>>45033688
>>See how Safi's practice is going

>>45033688
>>Watch a Naturomancer at work

>>45033688
>See how Safi's practice is going

>>45033688
>>See how Safi's practice is going

>writing

You walk over to your sister to see how she's doing. You've felt her using magic of all kinds while you were exercising, and you have to admit that you're a little curious.

"Yo" You say.
"Hey" She says. "Done stretching out?"
"Yeah, you can only do that for so long" You say. "How's it going here?"

"Well enough" She says. "It's taking some getting used to, but I've pretty much got it down"

"How did you know you'd need to adjust?" You ask.
"I noticed it the first time I went into the labyrinth" She says. "Short term, it was a manageable difference to what I was used to. But I think that in the long term, doing things the way I used to will do me some harm"

"So what's changed?" You ask.
"Less interference" She says. "Makes it easier to move mana around. I was actually surprised by how strong my magic was on Monday"
"You can't just keep doing it like that?" You ask.
"Not without burning myself out" She says. "Using stuff that's off your affinity is a delicate process"

"How so?" You ask.
"That is... not something you can explain in an afternoon" She says.
"Oh..." You say.

"Sorry" She says. "I know you want to add more stuff to your arsenal"
"I think my arsenal is big enough" You say.

"Your arsenal of guns" She says. "But you can only hold two at a time"

>And you can only cast one spell

>Is there anything you can teach me?

>Ask her about Light magic

>Other

>>45034218
>>Is there anything you can teach me?

>>45034218
>>Is there anything you can teach me?

Have we reconnected pathways yet?

>And you can only cast one spell

I'm a little confused, Smiley: is this being directed at her, or is he talking about himself?

>>45034218
>>Other
>>"Your arsenal of guns" She says. "But you can only hold two at a time"
That sounds like a thing Magic could fix

>>45034218
>Is there anything you can teach me?

>>45034329
Actually, even if we ask her for help on something, have we shown off our rapid fire fast time move?

>writing

I imagine that her Mind Magic is either non-existent, or barely rudimentary.

"I can only hold one gun -right now-" You say. "Surely that is a problem that could be fixed via magic"
"If you felt like studying solid matter control for a few years, sure" She says. "That's the only way you could get that level of control over the moving parts of a gun"

"What if I used something more simple..." You say, drawing the archive and pulling out an old matchlock pistol. "... like this?"

Safi stares at the weapon for a moment. "Do I... do I want to know why you have that?"
"I dunno. I was gonna ask Jess... but..."
"Ah" She says, taking the gun from you. "Still, what an odd thing to have"

"Careful, it's loaded" You say.
"But the match isn't lit" You say.
"Not important" You say., taking it back. "No handling firearms until you've taken firearm safety"

"Did you have to take it?" She asks.
"Of course" You say. "Jess wouldn't let me touch them until I did"

Safi puts a hand on yours, and you feel her connecting pathways with you.

You unintentionally suck in a breath.

"Sorry!" She says. "I probably could have warned you"
"Don't worry about me" You say. "What's up?"

"I want to take firearm safety" She says.
"Oh" You say.

>Well, get started

>Why don't we just teach each other everything this way?

>Other

>>45034553
>Why don't we just teach each other everything this way?

also
"Careful, it's loaded" You say.
"But the match isn't lit" You say.
"Not important" You say.

>>45034553
>>Well, get started
>>Why don't we just teach each other everything this way?

As a question.

Though, as has been proven many times through history, the hands on approach is far different than "book knowledge"

>>45034615
I had to correct that mistake several times while I was writing that post. I do not proofread as well as I should.

>writing

>>45034553
>Well, let's get started

Saif and Safi can essentially 'download' each others' knowledge. However, this can only give a framework; a base to work off of.

It's up to them to actually work the other through the physical motions.

So, let me get this straight: Mage slaves have crap senses, due to not being able to make things out over the Mind Magic buzzing around in their head, and reduced mana control, hindering their actual spellcasting.

Jesus, no wonder almost all of Harvey's slaves died on the first night; his magic took away some pretty fucking vital functions.

