>>46737500
The Battle of the Kuri was, by all accounts, a particularly impressive one. The single greatest natural barrier that the local land had to offer and one given time to be fortified no less. It should have been able to deflect any army, blunt any advance. And when supported with the arcane power of an alchemist corps and not one but two wizards, it should have provided a barrier that not even the rumoured magic of the “Witch Queen” should have been able to break.
But victory for the Queen had come regardless and it was not off the back of some grand strategy or scheme. That would have been demoralising enough. But to push through such a situation off the back of nothing but pure magical might? That is far more intimidating. Already, distorted stories and exaggerated fabrications spread back throughout the land and incite more fear and unwitting respect than any of the Queen’s attempted propaganda. The Witch of Melire was as strong as ten men, they cried, with skin like iron and eyes like fire. She could take any form and when she gave the word, the great river itself had risen up to smite her enemies. She could eat free will, strike fear into hundreds, incinerate an entire company of knights and bore no fewer than three plundered wizard’s staves.
Regardless of whoever ultimately wins, the battle itself was sure to be remembered in a hundred different history books, each no doubt with their own unique version of events.

But as surprising as the battle may have been, it alone may not promise the Witch Queen’s overall victory. The fate of that may lie in the hands of someone who wasn’t even present for the battle itself.

……

You adjust your poncho as you approach the city of Taldenral. Best to keep your sword hidden after all. The city looks like more of an ant’s nest than normal, people scurrying left and right. That can be made to work in your advantage.
1/2

>>46737507
Your name is Oster or Many-Faced Oster though you have never cared for the title. It’s much too dramatic but the old Serpent King gave it you personally so now it carries just a little tinge of wistful sentimental value. You are here to kill the King of Teleran.
You are here to repay High King Edwin’s attempt on your Queen’s life and to recover at least a shred of your professional pride. You will kill the King or you will die trying. You have no help, no potions, nothing but mask and sword. Most probably wouldn’t understand but it has to be you and only you.


>Enter the city normally. No need to get tricky just yet.

>Disguise yourself amidst the people seeking refuge from the Queen’s advance.

>Sneak around through the bay and come in through the docks.

>Murder your way through the gatehouse. Send a message.

>Other

>>46737537
>Disguise yourself amidst the people seeking refuge from the Queen’s advance.
kek I saw that forgotten subject line Ouro

>>46737537
>Disguise yourself amidst the people seeking refuge from the Queen’s advance.
So is Osters art from Hiss any different than his original?

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>>46737575
Absolutely no idea what you're talking about.

>>46737575
Don't bully the snekman

>>46737537
>Disguise yourself amidst the people seeking refuge from the Queen’s advance.
Let's not be too messy here. Just a nice professional hit.

>>46737537
>>Disguise yourself amidst the people seeking refuge from the Queen’s advance.

>Disguise yourself amidst the people seeking refuge from the Queen’s advance.

There's no need to get messy just yet but you're not just going to walk in either. As far as you know they might be attempting some sort of basic security and you'll have to explain away your weapons.
Similarly, going around through the docks would probably work but if the King has actually spread his seer coverage then you'd be in trouble. As for just killing your way in? A charming idea but implausible and it says a lot about what you've become that you'd even consider it. It'd be best to repress such thoughts for now.

So no, the best way would be to enter normally but in a crowd of others so that you might slip in through unnoticed. And fortunately there is no lack of such crowds. The Queen's advance has emptied towns and villages before her and many of them have some to Teleran to seek aid.

You don your current mask and take on the visage of a plain and humble red-haired man that you met and killed on your journey over here. And as you start your walk you quickly modify your gait and your stance, hunching over and becoming small as best you can. You need fearful and uncertain mannerisms. And before you get into earshot you mumble the same sentence to yourself repeatedly, each line altering more and more until you've adopted an appropriate accent.

You're a blacksmith, you decide. Big man from a small town and one they'll probably let through if they question you personally. A city always needs more smiths. You have a wife and three children but you were separated from them and forced to join a different refugee group. You're hoping to meet up with them in Taldenral.
Your name is...something rustic and mostly harmless. Cennen. That'll do nicely.

You do your best to meld with the crowd and do your best to adopt the persona of a man dirty and worn out from a long day's walking. It's not even that inaccurate.
1/2

>>46737905
>mixing up teleran and taldenral again

>>46737905
The guards make a basic attempt at security but you slip through without even being checked. No doubt they had seers somewhere doing their best but no seer can pin down an entire crowd's worth of people.

And with that you are through! You continue on until you're sure that you're out of sight before ducking into an alleyway. From there it's only a matter of finding a particularly rough wall and scaling that to get yourself up on the rooftops. You adore the rooftops of Taldenral. The city is so dense and inter-connected that it can take you most places you'd want to go and all while avoiding the press of the crowded streets below. You used them well the last time you were here and they're a bit of an open secret. The Thieves Highway, even if they were actually used more by message-runners and urchins than thieves.

You can see the palace from here and it calls to you. But should you attempt this just yet? Cennen asked you to investigate the state of snake alchemy in this city and he DID let you pass without a fight.

>No, just go straight for the palace. It's time.

>Scope the palace out but don't make the attempt until nightfall.

>Head to the local Potions College.

>Make contact with your old friends in this city. They might be able to help you.

>Whittle some more masks first.

>Other

>>46737935
No bullying!

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>>46737935
fug

>>46738059
>>Scope the palace out but don't make the attempt until nightfall.
>Whittle some more masks first.

>>46738059
>Make contact with your old friends in this city. They might be able to help you.
What other masks do we have right now?

>>46738059
>Make contact with your old friends in this city. They might be able to help you.
>Whittle some more masks first.

>>46738059
>Make contact with your old friends in this city. They might be able to help you.

>>46738115
Finished ones? Just this one. Unless you're trying to impersonate someone specific you rarely need more than one 'look'.

>>46738191
So Oster can only change his face right?

>Make contact with your old friends in this city. They might be able to help you.

It'd probably be best to wait until nightfall before making your move. So why do ideas about storming it immediately keep presenting themselves to you? You are calm. Absolutely calm.
It occurs to you that regardless of what you're going to do first, it wouldn't hurt to make contact with some old friends and see if you can get their help. You use the term 'friend' here loosely. More acquaintances really. But they're friends with Cennen and you should able to exploit that.
Lady Trebain, the flower wizard and the two girls.

If you had any older friends in Taldenral you wouldn't know about it. The Queen ate away much of your past so long ago. You never knew that you could love and fear someone so much in equal measure before her but it is out of love that you are here.

You make the journey to the Trebain House quickly and without altercation only to find it empty. The house is still in ruins and it looks like the Lady was never able to scrape up enough money to fix it. You innocently question a passing guard, claiming to have a missive from out of town for the Trebains and he directs you to a smaller townhouse just a few streets away. It's much more humble and doesn't have a garden but it's still much too fancy for your liking.

You pass the house once as the poor blacksmith and once you're out of sight of it, the mask goes into your bag and you pass the house once more as yourself. Fortunately nobody knows what the brand on your face means around here.
This time you knock on the door and do your best to act uncertain on whether or not this is the right place.

"Hello?"

You only have to knock once before the door is opened by a red-haired young woman in a dusty maid's uniform. Aina.
She recognizes you just as quickly.
"Oster? You're one of Cennen's friends! What's going on?"
1/2

>>46738485

>"I'm here to kill the king."

>"Cennen is in trouble and I need your help."

>"I'm here to ask a few questions about that giant monster that attacked you. Did it leave anything behind?"

>"Sorry, I just need a place to stay."

>Ask her about her sister's condition.

>Other

>>46738520
>"Sorry, I just need a place to stay."
>Ask her about her sister's condition.
Subtly steer the conversation toward the snake monster by asking if anyone ever figured out what that thing was that hurt her sister

>>46738520
>"Sorry, I just need a place to stay."
>Ask her about her sister's condition.

>>46738577
This

>>46738520
>"I'm here to ask a few questions about that giant monster that attacked you. Did it leave anything behind?"

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>>46738081
Dark magic all day, yeah?

>>46738520
>"I'm here to ask a few questions about that giant monster that attacked you. Did it leave anything behind?"
Make something up about how Cennen was poisoned by something like that monsters venom and we need to find an antidote

>>46738520
>"Sorry, I just need a place to stay."
>Ask her about her sister's condition.

>"Sorry, I just need a place to stay."
>Ask her about her sister's condition.

"Sorry, he's not here. I'm just in town for a few days and I needed a place to stay."

"Oh. That's fine. Come on in! We don't have any spare rooms so I'll have to lay a sheet out for you on the floor. Sorry!"

"Trust me, that's more than acceptable."
Perfect. You hate beds.

You follow her inside and you note that while Aina herself isn't looking too clean most of the house is immaculate.
"You've taken to housework pretty well. Good job."

"Thanks."
They wouldn't know it but the two girls make you feel a little guilty sometimes. You'd killed a man who was some kind of father figure to them and using his guise, lead them to think that he had abandoned them. But it looks like Aina at least has her life back on track. She's surprisingly resilient.
If only you could say the same about her sister.

"Where is everyone?"

"Oh, the Lady is out with friends and Eugene has been gone for weeks now. Muttered something about a hole? I don't know. Does that make any sense to you?"

