrowth near where he points is flattened, marking out the path that he fled down to reach the clearing. So, you ask carefully, if you followed that path you'd find where Cernunnos is? You get no spoken response to that, but the warrior nods heavily. With that in mind, you start to rise, but the fairy summons one last burst of strength and grabs you by the collar.

“Burn it!” he gasps, “Burn the whole damn forest, burn it all to the ground!” He hisses his right into your face, so close that you can smell the acrid fear on his breath. So close that his eyes are vast white disks, the pupils wide and black as they roll wildly. That desperate plea seems to take the last of his strength, and he tumbles back to the ground once it is over. His head lolling back down to his chest, the only sign of life is the faint motion of his breathing.

“Well,” Joseph mutters, rubbing a hand down his face, “That doesn't sound very good, does it?”

No, you agree as you look again down the path he carved out for you to follow. It seems to lead into an even darker part of the forest, towards what can only be the master of this domain. Staring down that path fills you with a nameless dread – a dread worse because it cannot be named. You need to go down there, you know that, but...

Screwing up your courage, you slide Midnight back into your belt and stand, marching onto the first few steps of that rough, barely there path. Waiting, you tell yourself, won't make anything better. Do what you've got to do, and then go home.

Easier said than done, you think bitterly as Petra and Joseph fall in behind you.

Suddenly very happy we are immune to Dark.

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>>44502722

The path – if it is worthy of such a name – leads you along an insane route, weaving around trees more or less at random. It certainly looks like the path carved out by a mindless flight, and the occasional smears of blood, painted across ferns and tree trunks, only adds to the impression. Yet eventually it leads you to a new clearing – one barren of any decorations save for an ancient sword, buried deep into the lichen carpeted earth.

Heart hammering in your chest, you creep a little closer to that sword, stopping just short of touching it. As you reach out trembling fingers, there comes a deathly howl of wind and black fog, clinging greasily to the ground, rushes forth. It swirls around you before rising up into a hunched mountain, gathering at one single point and forming, with sinister ease, into a leering skull. Skeletal hands emerge from the gloom and grasp the sword, a physical body forming as the blade is pulled from the ground.

“Child,” the skeleton's snide voice rings out, “Have you come to grovel at my feet, to plead for one more day? I am the black god, Chernobog, and death is my sphere. Now bow down, child, and accept your destiny!”

“You!” Cernunnos, crashing out of the wilderness, howls, “Tired of running, are you? Then I'll destroy you, and cleanse your taint from this world! Come, little worm, and let us fight!”

Enough with that damn nickname!

>Choose a demon and fight
>Choose a demon and fight personally
>Retreat
>Other

>>44502821
>>Choose a demon and fight
Lilith for debuff

>>44502821
Right. THIS asshole. Okay lets do this right.
>>Choose a demon and fight
Lilim. Give up her attack round to do both Rakunda and Tarunda.

Petra should do Berserker and Tarukaja and Joseph should probably do Gabby for this one.

>>44502859
>>44502821
This, though I wonder if Petra is pissed or in shock.

>>44502821
>>44502859
Go with this. We can switch to Hua Po for fire damage once he's debuffed.

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Rolled 28, 49 = 77 (2d120)

>>44502897
>>44502887
>>44502859
>>44502830

Fear claws at you, slowing your pace as you stumble backwards and fumble out your phone. You need... you need to focus. You've come far enough already, you're not going to fall here. You will not crack!

Snarling behind your obsidian mask, you call up Lilim. Behind you, a warm rush of heavenly light tells you that Joseph has summoned Gabriel to the fight. Her radiance seems out of place here, amongst foetid decay and overflowing corruption, but somehow it seems to force some of that vileness back. It's comforting, somehow, knowing that you have the Archangel at your back. With Joseph sorted, you just need Petra to...

To your surprise, the redhead hasn't moved, frozen in place as she stares up at Chernobog. Her sword hangs limp in her grip, with hardly any strength in her fingers to keep it from sliding completely to the ground. You were scared at first – you still are scared, obviously – but this is something else. Her one eye is wide, hypnotised with undisguised terror, and even your cries cannot stir any life within it.