"Why don't we teach each other everything this way?" You ask.
"I was planning on it" She says. "But you have to take it in steps. Your brain can only absorb so much info this way"

"Soo... lessons" You say.
"Lessons" She says. "Lesson 1: gun safety"

You smile and close your eyes. Looking inwardly, you can feel Safi watching what you think. So you recall your lessons on gun safety.

It takes about 15 or so minutes to get it all out.

"Was she always... drinking?" Safi asks.
"More often than not" You say. "Think you absorbed all that?"

Safi takes the flintlock from you, twirling it and flashing you a smile.

You take the pistol back. "You make me lose confidence when the first thing you do after firearm safety is do something unsafe with a firearm" You say.

She pokes her tongue out at you. "I wasn't really planning on using them anyway" She says. "I was just kind of curious"

"So we can show each other anything like this?" You ask.
"Anything" She says

>Ask to see some light magic (the kind of magic Judge/muse use)

>Show her the dream

>Other

(Taking a short break, so this voting period may be a little longer than usual)

>>45035039
>>Show her the dream
Has she been having dreams as well?

>>45035039
>>Ask to see some light magic (the kind of magic Judge/muse use)

First and foremost

>>45035039
>>Ask to see some light magic (the kind of magic Judge/muse use)

>>45035039
>Ask to see some light magic
I don't want to risk her having a seizure. After the lessons, we can go over Fazim's Will.

>writing

"I want to see what light magic can do" You say.
"Lichtomancy?" She asks. "Why?"
"Because that's what the Judge and the Muse use" You say. "They were invisible on the first night. Jess thought they were using... licktomancy?"

"Lichtomancy" She says. "Give the 'ch' a bit of phlegm"
"Lichhhhtomancy" You say.
"Too much" She says.
"Sorry" You say. "Couldn't resist"

"So... Lichtomancy" She says. "I could show you a bit, but if they were using it to make themselves invisible then they're a bit better than me"

"But only a bit... right?" You ask.
"Mayyyybe a little more than a bit" She says. "Warping light around oneself is miles above me"
"But you can still use Liccchhhhtomancy, right?" You ask.
"Yeah" She says. "Mostly just frying things with it... a lot of my magical expertise involves frying things"

"So show me" You say.
"Alright" She says. "Buckle in"

You focus and move your awareness into hers. From here, you can see her thoughts...

>[1/2]

>>45035073
Considering the last time made us die once, and almost die again, and then trying to remember why made it worse, We should probably hold off on that for a little bit.

>>45035694
>a lot of my magical expertise involves frying things

Well, most of Saif's magical expertise involves hitting things fast, or hitting things hard; they have a bit of a commonality there.

We should ask Tasha what happens when there are two contestants left and one of them kills the other outside the blood moon.

"Wow" You say. "Frying things really is all you know"

"It isn't ALL I know" She says. "I can do... some other things"
"Like what?" You ask.

Safi holds out her hand, and a black ball slowly grows into existence a few inches above her hand.

"What is that... Noctomancy?" You ask.
"No such thing" She says. "Just more Lichtomancy"

"So there's no such thing as 'dark magic'?" You ask.
"Darkness is the absence of energy" She says. "Just like how you can't make something out of nothing, you can't make nothing out of something"

"So how are you doing that?" You ask.
"I'm drawing the light out" She says. "Neat, right?"
"Yeah" You say. "Does that... actually have a use?"
"No" She says, letting the ball disappear.

"So why learn it?" You ask.
"Iunno" She says. "It's a fun trick, I guess"

...

"Oh! Hold out your hand!" She says.
"Why?" You ask.
"I wanna try something" She says.

>O-okay

>Is it dangerous?

>Other

>>45035907
>>O-okay

File: Jolly Co-operation.png (171 KB, 1300x1091)

171 KB PNG

>>45035907
>>O-okay

>>45035907
>O-okay

>writing

Hang on, back the fuck up.

Can't we use this spell to pull the light that they're wrapping around themselves AWAY?

Hell, if we made a zone out of this, then we'll have copied the Tuner's current power!

"O-... okay" You say.

You hold out your left hand, while Safi keeps a hold on your right. Then you feel mana moving...