"Not in the slightest. Wizards, am I right?"
The two of you share a laugh before you continue.
"So it's just you and Liss right now. Isn't that dangerous?"

"It's not that bad! We have enough money to hire a guard and this is a good street. Our neighbours are rich enough that the city watch patrols often. And besides, I've been training."

"Have you now?"

"Oh yes! I'm sick of being everybody's dead weight. I have a baton and everything!"
Hmph. Maybe she's less resilient than you thought. The fact that Liss got so badly injured saving her still seems to weigh on her if that reasoning is anything to go by.
This is too easy. Aina is an open book.

"Working to protect your sister, huh?"

"Absolutely."

"And how is she doing anyway? Is her walking any better?"

Aina deflates a little.
1/2

>>46738934
Fuck Eugene is gonna be the new Keeper and turn the whole forest into dandelions or something

>>46739030
It's better than the forest becoming a blighted wasteland at least

>>46738934
"Her body is doing well at least. But...sometimes I don't know what to do with her. She's still so very quiet and she never wants to talk to me any more. It's like she's a whole different person and I still don't know how to help that."

You wince in sympathy. You think you have an idea about her affliction. You've wandered over there more than a few times yourself. But helping girls isn't why you're here.
"Say, did they ever find that thing that hurt her? Makes me feel a little unsafe to think about that monster still being at large."

"No. But there is good news. It left this scale inside of Liss' body when it ...hurt her. That's really gross right? So she took it to the alchemist who'd been treating her and he said it was like nothing he's ever seen! He's been combing down by the docks and says that using the scale he's been able to locate other parts as well. Even a whole segment of tail!"
Aina looks up brightly.
"He says that once he gets to the bottom of it all, we'll make enough money off of them that we'll be able to get a proper house instead of living with the Trebains and maybe even some better treatment for Liss."

Huh. Well that's unfortunate. It would appear that once more the twins have accidentally placed themselves in direct competition with your goals. That didn't end well for them last time and you're not going to take pity on them this time either.


>Ask if you could see this alchemist. You may have a clue of your own to give him.

>Ask if you could see Liss. You might be able to help her. And get some more info while you're at it.

>Question Aina on how much she knows and whether anyone else knows.

>She knows too much already. You're going to have to kill her and the sister.

>Offer to spar with her a little and help her training.

>Other

>>46739183
>>Ask if you could see Liss. You might be able to help her. And get some more info while you're at it.
>Offer to spar with her a little and help her training.

>>46739183
>Ask if you could see Liss. You might be able to help her. And get some more info while you're at it.

>>46738390
His magic can alter his face, skin tone and gender. It can't change his voice and can only alter his general build a little. That's why he wears the obscuring poncho.

>>46738735
All day.

>>46739183
>Ask if you could see this alchemist. You may have a clue of your own to give him.
sparring would be nice but our fighting skill would be suspicious and we're on the clock here

>>46739183
>Ask if you could see Liss. You might be able to help her. And get some more info while you're at it.

>Ask if you could see Liss. You might be able to help her. And get some more info while you're at it.

"Do you mind if I have a talk with Liss? I might be able to give her some advice."

"You?"
She looks doubtful.
"I suppose so? It can't hurt."

She leads you up the stairs but quickly comes to a stop. The door down the corridor has a little wooden marker set out on front of it with 'Do Not Disturb' painted onto it in shaky letters.
"I'm sorry...Oster, was it? She won't be seeing anyone like this. I don't know what she does but when she puts that up she really hates it when I barge in. You'll have to talk to her later."

"No worries."
YES worries. This is unacceptable. You don't have time to waste navigating the various melancholies of a cripple.

>Just open the door.

>Wait until Aina is elsewhere and then come back.

>Make your way outside the house and get in through the window.

>Just knock.

>Other

>>46739590
>Just knock.
wink at aina and then say "Hiss wanted me to give you a message from her"

>>46739590
>>Just knock.

>>46739590
>Just knock.

>>46739649
This, then we can give her a fake message encouraging her or something. Unless her crush on Hiss is meta knowledge, idk if Oster is aware.

>Just knock.

You roll your eyes when Aina isn't watching. Now how are you going to go about this? You think for a moment before you come up with a solution. Didn't the Queen say that Liss had sworn herself to her or something. They had apparently bonded during their shared times as Old Bart's captives. You can use that.

You ignore Aina's protests and knock on the door. There's no response so you knock harder.
"Liss! I have a message for you from Hiss!"

Aina stares at you and you wink at her.

You hear someone slowly hobbling their way to the door and you stand back as it creaks open just enough for Liss to look through. She looks like a mess.
"Ah, you're one of her servants! What'd she say? I mean, come in."

The door swings open a little more and you walk in, leaving Aina outside by herself as Liss closes the door in her face.
Liss looks more or less the same as the last time you saw, walking stick clutched in both hands as she makes her way back to her desk.

Now the desk, that's interesting. There's a cauldron, some flasks and vials and a few other weird glass things that you only recognize from seeing their twins in Cennen's portal laboratory. On her bed is a stack of books. Journeyman guides to alchemy.

"Is this what you've been doing that you don't want her to see?"
Shit. She might be involved in this more than you expected.

"Y-yes. Cennen DID leave those books behind for us after all. But if she knew she'd just put me back to bed again. I don't want to see her."

"Understandable. What have you been working on?"

"Just some...things. So what's Hiss' message?"
You look past her and see a large black scale bubbling away inside some kind of clear solution.

You've found your first snake alchemist.


>Keep bluffing for now. Inquire further.

>"Who else knows about this?"

>Tell her that Hiss wouldn't want her to do this.

>Kill her.

>Other

>>46739984
>Keep bluffing for now. Inquire further.

>>46739984
>Keep bluffing for now. Inquire further.
She wanted me to check on your progress as an alchemist as well as how you're holding up. She knew that you would be great at it after Cennen gave those books to you.

>>46739984
>Keep bluffing for now. Inquire further.
Need to learn about the other guy, Liss could be swayed into joining us, by someone else, of course, we don't have time for that.

>>46740101
I mean we could just say that Hiss will truly become a queen and she is requesting her subject's (Liss) help. Bit of a gamble though.

>>46739984
>Keep bluffing for now. Inquire further.

>>46739984
She wants you and your sister to get out of the city soon. Armies taking a city is never safe.

>Keep bluffing for now. Inquire further.

"She wanted me to check on your progress and how you're holding up. Alchemy included."

Liss' eyes lights up.
"She did? She actually cares about me! And she knows about the alchemy?"

"Of course. She knew that you would be a fantastic alchemist ever since Cennen gave those books to you."

Liss looks overjoyed.
"Tell her I'm doing fine. And that I'll do my best."
Poor girl. You know how she feels and you know just how doomed that feeling is. Hiss probably doesn't care about her and even if she did, the Queen's attention is often worse than the alternative.

"So tell me more about your work."

You let her ramble on for a long while. You're used to it from Cennen and despite being a layman, you're able to fake being an expert in just about anything for the length of a single conversation.
The majority of her talk is meaningless to you but you eventually pick out the name of one Master Alffaed. Looks like he's your guy.

"Thanks Liss but I have to be off now. Royal business and all."


>"The Queen wants you out of the city. It's not going to be safe for long."

>"She won't like your direction with this alchemy. Do your best to forget those scales."

>"You should try and talk with your sister a little more often. She only wants to help."

>Wish her well on her recovery.

>Leave without a parting remark.

>>46740281
>"The Queen wants you out of the city. It's not going to be safe for long."
>"She won't like your direction with this alchemy. Do your best to forget those scales."
>"You should try and talk with your sister a little more often. She only wants to help."
>Wish her well on her recovery.

>>46740281
>>Wish her well on her recovery.

>>46740281
>"The Queen wants you out of the city. It's not going to be safe for long."
>"You should try and talk with your sister a little more often. She only wants to help."
>If you end like Cennen you'll need someone to help you.
>Wish her well on her recovery.

>>46740281
>>46740379
Second

>>46740281
>"She won't like your direction with this alchemy. Do your best to forget those scales."
>"You should try and talk with your sister a little more often. She only wants to help."
>Wish her well on her recovery.

>>46740351
Adding to my vote here, maybe we could offer to escort them after we've finished our business in the city?

>>46740585
Oster's not counting on surviving

>"The Queen wants you out of the city. It's not going to be safe for long."
>"You should try and talk with your sister a little more often. She only wants to help."
>Wish her well on her recovery.

You stop before you walk out the door.
"The Queen wants you out of the city. It's not going to be safe for long."

"Really? That makes sense. We'll leave straight away."

"Good. And try to talk with your sister a little more often. She only wants to help. A lot of people don't even have that. Now, I'll see you later. Good luck with your recovery."

And with that, you duck out the door. You manage to avoid Aina on the way down and slip back out onto the street before she can track you down.
Those kids will have to settle things for themselves.

Hiss probably would have wanted you to kill her. But for once you're not doing all this for Hiss. You're doing it for you.

Now it's about time you tracked down this Master Alffaed. Bit of a strange name there. Is he from the mainland? No matter.

You don your mask once more and find your way back to the rooftops. If Liss was correct, your young Master alchemist was currently rooming at the Potions College. That could be tricky.