“Forget her!” Lilim hisses, drawing your attention back to her as she begins to weave magic, twisting ribbons of both green and purple energy into a single debilitating attack, “Watch your back, boss, this is serious!”

Oh, this is not good. This is not good at all!

>Please roll 2D100, for Cernunnos and Gabriel. I'll take the highest of the first three!

File: 1450388580446.png (312 KB, 489x563)

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Rolled 42, 24 = 66 (2d100)

>>44503027

Rolled 55, 73 = 128 (2d100)

>>44503027
Cern's got this, Gabby pull your weight girl

Rolled 89, 46 = 135 (2d100)

>>44503027
>You will not crack!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3F8mWUmCTlk

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>>44503066
>>44503095

Chernobog seems to... recoil every so slightly as Gabriel approaches, as though her divine power alone – even before she has drawn her delicate sword – is enough to rattle his bones. Even so, it is only a momentary lapse, and he rallies strong. His sword trails streamers of black vapour as he swings it slowly – luxuriously, almost – through the air. He wields it more like a priest swinging an incense burner, and the poisonous smoke that creeps off it only strengthens the illusion.

Although her face pales as she approaches, Gabriel nevertheless jabs at the looming skeleton with her sword, batting aside the black god's heavier blade with superior skill. Then, with a sudden twist, she slashes at him, scoring a deep gash along the length of his flowing robes. The attack casts away shadowy scraps of cloth that dissolve into reeking smoke as soon as they leave his festering body. It's hardly a wound at all, but it leave the black god open – defenceless. With that opening, Cernunnos strikes. Howling, succumbing to savagery, he lunches at Chernobog and plunges his spear up into the skeleton's midsection. It's a mighty blow, strong enough to lift Chernobog up off the ground, where he explodes back into greenish smoke.

“Look out!” Lilim shrieks as the smoke rushes past you, forming into Chernobog's form behind you. Heavily, his hand falls upon your shoulder.

“Accept death,” the black god intones, his voice dolorous. For a moment, you feel a faint chill running down your spine, and then... nothing. Nothing at all. That's odd.

“You bastard!” Petra screams, finally broken out of her trance, “Mia, get away from him!”

You don't need to be told twice. You scramble away, slipping out of Chernobog's numb grip as Petra calls up her demon Berserker. Switching out Lilim for Hua Po, you prepare yourself for battle.

>>44503276
Null dark is a bitch ain't it CHernie? Also you pissed of Petra, GG NO RE.

File: Berserker.jpg (36 KB, 383x798)

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Rolled 102, 70, 80, 89 = 341 (4d120)

>>44503276

“Valhalla!” Berserker cries, pounding a fist against his chest as he lifts his crudely forged sword. You feel strength – delirious, potent strength! - flooding into you and, if Hua Po's gasp is any indication, flowing into your demons as well. Gabriel and Cernunnos, as well, look charged up, filled with new and murderous energy.

How quickly the tide turns!

>Please roll 4D100, for Hua Po, Gabriel, Cernunnos, and Petra. Highest of the first three

>>44503336

>Scratch that, that should have been 4D120. My mistake! Please roll 4D120 instead!

File: 1450397378500.png (310 KB, 500x375)

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Rolled 40, 100, 30, 47 = 217 (4d120)

>>44503336
One more god rejected!

Rolled 110, 116, 84, 48 = 358 (4d120)

>>44503336
rolling
>>44503352
was about to say

Rolled 51, 49, 59, 37 = 196 (4d120)

>>44503336
Come on Petra. Your god needs you.

Rolled 112, 63, 50, 99 = 324 (4d120)

Come on Petra.

>>44503383
Damnit you blocked me. I swear the girl is cursed And now the dice are teasing us.

>>44503383
>>44503385
10 seconds difference. Poor Petra. Being her is suffering.

Can we all agree to Get Petra some legitimate armor and a helmet soon? Girl needs them.

I apologize everyone. It seems Petra is now kill or permanently crippled.