The ball of darkness appears in your hand this time. You look between it and Safi. Her eyes light up, and she smiles.

"It worked!" She says.
"What is this?" You ask. "This is... really weird"
"I'm doing magic through you" She says. "I didn't think I could, but check it out!"

You look at the ball in your hand, then back to her. If she can do it...

"Woah, hey. Hello" She says, as her arm starts to glow.
"So it does work both ways" You say.

"Fuck, is this how you use magic?" Safi asks.
"Yeah" You say.
"Very... brute force" She says.
"It's how Kyla told me to use it" You say.
"It works..." She says. "It lacks the delicacy that most people use... but it works"

"It's done me well so far" You say, focusing mana into your own arm to strengthen it. "Hasn't failed"
"And it won't" She says. "Your pathways seem sturdy enough to handle it"

Safi stands up and stretches.

"Enough magic for the day?" You ask.
"For now" She says. "I was gonna chill until Claire gets here, wanna join me?"

>Sure

>Let's open up the will

>See what Zee is up to

>See what Tasha's up to

>Other

>>45036490
>>Let's open up the will

Only option

>>45036490
>See what Zee is up to
Magicmagicmagic

>>45036490
>Let's open up the will
The anticipation's killing me

>>45036490
>Let's open up the will

>>45036490
>Let's open up the will

>writing

>>45036490
>"I'm doing magic through you" She says. "I didn't think I could, but check it out!"

So, they can do the mage equivalent of "The Wave"? Awesome

You draw the Archive back out, as it had dissolved back into your pathways. Then you pull out Fazim's will.

"Oh yeah..." Safi says.
"I think..." You say. "I think this has waited long enough"

Safi nods, so you stand up, and then give her a hand up.

"We're going inside to check this out" You say to Tasha.

Tasha looks up from her book. "What time is it?" She asks.
You check your watch. "About... 12:30" You say.
She purses her lips. "Zee, are you just about done?" Tasha asks.

You look over at Zee, who has been done gardening for a while, and has been playing with Moriarty ever since.

"Yes" Zee says.
Tasha blinks a few times. "Oh" She says. "Our guest will be arriving soon. You should get started on Lunch"
"Roger" Zee says. Then she puts Moriarty down, gives him one last headpat, and scurries off.

You chuckle. "Alright, let's get down to this"

You and Safi head inside.

>[1/2]

You place the envelope on the table in the sitting room, and then you both sit in front of it.

For a while, you just stare at it.

...

"Soo... we opening this thing?" She asks.
"Yeah" You say. "Do you wanna do it, or should I?"

"Let's both do it" She says.

You nod, and link hands with each other. Then you reach out to the envelope with your free hands.

"Seal's broken" She says.
"I may have peeked" You reply.

Safi pouts.

"The curiosity was killing me" You say. "And it was Jessica's idea"
"Oh sure, blame somebody else" She says. "You ready?"
"Maybe" You say.

In unison you lift the envelope up and dump the contents onto the table.

Inside is a ring, a deck of cards, a letter, some maps, a few pictures, and an eyeball sized glass ball that damn near rolls off the table...

"What now?" Safi asks.
"I guess we check it all out..." You say. "Starting with..."

>Choose 2

>The ball

>The ring

>The letter

>The deck

>The maps

>The pictures

>>45037319
>>The ball
>The deck

Fortune telling?

>>45037319
>The ring

>The letter

>>45037319
>The ring
>The letter

>>45037319
>The letter
>The maps

>writing

You grab the ring, while Safi goes straight for the letter. While she reads, you examine.

The ring looks almost like a wedding band...

Because it is. This is Fazim's wedding band. You can see his and Jess's names etched on the inside...

Why would he leave you his wedding band? Maybe it says something about that in the letter...

Safi leans her head on your shoulder, and you can feel her sadness.

"What does it say?" You ask.

She sobs, and hands you the letter. You don't ask why, you just read...

It begins with a hopeful statement about how he hopes you never have to read this letter, but his was a situation that required precaution...

The letter goes on to tell you that if you are reading it, then you've met with his wife. He hopes you'll take care of her, and that she will do the same for you.

It then gets into the meat of things. Fazim writes about the reason for your kidnapping, and why you were sold...