The sun is drooping lower in the sky by the time you find the College residential dorms. You sneak a peek through the front doors as you pass and sigh as you spot a registrar's desk. Looks like they monitor the comings and goings of visitors. If you plan on visiting the alchemist through the official means they'll instantly suspect you in his death. Not that that should mean anything but it could be a hassle if any complications come up.

>Approach claiming to be a visitor for Alffaed sent on Liss' behalf.

>Approach claiming to be a visitor for Alffaed for your own purposes.

>Sneak in past the front desk.

>Wait and find a suitably hapless-looking alchemist to ambush. You can use his guise.

>Just climb in through a window.

>Money should help grease the wheels here.

>Other

>>46740802
>>Wait and find a suitably hapless-looking alchemist to ambush. You can use his guise.
Hitman Shit.

>>46740802
>>Wait and find a suitably hapless-looking alchemist to ambush. You can use his guise.

>>46740802
>Wait and find a suitably hapless-looking alchemist to ambush. You can use his guise.
Loot his body for potions

>>46740802
>Wait and find a suitably hapless-looking alchemist to ambush. You can use his guise.

>Wait and find a suitably hapless-looking alchemist to ambush. You can use his guise.

You just find a nice out-of-the-way spot to sit on the street nearby just past the fence and drag up one of your unfinished masks from your pack and start whittling to pass the time. You always keep one eye on the dorms however and quickly evaluate every alchemist leaving.

No, he's too fat.

No, he's way too short.

No, that one is a woman. You can take up a female guise if you really have to but you just don't have the voice for it.

And then you spot a likely-looking fellow walk out the door. Nice. Nothing too abnormal about him. His build is a bit smaller than yours but you can squeeze into that. And most importantly, he doesn't just wander onto the street but instead walks down the path leading to a small forested area on the College grounds. Perfect.

You jump the fence when nobody is looking and melt away into the trees. After that it's mostly just a matter of looking like you're supposed to be here.
You track the man down the path into the little glen to find...ah. Of course. Boys will be boys. He was meeting a girl.

You slit his throat mid-coitus, up along and past the ear so that he dies quickly. You already have a hand over the girl's mouth to muffle the resulting scream, giving you time to withdraw your knife and kill her too. They didn't even have a chance to move, frozen in death with their limbs still locked together.
You've never seen the allure of it yourself.

If you had the time you'd spend an hour or so properly disposing of the bodies but you're on a clock here. You settle for dragging them behind a small wall of trees and burying them in a large pile of leafmould and branches that you assume is the nest of some kind of scrub turkey. You wonder if they'll blame the bird. That seems unlikely.

At a whim, you push the dagger into the girl's hand before pushing the nest over the top of them. Let 'em think about that.
1/2

Sorry about the delay on this one. Phone call.

>>46741242
And with that done you sit back and wash your hands in a nearby decorative pond. Your poncho got a little blood on it but it kept the rest of your clothes clean. You simply take it off and flip it inside-out before putting it back on again.
You keep the young man's visage fresh in your mind as you whittle in a few finishing touches on your unformed mask. Most of the work was already done and it's not long before you bear a grim image of the man's last moments.

You snap the mask on and feel the Art slide over you. Luckily he'd taken off most of his clothes beforehand so you didn't have to get blood on them. You put on most of them to complete the disguise.

And with that done, you walk right past the registrar. Nobody calls out 'your' name but you see passer-bys nod at you as they pass. Respectable.
From there it's very easy to just walk up the several flights of stairs required to find Master Alffaed's apartment.

You knock and a light brown-skinned man with neat and tidy black hair answers the door.
"Can I help you?"
Ra Vene accent. You were right!

"Excuse me," you say as you push your way into his room. "I have a message from young Liss, I believe you were treating her. It's about those scales you've found."

"You mean that?"
He makes a gesture behind him and you let out an involuntary whistle as you see the large tail remnant sitting on a desk. It's over a meter long and floating in what looks to be a small tub filled with preserving fluids.

"Yes. She wants to know if you or your colleagues have found anything new."

"Colleagues? What? I thought I told her that we were supposed to keep this secret! How else are we going to make money from it? Who did she tel-"

"Thanks."
You muffle him with one hand, drawing his head down so that you can stab him to death with the other hand.
"For what it's worth, I'm sure you were a great help to her recovery."

Now you need to dispose of all this evidence.
2/3

>>46741496
It wouldn't do any good to kill the snake alchemists just to leave all of their reagents lying around! You pick up as many scales as you can find but you quickly come to the conclusion that there could be any number of the things hidden away in the apartment that you probably wouldn't find.
Not to mention that giant tail.

>Set a fire in his rooms. That should do it.

>Set an explosive fire in his rooms. This probably happens a lot here right?

>Make another mask and do something to discredit the alchemist forever.

>Just grab the whole tail and leave. A few errant scales probably won't do much harm.

>Other

>>46741541
>Search for strong boxes, hidden compartments or anything that could protect notes, potions or samples from a fire
>Set an explosive fire in his rooms. This probably happens a lot here right?
Be thorough

>>46741541
>Set an explosive fire in his rooms. This probably happens a lot here right?

>>46741612
Sounds good.

>>46741541
>>46741612
this, also nick any potions he has labeled. It totally doing it ourselves if the alchemy we use is looted from a dead guy.

>>46741657
Yeah, Cennen might want to have a look at them

>>46741657
Nah I bet none of them are labeled anyway. and Oster wants to do this the old fashioned way.

>Loot and burn.

You lock the door and then set about searching through his rooms for anything that could protect notes, potions or samples from a fire. You open every drawer, upturn every box and tear apart every collection of notes you see. You even check for hidden compartments in the walls or the door-frame.
You find a few more scales but nothing too interesting save for a few labelled bottles. This guy was just like Cennen in that he didn't seem to see a need to label his potions but you still manage to find some. Maybe they were potions that he bought from someone else?

You find two vials of nonlethal poison. Just what was your little friend up to? You also find a Heal-All. It wasn't labelled but you've learned to recognize them by scent now.

With that all out of the way, you stack the rest of the potions by the tub containing the tail. If you know anything about alchemists it's that at least ONE of these bottles is going to react very badly to fire. That should help erase the evidence.
You slide his corpse underneath it all so that it too will take full brunt of the explosion.

You then take out your flint and tender and start a little fire in a pile of shredded notes and textbooks. That should start it off well. You snap some of his desk and his chair up for use as better kindling before finding a bottle of what appears to be black oil.
There it is.

You sprinkle oil all over his rooms but mostly over the tub and the snake tail. And with that done you leave a little paper trail between the fire and the oil-covered evidence for the flame to follow, shut the door behind you and run like the blazes.

You push people out of your way heedlessly as you run down the corridor and make your escape just seconds before you hear the explosion. And not just one either, it's followed by the quick pop pop pop! of many smaller secondary detonations as the flame finds its way to various potions.

1/2

>>46741902
Before people can put one and two together you've climbed out the second-story window and dropped down onto the lawn beyond. A man tries and stops you but you duck under his outstretched arm and shove him to the ground. And from there it's just a quick sprint right out the main gates of the College!

People pursue you of course but you quickly lose them the moment you duck into an alleyway and take your mask off. You made the escape that visible intentionally. A LOT of people saw that poor alchemist you did away with as the main culprit to some kind of alchemical misadventure. Scandalous!

You walk right past the people chasing you and they ignore you. You almost throw the mask away but stop at the last moment. You never know when you might need this guy to mysteriously resurface and cause trouble again.

You put your blacksmith mask back on and wander off through the streets of Taldenral. Night is beginning to fall and even though you do your best to control yourself, you can feel your heart thumping like a drum. It's time.

>Approach the palace as a servant.

>Approach the palace as a nobleman.

>Approach the palace as a guard.

>You'd rather not take the risk inherent in killing more people. Just sneak in through the rooftops.

>Arrange a distraction and climb the back fence when nobody is looking.

>Other

>>46742059
>>Approach the palace as a servant.

>>46742059
>You'd rather not take the risk inherent in killing more people. Just sneak in through the rooftops.
Leaving a trail of dead bodies will make our shapeshifting abilities apparent

>>46742059
>Approach the palace as a servant.
Maybe use a nonlethal poison instead. Don't be seen.

>>46742059
>You'd rather not take the risk inherent in killing more people. Just sneak in through the rooftops.

>>46742059
Maybe we could try to locate one of our snake friends? Make sure they're alright

Rolled 4 (1d6)

Looks like a tie! Odds is servant, evens is rooftops.

>>46742370
Oster wasn't in charge of the vanguard in Taldenral. He doesn't know what they look like.

>>46742402
that's how the assassin came for Hiss, that's how we come for the King!

>You'd rather not take the risk inherent in killing more people. Just sneak in through the rooftops.

Assuming the forms of too many people could be dangerous. If someone was to find a dead or unconscious servant when the servant was recorded as being in the palace that night AND they put that together with a strange disappearance in the Potions College...that probably won't happen but it doesn't hurt to be cautious.
It'll feel good to get some real footwork in as well. Hiss has been using you mostly as just some pet bodyguard.

Most of the rooftops in this area are slanted at steep angles or have nails or bits of glass embedded in them to prevent just the kind of behaviour that you're intending. It doesn't stop you.