God fucking damnit. I cannot remember the last time the girl caught a break.

>>44503428
Yeah seriously. I don't really want to give up our demons so we should probably do a favor for Scathach. Or we could finally pay Moloch a visit and demand he make armor for our reward.

>>44503444
Naw, she just loses all her memories and her other eye.

>>44503461
Seems prudent if she's in any shape to wear them

File: smt hugs.jpg (483 KB, 600x1800)

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>Urgent
Season 2 Amelia
Cass before getting Choo Choo'd
Petra

>Necessary


>Recommended
Leon
Season 1 Amelia

>Above Average
Elliot
Cass after getting Choo Choo'd

>Medium
Mia (has Marco)
Joseph (kinda has Gabby and has been reasonably safe)
Marco (has Mia and has been reasonably safe)

>Hug Monopoly
Carnby

>Too Many
Nyarly

>>44503369

You throw yourself backwards, relishing in how light your body feels all of a sudden, and throw your hand forwards. Hua Po mimics the gesture, casting out a thick cloud of rolling fire that surrounds Chernobog and blinds him. As a silhouette, a black void in the midst of that churning fire, he is an easy target for Cernunnos to charge in. Ignoring the flames, barely giving them any attention at all, the horned god plunges his spear once more into Chernobog, knocking the skeleton's body back into that viscous smoke.

The smoke bleeds across the landscape, blackening the lichen it crawls across as Chernobog flees back towards Gabriel, rapidly reforming a body the lunge into the attack. Smirking, even as she wrinkles her nose against the odour, Gabriel strikes the moment Chernobog takes on a physical form, sliding her blade up within his guard and spearing the black god beneath the jaw. For any normal human, it would be a fatal blow – piercing right through the brain – but the death god merely shrugs it off, flinging Gabriel away as a piercing shout draws everyone's attention. Petra, holding her flaming sword with both hands, shouts out another challenge as Chernobog turns towards her.

“I'll kill you!” she snaps, her one eye wild with rage, “You bastard, I'll kill you, I'll KILL you!”

“You always were a fool,” Chernobog sneers, gliding towards Petra with contemptuous grace. Even before the mocking comment has finished, he is swinging his sword at her, turning Petra's challenge into a desperate defence. She turns aside the first blow, and the second, but it's the third one – Chernobog swings this down at her, his blade in a double handed grip – where things go wrong.

Their blades meet and then, right before your disbelieving eyes, the black god's sword shears clean through Petra's blade. What happens next, though...

>>44503623
>Their blades meet and then, right before your disbelieving eyes, the black god's sword shears clean through Petra's blade. What happens next, though...

Good bye Petra we hardly knew thee.

Rolled 25, 22, 29 = 76 (3d120)

>>44503623

You don't see it clearly – there is a cloud of released fire as Petra's blade shatters – and perhaps that's a good thing.

When the smoke clears, Petra is on her knees. The ground around her is dark, although you can't tell whether that's because of Chernobog's tainted influence or because of spilled blood. Although he smoulders a little, scorched by the unleashed magic, Chernobog remains standing tall and arrogant. It's only when he reaches down to grab Petra and lift her, his skeletal hand easily closing around her head, that you notice it. Part of her, you notice with sickening horror, remains where she was kneeling – the twitching form of her right hand.

“I wonder,” the black god muses as Petra kicks weakly in his grasp, “What new memories have you made for me? Would you suffer more if I stole them from you, I wonder, or if I crushed your skull here and now? We shall-”

He is cut off here, Gabriel's glowing blade transfixing his torso. Sighing, Chernobog drops Petra and turns, the sword tearing through his body as he faces Gabriel. It's not much, but it's an opening – a chance to strike!

>Please roll 3D120, for Hua Po, Cernunnos and Gabriel. Best of the first three!

Rolled 30, 117, 36 = 183 (3d120)

>>44503719

Rolled 76, 47, 68 = 191 (3d120)

>>44503719
Where's Berserker?
also
>3 1d20s
>no roll over 30
Ready to have a bad time?

>>44503737
>Where's Berserker?