Your village once housed the headquarters of Sacred Mountain. SM used to be devoted to the Guardian, and keeping peace. But a splinter faction grew inside it like a cancer, and that is the Sacred Mountain of today. Their devotion has been twisted, and they feel that the Guardian has abandoned the earth.

...

Which is only partially true, but you keep reading.

>[1/2]

Fazim grew sick of what Sacred Mountain had become, and grew tired of its "leader"s approach to this splinter faction. So he left. He tried to take you with him, but wasn't able to.

The leaders were banking on the Blood Moon to fix everything. It was around the time that you were born that people started to figure out when and where it would happen, so you and Safi were raised not as children, but as weapons.

When the Splinter got word of this, they struck hard and destroyed everything. Selling you to the Harts was their idea of a joke: selling the prodigies of Guardian worshipers to Golden Dawn's biggest buyer.

The letter ends with the hopes that Fazim managed to put a stop to the Hart's operations. But states that if he failed... then he loved you both, and he's sorry he couldn't save you...

You put the letter down and turn to hug your sister.

"I wish..." Safi says. "I wish he'd been able to-"
"Me too" You say. "That would've been fun, you know? I think Jess would've made a good big sister for us"

Safi smiles, and you both turn your attention back to the table

What next? (Pick 2 again)

>Ball

>Deck

>Maps

>Pictures

>>45038079
>>Ball
>>Deck

>>45038079
>Ball
>Deck

Hmmm...

Incidentally, Sacred Mountain needs to fry.

>>45038079
>>Ball
>>Deck

>writing

You pick up the glass ball and the deck, handing Safi the deck so you can look at the ball.

It looks like a regular glass ball... but something is etched into it. You hold it up to the light so you can get a look...

"A tarot deck?" Safi says, before reading the cover aloud. "The Fool's Deck..."
"Huh?" You ask.
"Only a fool tries to alter what will be..." She says. "What do you think that means?"

"I dunno" You say, still examining the ball. The words become a bit clearer, though you still need to squint a bit. "Only a fool tries to undo what was..."

"Think they're connected?" She asks.
"Possibly" You say. "Is there anything about them laying around?"
"Lemme see" Safi says, lifting the pictures and the map, but there's nothing else. "Nothing"

You toss the glass ball up in the air, and catch it. "What do you think they are?"
"Hey! Don't toss it around, what if it breaks?" She says.
"Relax, I'm a better catch than that" You say.

Safi gives you a disapproving look. "They could be an heirloom" She says. "I remember there being a few of those back at the village"
"But then why would Fazim have them?" You ask.
"Maybe he stole them when he left?" Safi asks. "Or they could have survived the destruction of the village"

You place the glass ball back on the table and sit back. "And here I thought I was done having questions..." You say.
"Don't be so glum" She says. "What now? Want me to do a reading?"

>Maps and pictures

>Reading

>Pack it up

>Other

>>45038639
>Reading

>>45038639
>>Reading

Obvious hook is obvious

>>45038639
>>Reading

So only a fool changes what has happened, time travel confirmed for not an option

>>45038639
>Reading

>writing

"Sure" You say. "We've still got some time before Claire shows up"

"Alright" Safi says, opening up the case and pulling out the cards.

The deck seems to be separated into 2 halves, which Safi explains are the 'major' and 'minor' arcana...

Whatever that means.

Safi starts to shuffle the deck, and then she lays one card face down. Then she shuffles again, and lays another face down next to it, and then she shuffles and places another one.

"So how does this work?" You ask.
"This is the simplest reading" She says. "Each card represents a different time: past, present, and future"

"So now we flip them?" You ask.
"Mmhmm" Safi says, as she reaches for the first.

She flips the first card, representing the past. It comes up as Strength.

She flips the second card, representing the present. It comes up as The Hanged Man.

She flips the third card, representing the future. It comes up as The Fool...

"Again with the Fool" You say. "So what does it mean?"

Safi looks hard at the three cards before you, and you can feel the tension rising.

...

"No clue" She says.

You slap your forehead. "Seriously?" You ask.
"I thought it would be more obvious than this" She says. "But oh man. 'The Hanged Man'. Does that ever sound bad"

You sigh, and pack the cards up.
"Oh! Now do me!" She says.