You get down on your belly and snake-crawl up one roof before rolling down the far side. You scurry over a decorative archway connecting the street and pad your way across a roof filled with nasty iron spikes. The rich are the only people who can afford to have such nasty roofs but they're also the kind of people who love the kind of foolish decorations and flourishes that make it so easy to climb in the first place.
Now you just have to control yourself and wait a little bit longer. The darkness has to settle and the guards have to start lighting their torches and braziers. That'll help them keep watch over the gates and fence but the fire-blindness will hide the rooftops from your gaze.

Your sword rattles in its sheath. Just a little longer now.

As proper darkness falls you rise and get to work. You make your way across the roofs until you're just across the road from the palace's side.

Huh. They've taken that arch down. There used to be an arch crossing the road that you one with excellent leaping skills could use to sail right over the fence of the palace grounds. When did they get rid of that? It was here the last time you were here!

1/2

>>46742700
No matter. You can still manage this. You wait for nearly ten minutes before the opportunity presents itself and you jump!
You sail through the air feet-first and for a moment you don't think you're going to make it. But then you land right on top of the passing coach just as planned.

You hear a cry of dismay from within but when the driver turns around to look you're already gone. You jump over the fence, tucking your legs up as high as you can as you clear it by what feels like mere inches.

You smack into a tree and grab hold of it immediately to prevent yourself from falling but you only rest there a moment before swinging to the next branch.
The royal gardens. Perfect!

The front of the palace grounds has a huge clear spot where the coaches wheel up through the main gate that you couldn't possibly sneak through. But the front door isn't what concerns you. You're going to do just what his assassin did when he dared to make an attempt upon your Queen.

You make your way through the gardens with ease though you do have to roll under a bank of very thorny bushes to avoid a guard. It stings but not as much as your pride.
And the gardens go right up to the wall of servant's wing, a lesser building to the side of the royal palace. You make your way onto its roof and follow it to where it connects with the palace.
Getting from there to the closest palace rooftop requires nearly twenty feet of vertical climbing with only minimum hand-holds. You don't dare use the windowsills in case you are seen.

That's probably easy enough but you're getting old.

>Make a 1d100 roll. Best of the first 3

Rolled 56 (1d100)

>>46742861

Rolled 84 (1d100)

>>46742861
pls

Rolled 95 (1d100)

>>46742861

Rolled 97 (1d100)

>>46742861

Rolled 46 (1d100)

>>46742861

>>46742893
>>46742918
>>46742923
>tfw we never roll this well as Cennen

>>46742918
we good

>>46742918
>>46742923
Obviously, the dice gods have blessed Oster

>>46742943
Eh we tend to do pretty damn well.

>>46742943
Remember that time in the compact house when Oster should have died but we rolled a 100 so we got an Oldboy inspired fight scene instead?

>95

Your concerns over getting too old for the business were clearly unfounded. You scamper straight up the wall in record time and without ever having to even touch a windowsill. That always makes you happy. You can really tell an amateur by how often they use the windows to scale a wall. Much too easy to be seen unless you hang straight down from it and while you can't speak for anyone else, doing that is fucking murder on your back these days.
Besides, too many assholes put spikes on their windowsills to deter pigeons these days. You've yet to meet the man who's spiked up his entire wall.

You lever yourself up onto the very top of the main palace only to quickly roll behind a nearby chimney as you spot a distant figure. You're not alone up here. Should have seen that coming really. Of course he would have posted guards up here!
And judging by the stylized mane fringing around his helmet, this isn't just any old schmuck. It's a royal guard. You got to fight them once. You lost.

Looking around you think you can spot the glint of moonlight on helms in a few other places too. There's more than one of them and they're all in the dark so they aren't fire-blind. You'd wager they can all see each other from here as well so taking one out individually is a bad idea.

>Sneak through anyway.

>See if you can find a way to lure the closest guard away from the vision of the others for just a moment.

>Climb back down and make your way through a window. You'll do the rest of the damn thing inside the palace instead.

>If you can find a way to make a distraction they may be pulled from their posts.

>Sit and wait.

>Other

>>46743190
>Climb back down and make your way through a window. You'll do the rest of the damn thing inside the palace instead.

>>46743190
>Sit and wait.

>>46743190
>See if you can find a way to lure the closest guard away from the vision of the others for just a moment.

You lost in a stand up fight, well this isn't a stand up fight.

>>46743242
I feel like these guys are highly trained enough to alert each other if they see anything worth investigating

>>46743190
>If you can find a way to make a distraction they may be pulled from their posts.

>>46743190
>Sit and wait.
study them for a bit, see what they do. might have to go through the window but let's make sure first.

>>46743167
Fuck I need to reread that. Shit was cash. You recall about what thread it was?

>>46743260
Yeah a distraction or luring one of them away would most likely just raise an alarm and make our entire job a whole lot harder.

>>46743301
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/42175249/

>>46743190
>Sit and wait.

>>46743331
My brother of African decent.

>>46743372
I gotchu senpai

>>46743190
>>Sit and wait.

>Sit and wait.

An assassin needs more than to be simply quick and nimble. He needs more than to just be ruthless. He also needs an unending supply of patience.
You've lost track of that last part lately. Now would be an excellent time to relearn it. You can afford to wait. The night isn't going anywhere.

If you were anywhere else you'd worry about being picked up by a seer scanning the area but you know more about the Sight than most. Enough to know that a lot of fear and security people put into it is misplaced. Most seers can't see inside your soul and no seer can see more than a few miles away. And none of them can encompass the entire damn palace in his gaze. Those that can scry are often limited in it and not even the High King of all Teleran could afford to blanket his entire grounds with seers. You were here not that long ago too, you know he focusses them mostly around the front to keep watch on visitors.

There's no reason for any of them to painfully drag their Sight to the very top of the roof. Not when literally any other area of the palace is probably more important. And that's assuming he has seers up twenty four hours of the day which is assuming a LOT. A constant scry would be tiring in a spiritual fashion that simple restoration brews wouldn't fix.

So you feel pretty confident in staying up here. You can outwait these men. But what are you waiting for?

Hours pass...
You watch as the royal guardsmen start to visibly lose composure. Is there going to be a changing of the guard soon? That would probably be your best chance.

But then a great hubbub springs up down in the palace beneath you and you watch as the gates spring open and a single carriage rattles through as fast as it can go.
It's stopped by the guards before it reaches the palace main gates but it isn't alone. There are a great many riders with them, tired and dirty men on horses. You can't see very well from here but many of them appear to be wounded.

1/2

>>46743615
"The Kuri has fallen!," one of them cries out as the guards stop him before grand palace doors. "Send word to the King at once! The Witch Queen rides to Taldenral!"

His cry starts up a great many others, men babbling and shouting about great works of magic. The very river bent from its course, boats being sent through fortifications as if they were toys, plumes of incinerating flame.

You breath a sigh of relief. All is going well. And if these men rode from the River Kuri as fast as they possibly could...then the battle must have been won earlier today. Hiss will be here tomorrow.
So you better damn well have a present for her when she arrives then!

The royal guards, already tired from their long shift atop the very uncomfortable rooftops, are greatly distracted. As are most of the palace staff in general.

>Sprint across the rooftops straight to the royal chambers.

>Use this time to try and pick the guards off.

>Call for the guards to get down here and help, damn it!

>Other

>>46743708
>Sprint across the rooftops straight to the royal chambers.

>>46743708
>>Call for the guards to get down here and help, damn it!

>>46743708
>Call for the guards to get down here and help, damn it!

>>46743708
>Sprint across the rooftops straight to the royal chambers.
Anyone turns around and notices us, lob him one of the poison bottles we stole

>>46743708
Do we think we have a path where we can sprint undetected?

>>46743831
Yes if you can keep yourself quiet enough.

>>46743821
The poisons only work if they get into a cut or their mouth

>>46743841
Fuck the dice will it.

>>46743708
>Sprint across the rooftops straight to the royal chambers.

>>46743708
>Sprint across the rooftops straight to the royal chambers.

>Sprint across the rooftops straight to the royal chambers.

You rise from where you were and quickly stretch your legs. You'll have the time this just right but if you manage it, you might be able to cut through a lot of work by just sprinting down to the other side of the roof and dropping down onto the balcony right outside the king's chambers.
But you'll have not only quick but quiet and it'll have to be at just the right time.

You start your run.

>Going to need a 1d100, best of the first 3, etc.

Rolled 93 (1d100)

>>46743910
come on dice gods

Rolled 63 (1d100)

>>46743910

Rolled 53 (1d100)

>>46743910

>>46743921
the dice gods have a boner for oster

>>46743921
Oster lives thanks to Dice gods

So I was thinking... what if Oster killed the king and then impersonated him. Then he could surrender to Hiss or just sabotage the resistance.

>>46744000
I'm not sure his impersonation skills are good enough for that.

Oster has spent almost all of the past 100 threads getting tie-votes constantly, you just didn't see them since he wasn't the viewpoint. That's why the dice are so kind.
Writan'

>>46744042
We'll roll for it.

>>46744000
The amount of smug would be palpable. Also might be useful instead of trying to escape, remaining hidden in plain sight.