>He returned to Petra's storage when she was defeated.

Rolled 18, 10, 14 = 42 (3d20)

>>44503719
IT'S GO TIME.

Well if we can't reattach the hand via magic, Petra is pretty much done fighting. I mean I she could fight with one hand and will want to, but I don't Mia will allow it.

>>44503750
oh crap

>>44503756
3d120 not 3 d20

Rolled 80, 58, 6 = 144 (3d120)

>>44503719

>>44503731
>>44503737
>>44503836

Perhaps Chernobog isn't quite as unharmed as he'd have you think, for he can barely lift his sword to strike out at Gabriel. He's so slow, in fact, that the Archangel merely draws her sword out from within his ribs and flow past him, her robes fluttering with the effortless motion. As Chernobog's deadly blade whistles through the empty air, you see Gabriel kneeling by Petra's side, the warm glow of healing magic filling this awful place.

Before Chernobog can recover, Hua Po blasts another one of her deadly beams into his back, the fire spreading wildly out across the mouldering robes until the demon's entire body is blazing like a candle. Gurgling and rasping out great grunts of pain, Chernobog stumbles forwards a few steps until Cernunnos pounces upon him, grasping the great, fungus clad skull in both hands and wrenching, twisting and pulling until the black god's head is torn from his body. Roaring triumphantly, like a beast, Cernunnos flings the skull to the ground, throwing it at your feet.

Drawing your pistol – Petra got you this pistol, some devilish voice in the back of your mind whispers – you fire shot after shot into the skull until nothing is left but splinters of corrupt bone. When your gun is dry, you finally manage to stop yourself from squeezing the trigger.

At your feet, surrounded by the black slime of rapidly decaying bone, is a shard of what looks like glass, glowing with a soft inner light. A divine fragment – the whole reason you came here.

Somehow, it doesn't feel worth it. You don't get the chance to dwell, however, as the forest around you begins to dissolve, breaking down into a howl of black wind and crude static. Reality reasserts itself as the domain comes apart, the stolen divinity that bound it together no longer leeching off of Chernobog's diseased mind.

>>44503937

Standing in what remains – desolate waste ground, barren of all traces of life save for you and your companions – you look slowly around before sitting, practically collapsing onto a pile of ragged stone. It might have been a building once, but... you don't really care. You're tired. You just want to sleep.

“Mia,” Joseph croaks, forcing the words out, “Gabriel managed to stabilise her – she won't be getting any worse – but... it's not looking good. Her hand...”

You saw it, you reply numbly, you saw what happened.

“Lingering here isn't going to help,” the young man insists, placing a hand on your shoulder, “I mean, if there are any other demons about...”

You understand, you really do. He's saying that you need to get out of here, back to the fairy kingdom, or wherever you can call home. You know that, but you can barely rouse yourself to motion. It all seems like so much effort!

“Mia,” Joseph says again, shaking you slightly, “You're in shock, come on!”

>...Fine
>You go ahead. I need a moment

>>44503993
>>You go ahead. I need a moment

>>44503993
>You go ahead. I need a moment
Man that demon took everything from her.

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>>44503993
Petra and Mia soon I guess

>>44503993
>You go ahead. I need a moment
Be sure they take the hand. Its a long shot but maybe some can do something. Better than just leaving it there.

>>44504103
Between the eye and the arm, I'm just waiting for Petra to suffer a nine year coma.

>>44504124
Or a six year boat trip.

I'm beginning to think its a good thing we never rolled for Petra in Season 1. Most of the time we just rolled for our demons and she did her own thing, usually very well.

Hell, the one time we did roll back then she lost her eye.

>>44504017
>>44504051
>>44504107

He can go ahead, you say bitterly, you need a moment. A moment to... what, think? Sulk, perhaps?

“I don't think that's a good idea,” Joseph warns you, but you cut him off before he can say anything else.

You really don't care, you mutter, what he thinks. If he wants to make himself useful, he can... he can... You screw your eyes shut here, unable to quite force out the words. Take her back, you spit out eventually, all of her. Don't leave the... Don't leave any of her behind. They might be able to do something about it, back in the kingdom.