You raise an eyebrow

>Sure

>Put the deck away

>Other

>>45038730
Or perhaps, only THE Fool can change what has happened.

>>45039122
>>Sure

FORESHADOWING!!!

>>45039122
>>Sure

>>45039122
>>>Sure

>>45039122
>Sure
I think we're going to regret not sharing the dream. Every time we've kept secrets people have died.

>>45039126
That's what I'm thinking.

This is heavily implying that The Fool is the God of Time.

so we're getting a persona in the future?

>writing

>>45039352
That's my plan for a sequel. SMT: Blood Moon

>>45039400
Youre probably joking.
But if you werent, i'd play it.

File: Nyarlathopepe.png (217 KB, 750x750)

217 KB PNG

>>45039400
>Four SMT quests at the same time on /tg/
>can only get so erect.gif
Also, pic related of Harvey, Saif, and Yui.

>>45039400
I hope we could recruit Giles to the party

"Alright" You say, pulling the cards back out. "So it's shuffle, draw, shuffle, draw, shuffle, draw?"
"Yep" She says, with badly hidden anticipation.

You shuffle the deck and lay the first card face down, then a second, then a third. Then you flip them up in sequence, just as Safi did.

The first card comes up as The Devil

The second comes up as Judgement

The Third comes up... again, as The Fool.

"Again with the Fool" This time it's Safi that says it.

"The ball, the deck, and now the readings" You say. "It's like someone's trying to-"
"Stop! Don't finish that sentence because I swear if you make that joke-"

"-make a fool of us"

That earns you a smack to the back of your head. But it was totally worth it.

As you and Safi laugh it off, the doorbell rings.

"I'll get it!" Zee calls out.

...

But then you don't hear the door opening. She must be getting changed.

>Answer the door

>Let Zee handle this

>Other

>>45039670
>Other
Go wait by the door.
Dont take her job.

>>45039670
>Let Zee handle this
It's her home.

Maybe....someone is going to make a Fool out of us....

What if we are the Fool?

>>45039670
>>Let Zee handle this

If The Fool is the Time God... then what if Saif and Safi represent the dual aspects of Time? Past and Future? And, since past and future can't exist at the same time, that's why there are TWO of them, with their physical shells anchoring them in the PRESENT.

Woah.

>writing

>>45039887
Okay, now you're just being silly. Besides, all time exists at the same moment. We only percieve it as moving because of our pwn limitations.

>>45039941
All I'm saying is that, for all of her eons of existence, Tasha hadn't ever seen Time magic, up close.

People hear about incredibly rare Time Magic, and, currently, there are only 2 on the planet, who just happen to be twins of one soul?

Things are pointing in a very interesting direction.

Only a fool tries to alter what will be, only a fool tries to undo what was. Both of us have the fool set for our future. At this point I think we're literally fated to attempt time travel, end up at the beginning of the universe and become twin god of time.

You get up and head to the door, figuring that you'll at least look out the peephole to see if it's Claire.

But when you get there, you remember that Tasha's front door is glass...

Claire sits in her wheelchair on the other side of the door. "Saif?" Claire asks.
"Hey" You say. "How's it goin'?"
"G-good" She says. "Are you... going to let me in?"

"Wait for it" You say.

...

Zee races around the corner in her maid uniform, coming to a full stop at the door. She pats her skirt down, looks at you in confusion for a moment, and then opens the door.

"Welcome" Zee says in her usual deadpan.
Claire stares at Zee for a moment "Wasn't she ze one in ze vaults yesterday?" Claire asks.
"Yyyep" You say.
"Why is she dressed like zat?" Claire asks.

"Maid uniform" Zee says. "Dressing for the job is important"
You chuckle. "This is Zee" You say, putting a hand on her head and ruffling her hair. "You get used to her quirks"

"I see..." Claire says.
"Would you like to come in?" Zee asks.
"Y-yes please" Claire says.

...

You both stand there for a moment, before it occurs to you that Tasha's front door isn't exactly wheelchair accessible...