>>46744132
overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer

>93

You run right past all of them as they gawk down at the chaos below and you don't even make a sound. Not only that but you feel incredible! These last few weeks with Hiss have dulled your senses but it's only taken one day in Taldenral to sharpen them back up.
You should kill kings more often.

You round the corner and slide to a stop, swinging yourself over the lip of a roof and dropping a storey or so to land on the balcony in a crouch. There's an iron grille in front of the open curtains leading into the royal chambers but that doesn't stop you. You position yourself to the side of the door on the balcony so that nobody on the inside should be able to see you. And from there it's just a matter of picking the lock. You're not a specialist at such things but you like to consider yourself a jack of all trades and with the picks you keep on your person it doesn't take you long to slide the grille open and enter the royal chambers.
Naturally you looked ahead first to confirm that they were empty of course.

You find yourself in the royal bedroom. This probably isn't that much use to you, the High King won't be sleeping for a while with that news circulating around. Hiding here probably isn't worth it.

You start to circulate through the various royal chambers, peeking through keyholes as best you can before entering each one. All empty.
And then you find what you suppose must be High King Edwin's office or something. Some kind of planning room.
The room is dominated by a long and wide table fit for many chairs. Is this where he meets with his council? There are sheets of parchment scattered all over it.
War plans.

The door you just entered this room through swings open and a member of the Royal Guard walks in. Shit! Did you really miss a patrol that had been circulating just behind you?

You're already drawing your sword when he sees you. You have roughly one second before he raises the alarm.

1/2

inb4 the king was a snake this whole time

>>46744274
You don't even have time to reverse your sword! You settle for smacking him in the head with the pommel instead while your free hand grabs him by the throat.
There's a gap in his armour there and you can use it to stifle his voice.

He draws his own sword and you drop your own, using your now-free swordhand to grab the non-lethal poison and force it through his lips. You hold him tight until he collapses just a few moments later.

He slumps to the ground and you pick up your sword. That was too close.

And that's when you hear the sound of footsteps. A great many footsteps in fact, accompanied by distant voices. A lot of people are approaching this room from the corridor outside!

"-need to do it now!"
You recognize that voice. It's your old buddy, Edwin III.


>Hide in a different room. They might hear the door however and you won't be able to see much from there.

>Get in the little closet to the side.

>Get under the table! At least it has a really long table-cloth.

>Out the window! You can, ugh, hang onto the windowsill outside.

>Climb up on top of the table and use that to jump onto the rafters above like a madman.

>Don't hide anywhere. Charge the king when he enters.

>Other

In addition, you have an unconscious body here as well.

>Push it under the table.

>Into the closet!

>Throw it out the window. That'll attract attention but hopefully not in the time-frame you're looking to work in.

>Into another room.

>Throw the corpse at them as they enter.

>Other

>>46744422
>Climb up on top of the table and use that to jump onto the rafters above like a madman.

>Push it under the table.

I doubt they will be sitting for something this important.

>>46744422
>Climb up on top of the table and use that to jump onto the rafters above like a madman.
>Into the closet!

>>46744422
>Climb up on top of the table and use that to jump onto the rafters above like a madman
>Push it under the table.

>>46744422
>Climb up on top of the table and use that to jump onto the rafters above like a madman.
>Into the closet!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAYhNHhxN0A

>>46744422
>out the window
And
>push into the closet

>>46744422
>Climb up on top of the table and use that to jump onto the rafters above like a madman.
>Push it under the table.
It is not a moment for sitting

Rolled 4 (1d6)

Looks like a tie for what do with the corpse. Evens is closet, odds is table.

>>46744594
Oster you have already come out of the closet to one King.

File: tiny_zuhkdeep.gif (483 KB, 243x270)

483 KB GIF

>>46744642

Ya cheeki...

>>46744717
Zulkdeep why are you here and where is Aash?

>>46744717
zukhdeep is a dude anon

>Climb up on top of the table and use that to jump onto the rafters above like a madman.
>Into the closet!

You pick up the unconscious man and swing the closet open with your other hand. You somehow manage to stuff him in there, kicking the sword he dropped underneath the table as you climb onto the table.
You bounce on your feet a few times before making the jump. You have to succeed the very first time or they'll hear you.

You leap upwards in a straight vertical and just barely manage to grab onto the rafters at the price of hitting your head. You shake it off and pull yourself up until you're squatting on top of them. This is an excellent position to spy on proceedings.
It'll be a somewhat less excellent position if you are found. You don't really have any good spots for movement that doesn't involve first falling to the ground.

The doors slam open just a moment later, Edwin entering with at least six of his Royal Guard. Oh dear.
Following them is a small smattering of noblemen of various shapes and sizes. His council of advisors? Their bleary look suggests that some of them had been asleep.

Not Edwin himself however. He slams his fists down on the table as he turns to berate the men before him.
"You said it was impossible! That the river was impassible!"

One of his advisors, an older man in a strained dress uniform wipes his brow.
"It should have been. We were not taking such magic into account-"

"Not taking magic into account? When I send you to fight somebody calling themselves the WITCH QUEEN?"
The High King stomps across the room and throws the window open. The fresh air seems to relax him.
"Sorry about that. Where's General Yarley? Wasn't he supposed to reinforce you?"

"Yarley never arrived. I have intel that suggests he is marching with the Witch Queen."

Another of the men quickly speak up.
"And we did take magic into account. We had an entire alchemist cabal and two wizards there! What more magic could you need?"

1/2

>>46744743
Zukhdeep is what ever clothes that Ash wants to put on it.

>>46744743
Snake haemonculi means it don't matter.

>>46744774
She called it a he and the skinshedder brew only lets him have a single human form. He doesn't have any snake arts like shapeshifting.

>>46744789
>not taking an effeminate childish form so Aash can ooh and ash over him

>>46744806
>muh magical realm

>>46744815
Ouro already established snakes are incredibly magical realmy. Zuhlkdeep being a kid is easily within bounds. And orange has illustrated how effeminate people can be.

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474 KB GIF

>>46744858
whatever you say anon

>>46744761
"More than that, evidently."
The High King sighs.
"Do we have any reason to believe that this...this woman will not be marching on Taldenral tomorrow?"

"Intel is hazy. Her scryguards are strong and she is very active at rooting out our scouts. She's gotten amazing foresters from somewhere."

"And yet her scouting upon us is somehow near-perfect. She's always at our supply lines and there are disruptions everywhere I go. I'm starting to suspect that we may have a traitor."

Hah. If only you knew.

"Is..is that why you called us here?"

"No. I know I can trust all of you. I'm here to ask about what the hell are we going to do? That was all we had! How long do you think it'll take before all the local lords and merchant-princes get up in arms when they find out the fate of the knights I borrowed from them? Am I supposed to defend Taldenral with the dregs and the local city watch? We can't recall our forces from Szar, it'll take too long!"

"We still have the College."

"The College is useless. Just earlier today one of them had an appointment with me to discuss some brand new form of alchemy he wanted to sell to me but he never showed up. He's dead. More coincidences? I can't even tell anymore."
Edwin pulls out a chair and slowly sits down.
"How goes the recalling the fleet?"

"They left for Szar earlier this month but using the experimental new seer semaphore we were able to signal them back before the Witch Queen took Melire. They've had excellent weather all the way and should be able to arrive either late this night or early morning."

What?

The King raises an eyebrow.
"Finally, some good news. Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I was before this untimely interruption. The semaphore is not without delays."

"Excellent."
The King claps his hands and a servant steps forward.
"Take this message out to the semaphores. Tell them to swoop down the coastline and ready an attack from behind. We may crush this upstart yet."

2/3

>>46744958
Shit. This could ruin everything! Should you follow the messenger and take him out?
But you can't. You're trapped up here in the rafters. The moment you drop down from here is the moment you get attacked by at least six members of the Royal Guard.

"Excuse me your Highness," one of his advisers say. "That patch of coast to the south of the city is lousy with rocks and reefs. Deploying there could be dangerous."

Edwin shakes his head.
"Didn't I sign off on placing several lighthouses all through the Petrie Isles two years ago? Those should be sufficient."

Oh no. You might be able to stop this but is doing that more important than killing the King? What option are you supposed to take?

>Just bolt out the window. You need to stop that messenger.

>Just stay and wait up here for however long it takes for this meeting to end. Then you can kill the King safely.

>Drop down onto the table and stab the King before bolting out the window to intercept the messenger.

>Other

>>46745064
>>Drop down onto the table and stab the King before bolting out the window to intercept the messenger.

>>46745064
>>Drop down onto the table and stab the King before bolting out the window to intercept the messenger.

>>46745064
>Just bolt out the window. You need to stop that messenger.

>>46745064
>Drop down onto the table and stab the King before bolting out the window to intercept the messenger.
Time for another gamble i suppose.

>>46745064
What we really need to do is tail the messenger and then kill the semaphores. Killing the messenger doesn't solve the problem, there's a reason that's a common analogy.

>>46745182
Always can change the message

>>46745064
>Just bolt out the window. You need to stop that messenger.

>>46745064
>>46745182
This. Also, Oster shouldn't expose himself. They'll know that we know of their plan.
Our best move is to either kill the seer or warn hiss about the fleet.

>>46745182
>Just stay and wait up here for however long it takes for this meeting to end. Then you can kill the King safely.
We should focus on the king. if we can have the city fall then Hiss can welcome the soldiers returning from Szar from the throne rather then in combat.