“That's...” Joseph begins falteringly, “Mia, you need to be realistic here. I know they have magic, they've worked miracles in the past, but...” A pause here, long and loaded with warnings that he doesn't need to speak aloud, “Fine. Sure. But please, come back soon – it's not safe out here, on your own.”

Nodding sombrely, you say nothing. You just need a moment, just long enough to get your breath back. Long enough to put your thoughts in order.

>I think I'll end things here for tonight. Next thread on Sunday, and I'll stick around to answer any questions there might be!

File: That was fast.png (463 KB, 698x565)

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>>44504154
7

>>44504279
>That was fast.
Motherfucker.

>>44504245
Thanks for the run Moloch.

I'm salty as fuck my 99 got blocked. Not at you anon who did it, just dice in general.

I'm beginning to think Amelia had the right idea. Just don't fight personally and spam demons at them. Can't really do that now though.

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>>44504325
'Till next time, next year motherfucker!

Amelia's coming soon, right? maybe she'll be able to fix Petra?

>>44504334

Well, I don't think Petra has ever been one for being sensible - especially not when dealing with her old nemesis!

And I do wish the dice would cut Petra some slack. I don't think anyone else has been as unlucky as her!

>>44504375
Well she'll only have one fragment, maybe more if we get another during the 3? days we have.

>>44504375
>>44504395

At the moment, Amelia doesn't have much more power than a normal human. Blame Nyarly for that!

>>44504407
Amelia falls under human then I take it? So have a shard doesn't help her? The woodcut help scathach out? Gabriel glad to finally turn a blade on a jackass who undoubtedly deserved it? Cernnunnos happy with his fight?

>>44504446

Right now, Amelia counts as human for the purpose of collecting shards, yes. The woodcut has helped Scathach out with her research which might not automatically be a good thing.
Gabriel was, indeed, happy to do some proper smiting - the kind you don't have to feel guilty about! Cernunnos, on the other hand, wasn't quite so happy. Kind of a bitter victory, considering most of his warriors were scattered or defeated.

>>44504511
>The woodcut has helped Scathach out with her research which might not automatically be a good thing.


Well crap. is she going to start grabbing humans to experiment on?


Would Cern be happy we saved at least one of his dudes?

>>44504551
>Well crap. is she going to start grabbing humans to experiment on?

That would be pretty unethical! Could you ever imagine Scathach doing something quite so terrible?

Really though, Cernunnos will be happy with a survivor, although he might be less happy with their mental state. At least that's not Mia's fault!

The one demon. The one fucking demon that Petra should have gotten vengeance on.

It ain't fair man. Guess thats SMT though. Fucking dice.

>>44504617
>Could you ever imagine Scathach doing something quite so terrible?
Are you even asking me this question?

Since we had the hand and it was less complicated than an eye could we put it back on Petra? Also Can we get our 2x demons summon soon? or at least armor for Petra. At this rate she's going to be a quad amputee with a mangled face and broken neck.

>>44504723
x2 is going to wait until Amelia shows up I think.

Armor isn't going to help her rolls. If she does go out with us again we should just have her be a summoner and pray like hell the enemy doesn't target the summoners like Raph did.

>>44504723

It would actually be possible to fix Petra's hand back on, but it might not be a perfect fix. Nerve damage, and so on.

Marco's been doing his research, so he only needs a bit of Amelia's knowledge to create a new version of the summoning app. Two demons at once, and an increased storage capacity.
Armour might help, but the safest choice is staying away from danger!

>>44504801
>but the safest choice is staying away from danger!

Tell that to Petra

>>44504760
we can at least try tog et some regen gear to avoid this.

>>44504833
I don't think regen could have fixed amputation, but it would help with other wounds I suppose.

>>44504901
Well it might make putting bits back on easier and less permanent damage. Amelia's regen ring was a life saving after all.

>>44504801
So what's Cass been up to lately?

>>44504801
Hey Moloch is Amelia's troll still a ring? If not will we run into a troll how wears way too many rings?