>Wheel Claire in

>Ask if she can stand

>Other

>>45040156
Or perhaps we have always been the god of time, and as part of our aspect of being a fool, we do things the other gids can't concieve of, like setting aside our divine mantle to be mortal. And we're twins because it's our insurance policy against unnecessary death.

>>45040206
Ask if she'd like us to wheel her in.

>>45040206
>>Wheel Claire in
Let's be amicable, if we're discussing alliances.

>>45040206
>Wheel Claire in

>>45040206
>>Wheel Claire in

>>45040206
>Other
Pick Claire up, chair and all and carry her in.

>writing

>>45040223
I'm thinking that, it's not so much that Fool put aside his(?) divine mantle, but more so that he wasn't a traditional 'being' to begin with.

See, there was nothing, and then Time got kickstarted. The second god to show up was The Creator, who actually has a physical incarnation, because that's his aspect. Creator makes things, but Time isn't a physical thing.

Maybe there haven't actually been any Time Mages, until now, and people only think they've been a thing. There's what Abby said some time ago where she said that she read about Time Mages "Not really doing anything with it".

Maybe Saif and Safi are either the first (and only), or the only ones who can manipulate it to their extent. Maybe THAT is why The Fool is/might be getting it's physical form.

>>45040223
Doing dumb stuff would probably generally get noticed. Doing NOTHING because the fool doing nothing was part of the path to the fool's existence and doing anything would've been a time paradox is much more consistent with the reported situation.

"Need a hand?" You ask.
"N-no, I sink I can 'andle zis..." She says, pushing her wheels forward to try and get into the door.

You roll your eyes and walk around behind her chair, grabbing the handles and getting her over the ledge.

"M-merci" She says.
"Hey, we're in this to help each other remember?" You ask. "If I left you alone at something simple as this, what would that say about our alliance?"

Claire nods. "Good point" She says. "Where is your sister?"
"In the sitting room" You say, before turning to Zee. "I've got it from here, Zee"
"Roger" Zee says. "Lunch should be ready soon"
"Thanks for the heads up" You say.

Zee scurries off, leaving you alone with Claire.

"So... zis is ze Traitor's house?" Claire asks.
"She seems to prefer the name Tasha" You say. "But yes"
"It is..." She trails off.
"Interesting?" You ask.
"Yes" She says.
You take a breath, and let it out as a sigh as you wheel Claire back to the sitting room. "Wait 'til you meet its owner"

"She can't be much worse than ze Creator" Claire says.

>What is the Creator like?

>I'm surprised Julia didn't come.

>Ask how she's holding up after last night

>Other

Looking forward to threatening other gods with wiping out the species that spawned them before they ever existed if they ever annoy us. Sure we probably can't do that but we don't need to let them know that.

>>45040683
>>What is the Creator like?
>>I'm surprised Julia didn't come.

>>45040683
>>What is the Creator like?
>>I'm surprised Julia didn't come.

"Kyla DID say he was an anus..."

>>45040683
>What is the Creator like?
>I'd like to say I'm surprised Julia didn't come but no I'm not remotelt surprised Julia didn't come.

>>45040683
>What is the Creator like?
I'm not surprised Julia didn't come. She killed Boss.

I gotta say. The creator winning that bet instead of the Smith was bullshit that sword is way better than kyla.

>>45040788
You only say that cause kylia's personality was terrible. Towards the end she was a lot better, ince she let go of her bitterness.

>>45040788
But anon, that ass was 2 phat.

>writing

>>45040842
No we also saw here loveydovey with the king she ended up with. Sword still should've won. If only the Smith had made a sword that could turn into a lady.

"And what is the big 'C' like, anyway?" You ask.
"'e is very... grand" She says. "And a bit of a perfectionist"

"Yeah, Kyla didn't have many good things to say about him either" You say.
"Kyla... she is-"
"Gone, yes" You say. "Left me with quite the mess, too"

"You seem to be managing" Claire says.
"I'm saving my panicking for later" You say. "I don't have time for that now"
"I understand that" She says.