>>46745064
>Drop down onto the table and stab the King before bolting out the window to intercept the messenger.

>Drop down onto the table and stab the King before bolting out the window to intercept the messenger.

Well, hell. You can't say that you came into this expecting to live. You don't have time to mess around. You watch as the High King leans over the table and you drop from the rafters.

For a frozen moment you are suspended in the air above them all, your sword drawn and ready. And then you hit the table with a crack and your sword is coming down straight into Edwin's neck. It bites true and you are rewarded with a spray of blood as the head of the High King is parted from his royal shoulders.

And that was just the first second. Everyone else is too baffled to act while you've been raring to go this entire time. It's no longer about just killing the High King. You need to save Hiss.

You run down the table and leap for the window that the late King had opened. But alas, you are not perfect and in your rush your foot catches on the edge!
You curse in pain and fall through it, unable to catch onto the windowsill as you had planned!

>Roll a 1d100. Highest of first 3.

Rolled 20 (1d100)

>>46745322

>>46745064
>Just bolt out the window. You need to stop that messenger.

We are a smart assassin. Killing a person is well and good, but killing his efforts? Much more important in this instance.

Rolled 55 (1d100)

>>46745322

Rolled 9 (1d100)

>>46745322
bad call guys

Rolled 40 (1d100)

>>46745322
Well that was easy

>>46745353
That was the point. Surviving was always the hard part.
>>46745333
Looks like age caught up. Cmon trips with dubs roll

>>46745333
Well at least we've got that heal all

Fuck man. We warned you about the get away. If only we had forced the hard-headed cunt to take a skin shedder

File: UF1vQAB.gif (2 MB, 540x297)

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>>46745333
Can't stop thinking of this

>55

You scrabble at the windowsill desperately but to no avail. And then it's just the rushing of the air past your ears as you find yourself watching the windowsill getting further and further away from you.

Damn, you think dreamily, still caught up in the killing rush. I fucked up. Sorry Hiss.

You hit the railing of a balcony side-on and your vision blurs as you feel your ribs crack. For a moment you manage to grab hold of the railing all the same and you lie atop it.
But the King's blood is on your hands and it is slippery as hell. You roll off the railing with a groan and fall onto the balcony below. You cry it in pain at this one but at least you're on an actual balcony now.

Gasping and wheezing you get to your feet, one hand holding your chest as if that would keep the damn ribs in place.
You've felt worse but not by much.

There's a woman in the room that this balcony is connected to. She sees you and screams, raising the alarm even further. You just roll your eyes and hoist yourself over the railing and drop the rest of the way into the courtyard.

You land groggily on your feet and nearly get grabbed by a man in palace livery. Some kind of steward? Whatever, he's dead now.
You stab him in the side and kick him away as you howl in pain.

A crossbow bolt shatters on the cobblestones by your feet.
It might be time to leave.


>Just run straight out through the courtyard and out the front doors. You might be able to grab one of the visitor's coaches from out front.

>Do the above but take your time and be cautious as well as killing anyone who could threaten you.

>Try to climb the walls again. They'd never expect that!

>Run back into the palace. If you can shake your pursuit for just a moment you can take off the mask and hide. Probably the most sensible option but you won't be able to track the messenger then.

>Run into the gardens.

>Other

Oh whoops, I missed an additional vote. As well as voting on your means of escape also have this:

>Use the Heal-All now!

>Hold onto it, you might need it even more later.

>>46745512
Which way do we think the messenger went? And would half of the heal-all do much for us?

>>46745512
>Just run straight out through the courtyard and out the front doors. You might be able to grab one of the visitor's coaches from out front.
>Hold onto it, you might need it even more later.
On more fuck up

>>46745564
He went down the main road of the grounds and is heading towards the city. I'm assuming that Oster plans on following him with all of these routes save the 'Hide' one.

>>46745512
>Just run straight out through the courtyard and out the front doors. You might be able to grab one of the visitor's coaches from out front.
Drink half of the heal-all. Running with broken ribs is less than ideal. It's already fucking with our breathing.

>>46745512
>Just run straight out through the courtyard and out the front doors. You might be able to grab one of the visitor's coaches from out front.
>Hold onto it, you might need it even more later.
If we happen to get cornered or take a bolt up the ass

>>46745512
>Run into the gardens.
>Hold onto it, you might need it even more later.

I wonder if we can convince the messenger that that wasn't the king and the message is sending the ships into a trap.

>>46745512
>Use the Heal-All now!
>Just run straight out through the courtyard and out the front doors. You might be able to grab one of the visitor's coaches from out front.

Saving it does nothing if our lungs get so compressed by blood they collapse. We are running on Adrenalin only right now and if you think we are going to be worse off later, then we would already be dead for all intents.

>>46745702
nigga are you serious
"yeah i know the king just told you this but trust this random guy covered in blood instead"

>>46745512
>Do the above but take your time and be cautious as well as killing anyone who could threaten you.
>Use the Heal-All now!
hemopneumothorax is bad news

>Just run straight out through the courtyard and out the front doors. You might be able to grab one of the visitor's coaches from out front.
>Drink half

You drink half of the Heal-All, hopefully enough to dull the pain and keep your broken ribs from doing anything particularly awful. But only half, adrenaline will have to cover the rest.

You run out of the courtyard, arrows and bolts slicing through the air around you. Ahead of you you can see the coach the messenger got into trundling down towards the gates. Oh hell no.

You spot a coach just pulling up in front of the palace. A young noblewoman of some kind is just getting out of it. You stab her in the neck and take her place.
"Move or you're the next!"

The coachman evidently finds you rather compelling as he wastes no time in turning it around and whipping the horses into a proper frenzy. Coaches can't go very fast but you'll be damned if you do any more running.
A crossbow bolt hits you in the back as you withdraw back inside of the coach. You just grunt. It's not like you can feel MORE pain right now.
"Follow that coach!"

You lean back and swear as the coachman does what you say. You grit your teeth and pull the arrow out, spouting more muffled profanities as you do so. It might have been worth keeping it in there to help stop the bleeding but you can't risk it being shaken in deeper and deeper until it hits something vital.

You take off your poncho and rip your shirt off, doing your best to make makeshift bandages.

"Uh sir?"

You look out the window. They've pulled the damn gate shut! You can see the messenger's coah riding down the street outside but they've shut the gate on you!

"Fuck it, she'll be right. Keep going head on."

"Excus-"

"Keep going! Faster!"
You claw your way to the top of the coach, bloody sword held out ahead of you. Wait for it...wait for it...wait for it...

1/2

>>46745857
>You stab her in the neck and take her place
Could have pushed her aside, Oster is fucking ruthless

>>46745857
The coach comes screeching to a halt as the horses refuse to crash into the gates and you're ready for it, throwing yourself forward! You barely manage to clear the gates and hit the cobblestones of road outside extremely roughly. You do your best to roll into it but it's not a great feeling.

The messenger's coach is just passing in front of you as you roll and writhe in pain. It feels like you could just reach out and grab it...

And that's exactly what you do.

With a herculean effort you grab hold of the back of the coach and you Do. Not. Let. Go.
Yes, even as it drags you across the cobblestones you keep holding on. You let go of your Ishmin sword at some point but you don't care, every iota of your being centered on keeping a hold on the coach as you are brutally rattled and dragged across the road behind it.

That's a bruise right there.

And that's another.

And another.

And another.

Fortunately coaches don't go that fast so you're able to get one leg on the ground proper and then another and suddenly you're running behind the coach in an awful staggering stride that only works because you're still holding on and letting it drag you.

Now upright, you swing both of your feet up onto the coach's step and hold on for dear life. You are bruised, bleeding and broken but you have successfully latched onto the messenger's coach.

You slowly drag yourself upwards until you're lying on the roof. Have they noticed you? You don't know.
You do know that everything hurts however.

>Drink the Heal-all, take a moment to rest.

>Just take a moment to rest while you're reasonably horizontal.

>Kill the coachman.

>Threaten the coachman to stop.

>See if you can force your way into the carriage itself.

>Other

>>46745966
>>Drink the Heal-all, take a moment to rest.

>>46745966
>Drink the Heal-all, take a moment to rest.
>See if you can force your way into the carriage itself.

>>46745966
>Drink the Heal-all, take a moment to rest.

At this point the jostling of the ride might well do what an entire castle of guards couldn't

>>46745966
>See if you can force your way into the carriage itself.
lol Oster is always getting hurt terribly when we play as him

>Drink the Heal-all, take a moment to rest.

You drink the other half of the Heal-All and let it soothe your pain. It's not enough to actually heal all of your injuries unfortunately but it helps a lot. This carriage jostles way too much and every moment hurts.
You...you just need to rest for a moment. Everything's going to be alright.

You gaze into the middle distance. Time passes before you realize it.

You jerk yourself out of your half-sleep when the coach stops. What? No! You heave yourself off of it just as the messenger steps out.
You feet hit the ground and buckle beneath you and you land in an ungainly heap. The messenger jumps and starts to run.

"Oh no you don't!"
You surge to your feet only for the coachman to draw his sword! How nice of him.
You catch his sword-arm, disarm and slice his belly open. Now you have a sword again. Where did that little fucker go?