>>44505033

She's been playing it cool, keeping a low profile and keeping an eye on Mastema.

>>44505069

By now, her troll would have returned to demonic form. I like the idea of a nearly immediately regenerating troll though - might use that idea later!

>>44505105
I meant he just remembers Amelia and thus wears a lot of rings to honor her. hell he could even be a cult leader.

>>44505148

Ah, I see! Trolls tend not to have the best of memories, but there's something quite nice about the idea of him wearing many rings to remember her. She was a pretty good boss, after all!

>>44505231
Fixed his tongue and kept him close and safe. Sure he was a ring but hey it was nice.

>>44505261

When your previous boss was Forneus pretty much anyone would feel like a step up, I imagine!

>>44505287
Speaking of did Eligor nab a shard? or get hired by one who did?

>>44505357

Eligor didn't get a shard, but now that I have an idea of what his domain would be like, I'm starting to wish he had!
It would basically be Outer Heaven. A place for warriors to be free.

I've been wanting to bring Eligor back for a while, actually, but I've never been able to think of a good reason. He might still show up though!

>>44505423
Depending on if the South is actually a city, they might here warriors for protection and police.

>>44505477

The South is bad news.

Not a place for an honourable warrior at all.

Yeah...there's no way Amelia isn't putting out after all this.

They both need it.

>>44505632

I don't know if disfiguring wounds are very good at setting the mood!

>>44505722
More of devotion. The fact that she has risked and lost so much to help her and Mia.

And the fact that Petra is one of the 7 people that knows she exists and the only one cares that strongly about her.

It adds up.

>>44505775
I would say it's wrong to fuck god, then I remember Greek myths and said fuck it.

>>44505955
Eh she's more or less human again right now so its no biggie.

Though if I get my way they both may be Gods at one point.

>>44506078
>Spoiler
Do we know if that could work? And how if would work?

>>44506203
https://ask.fm/MolochQM/answers/134670950673
https://ask.fm/MolochQM/answers/134674918929
More or less, yeah it could work.

See Cass isn't wrong. A human can't rule well as a God of the human world. Alone that is.

Many of Amelia's fuck ups can be traced back to only having her perspective to make decisions and millions of years of isolation.

Could you imagine if Mia and Petra were up there too though?

'Hey guys I want to keep Nyarly around.'
'Amelia no, thats a terrible idea. I know you two go back but no demons means no demons.'

>>44506338
Huh. That's pretty interesting.
Even if my flag is firmly planted in Cass's camp.

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>>44506433
Eh, too each their own, but I can't really consider giving the world to a demon after all we've done.

>>44505722
Did beating Chern release Petra's memories in some ways?

What kind of demon would best make a punch spike, if reattaching the hand doesn't go well?

>>44507057

Beating Chernobog didn't bring any of Petra's memories back, unfortunately. At least he didn't eat any more of them!

>What kind of demon would best make a punch spike, if reattaching the hand doesn't go well?

One with lots of spikes, I imagine! I'm not sure, to be honest - I might do a bit of research.

>>44507187
I doubt he'd really fit in the phone OR the storage, but that giant worm thing would make an....interesting....attachment.
>Punch stuff
>Leave gaping holes because the worm attached to your arm ate clean through them

I also suddenly thought of something similar to a tonberry: a magic lantern carried on that stump. Within it burns spirits of vengeance.

And, as always:
>Penetrator

>>44507267
>OR the storage
*OR the forge

>>44507267
>>Punch stuff
>>Leave gaping holes because the worm attached to your arm ate clean through them

That's pretty horrifying! Though, I'd have to agree that getting a giant burrowing worm into storage might be pretty challenging!

>>44507484
Does your Demon counterpart have enough supplies to make some good armor?

>>44507577

Funny story, that. The original reward I had planned was a suit of Null Dark armour for Mia - but that's pretty redundant now! I was planning on switching it to armour that one of the other characters could wear though.

I'm going to have to end things here though. A big storm just rolled in, and my internet is barely struggling to survive.

>>44507722
Have a good one.