"I'm surprised Julia isn't here" You say. "I didn't think she'd trust us enough to let you come here alone"
"She wanted to" Claire says. "I 'ad to convince her not to come"
"Why?" You ask.
"How willing to talk would you be if she came?" Claire asks.
"Point taken" You say.
"She will be joining us in ze Arena" Claire says. "So keep zat in mind"
"Noted" You say.

You and Claire enter the sitting room, where Safi is waiting. It looks like she packed everything back into the envelope too.

"Bonjour" Claire says.
"Hello Claire" Safi says.
"You two seem familiar already" You say.

"I'm in her third period English class" Safi says. "I'm surprised you didn't know that"
"Shall we get down to business?" Claire asks in a tone that clearly says 'cut the chitchat'.

"Yeah" You say. "First and foremost, I think, is coming up with a plan to deal with-"

>The Judge/Muse

>The Keeper

>The Arena's monsters

>Other

>>45041257
>The Keeper

>>45041257
>>The Keeper

The Keeper is the wildcard. If she joins, then we have to worry about whether she's on our side, or not.

>>45041257
Before ANYTHING I think we need a better understanding of how psycho claire works. An assurance that psychomurderclair will actually stick to whatever plan we make.

>>45041307
(Info gathering for facing her later is a nice bonus)

>>45041289
One of the prime things we can take advantage of is getting to the top of the Labyrinth. Chances are, Keeper could be waiting in ambush.

If she's sided with Sacred Mountain, then she could have that 'big weapon' Claire mentioned tucked in her room, and ready to go.

>>45041289
>>45041332
She COULD want payback for Puppeteer, or she might want to surrender/offer to help.

We just can't be sure.

>writing

"The Keeper" You say.
"Not the Sacred Mountain team?" Claire asks.
"Later" You say. "Right now the Keeper is a bit of a wildcard. If she stays out, great. If she joins, then it's all up in the air"

"You think she'll be hostile?" Safi asks.
"To us, maybe" You say. "To Claire, absolutely"

"I sink zat she will definitely be 'ostile" Claire says. "I may 'ave been ze one to kill ze Puppeteer, but if she's smart zen she will assume zat we were working together"

"But then Julia killed one of ours" You say. "Why would she-"
"No, Claire is right" Safi says. "If the Keeper joins, she is almost certainly not going to be on our side"
"Then that complicates things" You say. "The Keeper is the other Champion with free reign over the Arena. Safi and I might be able to make do with time smashing, but the Keeper doesn't have to do any of that"

You lean back.

"So?" Safi asks.
"We keep our eyes out" You say. "One person watching the front, one person watching the back, one person watching the top"
"The top?" Safi asks.
"You never know" You say. "The Labyrinth actually has a decent setup for sniping, if you could get a nest up top"

"Anysing else?" Claire asks.

>Ask Claire about the other her

>Ask Claire for details on that weapon she mentioned

>Plan for Judge/Muse

>Plan for monsters

>other

>>45041669
>>Ask Claire about the other her
>>Ask Claire for details on that weapon she mentioned

>>45041669
>Ask Claire for details on that weapon she mentioned
>>Plan for Judge/Muse

>>45041669

>Ask Claire about the other her

>Ask Claire for details on that weapon she mentioned

>Plan for Judge/Muse

>>45041669
>Ask Claire about the other her
>Ask for details on that weapon she mentioned

>writing

If we can learn more about that weapon's firepower, we can establish whether or not it's something that's easy for them to lug around.

"Yeah" You say. "You"
"Me?" Claire asks. "Ah... me..."

"As much as I hate to have to ask this... will the other you play ball?" You ask.
Claire looks down. "Zere... is no ozer me..." She says. "It is just me..."

"How does your affinity work, anyway?" Safi asks. "I'm kinda curious. I've never heard of something like this before"
"I suppose it would be easier if I explained..." She says.

Claire's ability is tied between states: Insane and strong, or intelligent and weak. Being anything but the two extremes takes an exorbitant amount of mana, and the further in between you go, thw more it takes.

Being 'average' is entirely impossible for Claire. There simply isn't enough mana to make it work. In preparation for your date, she pulled out all the stops and charged herself as much as she could. She still hasn't recovered her reserves.

... but what you didn't know is that her current state is considered to be 'somewhere in between'.