The messenger runs into a building just down the street, a shed with a squat little tower growing out of it. He slams the door and you can hear a bolt slam home just before you reach it.
And behind you in the distance you can hear shouting. Looks like you haven't shaken the palace guard at all.


>Hide. You've failed to stop the messenger, you need to take care of yourself now.

>Try to break down the door.

>Smash open a window and lurch in.

>Fuck it, just climb straight up the tower's wall. You might even get to the top of it before the messenger does.

>Other

>>46746148
>>Hide. You've failed to stop the messenger, you need to take care of yourself now.
Mission accomplished, eddie is dead, now we need to get the fuck out and warn Hiss

>>46746148
>>Hide. You've failed to stop the messenger, you need to take care of yourself now.

>>46746148
>Smash open a window and lurch in.
>inconveniently falls asleep at a key moment
lame

>>46746148
>Hide. You've failed to stop the messenger, you need to take care of yourself now.
You've fallen asleep once. There's not much you can do now.

>>46746221
I write from what I know.

File: 1426788618718.jpg (20 KB, 403x395)

20 KB JPG

>>46746239

>>46746221
I agree but we did vote to rest for a moment I suppose

>Hide. You've failed to stop the messenger, you need to take care of yourself now.

It's over. You've failed. You're practically dead on your feet, even if you are feeling better than if you hadn't fallen asleep. You can't possibly stop this.
Even if you do get inside quick enough, what do you do when the guards surround the building? You need to get away.

You stagger down the street until you find an open window, scrabbling up a wall with bleeding fingers until you force yourself into someone's bedroom. It's a man and a woman. You draw your sword across her torso before she can scream and dizzily kick her into the man so he can't do anything. You nearly trip over yourself in the process but that buys you the time you need to slice him open. He gurgles a lot and now the bed is very messy. You don't really give a shit and collapse on the floor.

This place looks kinda rich. You hope they don't have any servants that'll come to investigate.
You fall asleep on the floor with your mask still on.

...

You wake. You feel, well, not better but at least refreshed. The Heal-All has finally stopped your bleeding and you only hurt a lot.
You lie there in your own dried blood for a time.

So how about that. You killed the King. But you failed to stop the messenger. Just like you failed to protect Hiss. You always give your best but your best is never enough. Maybe you really have gotten too old. This entire business is a young man's game, it ain't for someone who'll be 40 after the next winter.

Looks like you haven't slept long, it's still dark out. Only a few hours at most.

A thought slowly worms its way into your brain. You can still stop the fleet. You can still be the hero.
The King had mentioned something about the Petrie Islands. You know where they are. Little rocks just off the coast near Taldenral.

And they've got lighthouses on 'em. Lighthouses to guide the fleet through the southern reefs.

It feels absurd, like a fantasy. You would probably die.
1/2

>>46746422
You already killed the king. What else could you possibly need to prove?
You feel your heart beat again.

>Someone needs to break those lighthouses.

>No. You can't do it. Haven't you already done enough?

>>46746437
>Someone needs to break those lighthouses.
Does this mean another Oster thread?

>>46746437
>Someone needs to break those lighthouses.

>>46746451
Depends. I can still keep running today for a few more hours since don't work tonight. But if all you fellows are dropping off then I might not.

>>46746437
>Someone needs to break those lighthouses.
sorry got distracted for a bit. still here.

>>46746437
>Someone needs to break those lighthouses.
Hoping there's a snek there

>>46746509
Let's try to finish it up if you're still game. My sleep schedule is too messed up for me to sleep right now anyway.

>Someone needs to break those lighthouses.

Why would you even entertain the idea? You killed the King. What else do you have left to prove?
Look at you. You're a mess. You can't even get up.

You climb to your feet, using the doorframe to hold yourself steady. There. Proved yourself wrong.
What do you have to prove? What a stupid question.
You killed the King because you had something to prove. You're going out to stop those lighthouses because it's your job.

You've served the Serpent King all your life. And you'd even consider backing out when his triumph is nearly at hand? What would he think of you now?

You take your clothes off, they're too bloody. You lost your poncho back in the coach. That hits you harder than the crossbow bolt did.
You look through the wardrobe until you find some clothes that almost fit you. That's fine. You're not looking for fashion here.

What would the King think of you if he knew that when faced with the choice of saving your own life or furthering the cause, you chose yourself?

You remember being much younger, kneeling atop the scorching hot rock while the King bent above you in all his terrifying magnificence. Your face was still numb from the branding.

"Oster."

"Yes my lord?," you mumble back in the bedroom as you struggle to put the shirt on. You're lost, one foot in reality and the other lost in memory you once thought gone for good.

"You shall be my greatest servant, Oster. You will travel the human lands, forever a part of them and apart from them. You will do my bidding there."

"Of course your Majesty."
You walk into the wall as you stagger out of the bedroom and down the corridor.

"You shall be my blade against the dark, he who treads where we cannot. You are the protector of Snakehome."

"Thank you, your Majesty. Thank you so much."
Your mumbling and stomping around wakes up a small boy from a room in the corridor. You kill him before he can scream and make a ruckus.

1/2

>>46746658
lol for fuck's sake oster quit killing random people

>>46746658
"I do not just give you my brand. I give you my trust. I have faith that you will stay strong, that your sword-arm will not fail and that you shall do everything you can to defend Snakehome."

"Everything I can, your Majesty."
You find another little shape asleep in bed in the room that the boy came from. Your sword moves up and down automatically. You might as well ask why the tree bends in the wind.

"Because Oster, because I know that when the time comes you will make the right decision. You will live for Snakehome and one day you will die for it."

"Of course, your Majesty. Anything."
You walk slowly down the hall and clean your sword inelegantly on someone's coat. Where's the front door?

"Then rise, Oster. Rise and know that even when your body fails you, your soul shall not!"

You stumble out the door, clear-headed and wide awake. You know what you must do.

>See if you can hijack a boat.

>Take a dinghy out. Just you alone.

>Bribe someone to take you out there.

>Other

>>46746709
>Take a dinghy out. Just you alone.

>>46746694
Remember when he just killed his way through the entire caravan of relatively blameless desert folk during the shadow wizard debacle?
Oster is a bit of an edgy fuck, stabbing is what he defaults to when he's desperate or otherwise extremely out of it.

>Bribe someone to take you out there.

>>46746709
>Take a dinghy out. Just you alone.
Hopefully we make it in time

>>46746709
>Take a dinghy out. Just you alone.
>>46746658
>his triumph is nearly at hand
Wait so this is what the serpent king wanted?

>>46746768
Probably. Why else would Oster support Hiss in the first place if her father didn't tell him to? I don't think he would betray him so easily.

>>46746784
I thought he supported her because he dislikes humanity and supports snakehome above all else, even the former king

>Take a dinghy out. Just you alone.

You stomp down to the docks, throwing your blacksmith mask into an alleyway as you do so. Nobody should be looking for you now.
It'll be pretty hard work rowing a dinghy all by yourself but you can't get anyone else involved in all of this.
You even disobeyed the King's orders to get out here in the first place so you better make it worth it!

Wait. The King?
An image of a giant coiled snake flashes through your mind but it's only empty skin. A grave for the master you betrayed.
You mean the Queen. You serve the Queen. Not the King. What's wrong with you?

Somehow you actually manage to steal away with a dinghy without running into any trouble. Now, where's the first of the Petrie islands from here?
It's actually pretty easy to find them. They have lighthouses after all.

It's the getting there that's the hard part. You sit down and start to row. And row. And row. You have to stay up, you have to keep balanced. Saltwater crashes around you and it isn't long before you're soaked to the bone. It's very cold.

There's a mist creeping in from the sea and soon you can't see anything but the distant light ahead guiding you. But you can't stop. You have to keep going.
The King is depending on you.

>Roll a 1d100. Best of the first 3

Rolled 56 (1d100)

>>46746865
dice gods, bless your favored POV

>>46746865

Rolled 10 (1d100)

>>46746865

Rolled 74 (1d100)

>>46746865

>>46746904
nice save anon

I was picturing the dinghy with a sail desu senpai

>>46746926
Fair enough but the wind is blowing in from the sea, hence the fog. Writan'.

>74

You are battered and bruised and drenched to the bone. You are also not willing to let that stop you. Somehow you manage to make landfall safely, dragging the little boat up onto the gravelly half-shore that surrounds the first island. This is the one closest to Taldenral and it's also the biggest.

Is it raining or is the seaspray just omnipresent? You can't tell.

You hammer on the door until it slowly creaks open, a younger man with long scruffy beard standing on the other side. You hold the sword to his face.
"Let me in. Thank you. Now get up there and douse that light."

You walk him through the tiny home he has here at the bottom level and follow him up the cramped spiral staircase.
"There's a lot of boats coming through," the man protests. "We need the lights up!"

"Good point, good point. But if the light stays up then you're a dead man and I trash this place until I find out whatever deactivates alchemical fire. Got it?"

He nods mutely and starts to get to work on the great lantern. It's a very large alchemical device and you have no idea how it works.
"What about the other towers? Do they have keepers too?"

The lighthouse keeper shakes his head.
"No sir, it's just me sir. They've got the big lanterns anchored to the rocks and I just take my boat out and tend to each one. It's a queer sort of fire so it doesn't go out when the sea sprays it or it rains."