"So you mean that you can get weaker than this?" Safi asks.
Claire nods solemnly. "I would show you, but I don't sink eizer of you has ze skills to revive me" She says.

"Well I certainly don- wait. Revive you?" You ask.
She nods again. "If I let myself fall too far on zis side of my ability, zen my 'eart becomes too weak to pump" She says.

"H-holy shit" Safi says. "Your ability literally kills you?
"It takes some getting used to... I've learned not to go too far eizer way" She says.
"That's interesting, but-"

>Why tell us all this?

>Will 'crazy Claire' be willing to work with us

>Other

>>45042072
>>Why tell us all this?

>>45042072
>>Why tell us all this?

Fuck that's terrible

>>45042072
>Will 'crazy Claire' be willing to work with us

>Other
How did this even happen? This cant be natural.

>>45042072
>Being 'average' is entirely impossible for Claire. There simply isn't enough mana to make it work. In preparation for your date, she pulled out all the stops and charged herself as much as she could. She still hasn't recovered her reserves.

Considering how that whole deal turned out... I actually feel pretty bad for her.

>>45042072
>>Will 'crazy Claire' be willing to work with us
"Because you did go from trying to kill me to trying to get me to surrender in the space of a night so whether there's a philosophical distinction between the two aside I still feel like I need a better assurance."

>>45042072
>Why tell us all this?

>writing

So, she did something nearly impossible for her to go on a nice, normal date with Saif.

Then found out, after her Creator reveal, that he shacked up with Abby, behind her back...

With the benefit of hindsight, I can understand the full extent of why she was pissed.

>>45042236
Only now?

>>45042236
>>45042303
I mean, I get that she was pissed about it, before, but, with this added context. there's a layer of... tragedy to it.

For lack of a better word.

"-Why tell us all this?" You ask.

It almost seems like she's spilling everything to make you feel like a dirtbag for leading her on and then shacking up with Abigail... which you have to admit, you definitely deserve to feel that way after hearing all this.

But you'll still be enemies after this. Once the Judge and the Muse are gone, it's back to the way things were.

"I..." Claire says. "You asked me what my wish is yesterday..."
"I did" You say.
"I thought it was only fair zat, since I know your wish-"

"Speaking honestly, I don't think -I- know my wish right now. But go on"

Claire's lips turn upwards ever so slightly at your bit of levity, and she continues. "I wanted to share mine" She says.

"You aren't going to wish the Beaumont family back into power?" Safi asks.
"No..." She says.

"You want to change your affinity" You say.
Claire nods.

You sigh. "I hate to say this, but I think there are bigger problems right now..." You say.
"I understand zat it is a bit selfish..." She says.
"I wouldn't call it selfish" You say. "All you want is to live... but..."

"Yes, I know" She says. "Ze gods are... not happy"
"And Sacred Mountain isn't going to knock themselves out of this competition" Safi says.

"Yeah" You say, turning back to Claire. "Think you could tell us any more about that wea-"

"Lunch" Zee says from the doorway.

Just like this morning, you wait for her to continue. But she simply nods, and patters off.

You chuckle. "Or we could continue this afterwards" You say.

>>45042351
For me it's the opposite. I mean... What's event he point of the effort of a "normal" date with saif? If he's interested in her as she normally hangs out then it's not like being out of the wheelchair ads much and actually risks "you know now that I've spent an extended period of time with her it almost seems like she does a good job of faking being as smart as she is."
Claire WAS tragic, this moves beyond tragic to the point of farce.

That's all for tonight!

Next thread will be later in the week. I don't quite have a day yet, but I'll try to give ~2 hours notice on twitter.

As always I'll be sticking around for question/suggestion time.

>>45042466
Great thread, Smiley!

>>45042466
thanks for running boss

>>45042457
I'm guessing that it was the first 'real' date she's been on, and wanted it to be special.

At least, that's what Smiley seems to be implying.

>>45042466
The fortune reading scene was interesting. Do you know tarot? Did you base part of this quest around the characters on the cards?

>>45042598
Co-writer-kun did most of the work on that one. I actually know fairly little about tarot reading, which probably answers your second question as well.

>>45042713
You have a co-writet?