He twists a dial and then pulls a long lever and the central Petrie lighthouse slowly goes out. But you can still the other unmanned lights above the ocean.

"There, I did it! I'm free to go now right?"


>Kill him. Time to take the dinghy to the next island.

>"Nah, you're coming with me." Get him to take you to his boat. He can help you.

>"Sure." Kick him around a bit so he doesn't attack you when your back is turned and then leave. You need to get to the other islands.

>Other

>>46747034
>>"Nah, you're coming with me." Get him to take you to his boat. He can help you.

>>46747034
>"Nah, you're coming with me." Get him to take you to his boat. He can help you.

>>46747034
>"Nah, you're coming with me." Get him to take you to his boat. He can help you.
Resist the murderboner Oster.

>>46747078
Hey, we can stab him any time.

>>46747105
I'd like to make him take us to shore far enough south(?) to meet up back with Hiss' forces. Hopefully Oster doesn't die before then.

>"Nah, you're coming with me." Get him to take you to his boat. He can help you.

It would be so easy to cut him down in response to that. There certainly wouldn't be a more definitive answer to his question.
But your shoulders and arms are aching from rowing and you swear you just heard him say something about a boat.
"Nah mate. You're coming with me."

You grab him by the front of his shirt and drag him screaming and wailing down the stairs.
"Where's your boat? And don't even think about grabbing a weapon or something."

After some thoughtful coercing that only leaves him a little bruised he gives up and takes you back outside to the other side of the island. There is indeed a little boat-shed out there and inside it, a small boat not unlike your own save for a large sail attached to it.

In hindsight, getting a sailboat would have made things much easier.
"This is fine sailing weather right?"

"No! Or at least, it won't be bloody easy! Do we have to do this?"

You point your sword at him again.
"I can stab you anytime. Get in and let's go."

You sit down opposite him and wince as the motion sends a spear of pain deep into your chest. You hope the lighthouse keeper didn't see that.

"Oer," the man moans. "I made an oath to keep the lights burning!"

"Shut up. We've all broken oaths before."
Perhaps you more than others.

The sail to the next island is extremely rough, the only thing preventing it from being extremely awkward instead. It's not that the sea is particularly unruly but the fog in combination with the wind is making it so that the keeper is constantly occupied with keeping the boat on course.
That's good. The busier he is the less likely he is to try something.

When you arrive at the next island you don't waste any time.
"Go. Go!"
You follow him and make sure he unlocks the small tower and extinguishes the alchemical light on top of it.

"Back to the boat!," you bark. You don't know how much longer you can hold on for.
1/2

>>46747176
The sea and the wind blur around you and you can swear you hear it calling your name. Darkness creeps upon the edges of your vision and great multi-colored blots blink up in your vision wherever you look.

Somehow you manage to keep it together for the next three islands. It's only at the sixth and final tower that things start to go wrong.
This last island is the smallest of them all, just a large rock high above the water-line and a large alchemical engine bolted into the rock at the very top. There's not even a tower to house it, just a little roof.

You stumble out of the boat and suddenly you feel very sick. What's going on? You fall to your knees as you vomit what little is left in your stomach out onto the rock. You haven't eaten for a long while.

The sea howls and the clouds shimmer before your weary vision. Your stomach roils once more as you gaze into the fog. It twists and coils. Just like a snake.

"Oster you traitor!"

The King roars at you and you are dragged back into reality just in time for the keeper to pull a long thin club of wood out from underneath a seat on the boat!

>Roll a 1d100. best of first 3

Rolled 79 (1d100)

>>46747237

Rolled 14 (1d100)

>>46747237
Does Oster have a brain bleed or something?

Rolled 85 (1d100)

>>46747237
>>46747265
might've been a poisoned arrow that hit him

Sorry for delay on this one. Had to get something to eat.

>85

You step backwards and parry his strike with your stolen sword. Just doing that sends pain down your arm with the impact.
He swings again and again and all you can do is keep retreating in circles around the rock. You can't take a swing at him yet, you've become too slow and sluggish. You'll just leave yourself open.

Why is this man- no. Why is this BOY giving you trouble? You should be able to kill a dozen of him without any trouble.

"I knew I should have killed you when I had the chance."
You've started swaying. It's not voluntary.

"I swore an oath! I can't just break that!"

He takes another swing.

>Parry it and try for the strike.

>Just rush past it and tackle him.

>Keep dancing around the light and wait for an opening.

>Ignore him. You need to douse the light!

>Other

>>46747425
>Parry it and try for the strike.
We e got to kill him or he'll just turn the lights back on. And we've got to do it quick before we croak from unknown causes.

>>46747425
>Parry it and try for the strike.
You gotta hold on Oster, Hiss needs to swallow you before you die.

>>46747425
>Parry it and try for the strike.
piss m8 it's late here in the states

>Parry it and try for the strike.

You block again and you feel your arm grow numb. What's wrong with you? Are you poisoned? Starting to feel your injuries? Or just really tired?
No matter what it is, you know it's not going to stop you.

You lurch forward but you're so slow! He whacks you in the head with the club and your vision shakes but you don't reel back and you don't stop.
Another hit. He dodges out of the way of your sword.

But now he's cornered, he's got nowhere but ocean to go. Does he feel like swimming?

He clubs you in the chest and something in there stops. You don't know what. But you stab him in the chest in return and then you let go, letting lighthouse keeper and sword both fall into the ocean to be lost forever.

You sink to your knees and you are unable to get up. You're too weak. But ahead of you, up above, a light! The alchemical flame burns brightly and you know you must go on.

So you crawl. Your hands were already covered with bruises and scrapes and now you just add more as you painstakingly drag yourself up the rock.
One step.
Two step.
Three step.
Four step.
You lose count after that but you don't stop, pulling yourself up hand by hand.
And then the light is right there in front of you. You reach out for it...and let go in the process, sliding all the way back down!

Or at least that's what you thought would happen. Instead another hand grabs yours and holds you up. They're so warm.

"Not yet, Oster. Not when you have one task left ahead of you."

Your vision clears and there is no hand holding yours, just your hand still gripping tightly to the rock besides the light.

You blink.

And then you heave yourself up and scrabble at the dials with bleeding fingers. You accidentally touch the light itself and you recoil, nearly falling off. It's hot!
But that heat helps thaw your frozen bones just long enough for you to twist every dial and you yank the lever down.

You are left on the rock in the darkness. Alone. But victorious.

>>46747286
I feel like he would be dead by now if that were the case

>>46747612
>tfw no more Oster special operations

>>46747612
Pls Hiss, your brand should make you send at least one snake after him.

Interlude 0.5

Lord Ensborough cursed and hit the wall. First the King and now this? The palace was in chaos and he'd been doing his best to keep everything steady and then the report from the seer semaphore had come in.

+No light. Fleet stalled. Redirecting to Taldenral+

The attack down the coast had been aborted! What was he supposed to do now? The boats would still get here but now it might be too damn late. They'll arrive in Taldenral tomorrow but who knew if there would even BE a Taldenral tomorrow?

Shit. As one of the royal advisors he'd been there when the High King had been killed. It had been mad, something you'd read about in a novel or a report from the mainland. Nothing that actually happened in Teleran.
There had been riots today. Stirred by some kind of Worker's Council? Peasants.

He couldn't see any way this could get worse.

"Your lordship! There's a new report from the semaphore!"

"What is it? I don't have time for this nonsense!"

"It's call for help. They're under attack!"

He stopped dead in his tracks.
"What else is there?"

"Nothing. It ends halfway through."

The royal advisor stomped out to his personal balcony overlooking the bay and took to his grand spyglass, the invention imported in from New Khepri still fresh and polished atop its tripod from where he had placed it not a week before. It didn't take long for him to recoil from it as if he had seen something unholy.

"What new witchcraft is this?"

>>46747670
inb4 Quedesh is attacking

Interlude 1.1

Oster's eyes fluttered open dimly. How long had he been up here? He was still sitting atop the rock with the dead light by his side. He tasted salt in his mouth.
He felt faint, like he was slipping away. He just needed more rest.

And then a shadow passed him by and his eyes were driven open once more.

There were shapes out in the darkness, tremendous ships. One of them was passing dangerously close to his island and towered above him.

Bereft of strength and wits, Oster could do nothing but watch as fleet of black ships passed him by in the night.

File: Spoiler Image (74 KB, 1030x603)

74 KB JPG

Anyway that's that for the night. I hope you guys had fun and I'm sorry for starting to slip up a lot there as time went on. I just wanted to get it all in one thread.

It's already been archived, check the twitter, etc etc. I hope I'll see you all next thread!

>>46747724
Thanks for running!

>>46747724
Oh wow and here I was planning to trying to think of ways to take the capital peacefully. So much for that.

>>46747724
thanks snekman. now I must sleep.

>>46747685
Man there's always at least one of you fuckers that gets it right before I do it.

>>46747774
I'm just glad my dreams of a world snake war are happening. Not sure how you intend to end the quest in ten threads or so at this rate but it makes me happy

Well at least the twins will make it out. Probably.

>>46747799
Wait what. It's ending? B-but...

>>46748676
I have good news and bad news for you