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The Neir princess that never was renounces one long-unknown birthright for another, though she has stolen the staff of her Neirhalm blood to aid in the rising of the monster of her Gerxel heritage. The older citizens of the Empire can only look on in awe as the beast that won them so much of the continent is revived before their eyes, Rene clad in purple and gold ceremonial garb.

"The wolfskin were allies of the Gerxel Empire for longer than any," she announces, pointing her staff southward, "and a single extensive defeat at the hands of the rebellion is hardly grounds to forego this history. The Tarvosians wish to exile friends of Empress Rene? Let them know their place."

"Queen Hauteclere!" A scout reports, horribly battered and looking close to death by bael venom, "Xouide has... Advanced South with its escorts. I did... Everything I could to be certain I wasn't followed from..." The loyal rogue collapses into his queen's arms as she instinctively reaches for a staff she no longer has. "I believe in you, milady... You and your son can save Teege."

The rogue is laid to rest, dying of wounds only the Staff of Katri might have allowed one to survive. It leaves Dyrus with an overwhelming concern for the allies he counts among his friends and family. His grandfather is staying far from the fight, but beyond that... He's even worried for Rene's allies. He's on familiar if not friendly terms with many of them, and if they're going to win, some of them are going to die.

Following "enigmatic" Eichel's lead, Samson and his companions await just South of the mountainous pass Xouide walks through. His speech is less sweeping than Rene's, for a smaller crowd whose only desire is to protect against the unstoppable. On this, he would later muse about the similarity of their positions. Their philosophies and goals are completely opposite, yet here they were, doing more or less similar things... He'll sleep well when this is all over.

>A. Samson
>B. Dyrus OR Rene

>>48345253
>A. Samson

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>>48345324
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9WWWA6AUzc
You sit and wait in horrible anticipation, writing down as much as you can. You've told yourself time and time again that you would survive, but knowing that the most fearsome beast Teege has ever faced is a mere hours away...

God, you wanna be safe just in case you get hit hard by reality.

"I've finished editing Raleigh's works on King Augustus," you tell your father, handing everything you've written to him as he mounts a horse, "I don't want any of my works or his damaged in the fight, so... If you're shoving off, keep it close to your heart."

Lazare nods, preparing to ride off West of the battlefield to relative safety. "I will, son."

"Keep safe, alright? Not just because of what you're carrying, but because it would really be awful if you died after all we did to save you."

"I swear on my life," your dad says, chuckling a bit at his wordplay, before giving you an uncharacteristically stern look.

"...dad?" You ask, a bit caught off-guard.

"This is not goodbye. This isn't anything remotely comparable to a farewell. We'll both be back soon."

>A. Say it anyway
>B. He's right
>C. Write-in response

And...

>D. Talk to someone else (specify)
>E. Pass time some other way (write-in action)

>>48345501
>B. He's right
>D. Talk to someone else (Millicent)

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>>48345541
"You're right," you say, nodding. You won't lend credence to this creeping idea that you won't make it out of this alive. You've sworn to yourself time and time again that you and your friends would all make it out of this, and you owe it to Jack and Riley not to fuck that up any further than you already have.

To that effect, you spend your last leisurely hours before the final battle musing with Millie, Hal, Norman, after sending father off.

"...Xouide can summon monsters, huh," Norman asks, aiming his empty bow at the air, "well, monsters are just tougher animals, right? What I've spent my life shooting."

"Yeah, but were an unlimited number of them charging you?" Hal asks, "not saying you can't handle it, Norman, but... Be sure to be careful about it."

"Yeah," Millie agrees, looking at her brother sincerely, "I don't think I could face mom and dad again if you didn't come back, Norman. So... Be sure to!"

The redheaded archer simply nods and continues fiddling with his bow.

"I... The way Ada puts it, Jack and Riley died so suddenly," Millie says, shuddering, "and... I dunno, when I think about that happening, to any of you, I feel like I'm going to be sick," Then, her fists ball up, her features tensing, "Kristina isn't going to get away with all that she's done to our friends and family! She's not here, no, but just the thought that she and her grandfather have both done so much to us gets my blood boiling!"

>A. Focus on the monster-summoning monster at hand
>B. You do too honestly
>C. Calm down please
>D. Write-in response
>E. ...

>>48345827
>B. You do too honestly

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>>48345903
"Same here," you admit, "and I feel like a damned idiot not knowing to stop them when we had the chance on that little island with Adelais."

"But hey," Hal offers, patting your shoulder, "with Kristina handling the Witch Pendant and surviving the island stuff, I was able to fake my death and get back over to your side! I was able to see Holmstead again!"

"You have a point," you admit, "but you've also witnessed her massacre on Oswald Dory's estate. You more than anyone alive knows how terrifying she can be."

"Yeah, I know... I'm just a glass half-full kind of guy, you know? I probably wouldn't have had an opportunity to get away from Rene's group without her batshit attitude, which means I probably would've gotten killed as a seemingly-loyal Imperial defector awhile ago!"

You nod. "Yeah, right again, I guess... My forces never met Rene's in battle, so it would've all been on people who don't know you."

"It's weird," Millie starts, taking a sip of water, "you and Rene never met, but your actions have affected each other a lot. Like, not even when she was held prisoner for awhile."

"Samson's not the kinda guy to go around facing archenemies for personal score-settling," Hal says, "so I don't think that matters much to him. Perfectly happy to just save the day so he can go home already."

>A. Right Hal is!
>B. You would've liked to know her
>C. It is what it is
>D. Write in response
>E. ...

>>48346203
>B. You would've liked to know her

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>>48346360
"I would've liked to know her," you admit, "she has a perspective on recent events that can't be compared to anyone alive's. I know if she doesn't survive her final battle with her family, I'll be attending the funeral."

"If they even hold something like that for the general public," Millie says, "considering how sensitive the Rene issue is for Queen Hautclere's family, if she dies it might just be a little thing for people she was close to."

"Shit... It's really going to be Rene or Dyrus, isn't it?" Hal asks. "Hautclere, Veiz, everyone on either side of this dilemma... Even our fates are in the hands of this final battle."

"All we can do is cling to dear life and hope Dyrus comes down those mountains after Xouide," Norman remarks.

"Yeah, you're right," you say, "but... No matter what happens, I want all of us to make it to the end of this together."

>A. Talk to some of the others (specify)
>B. Write-in dialogue
>C. Write-in action
>D. Skip ahead

>>48346591
>A. Talk to some of the others (Adelais)

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>>48346629
You spend awhile with Adelais, Dinah, Eichel, and Edwyg next. Taniel, Adam, Fabrice, Sara, and that girl whose name you can't remember are all having serious discussions while the lot of you pass the time until your final battle begins.

"Yo, Ada, you alright?" The disfigured gold knight asks, raising an eyebrow, "you've been down for a long-ass time now."

"...it's about Jack and Riley, isn't it?" Dinah asks, currently sharpening a sword.

Ada nods, turning her one working eye away from the lot of you. "I just... It was terrifying. there was nothing I could do, just... We were rivals, yeah, but I thought of both of them are good friends despite everything!"

"'tis a tragic reality," the not-at-all-mysterious Eichel muses, adjusting his mask, "that these things happen. At least the lovers have not been separated by fate."

"...who the fuck are you anyway?" Edwyg asks, changing the subject away from Adelais' woe, "you just show up outta the blue, but also you're an old friend of Dinah's and the rest... So the fuck's with the disguise? Why do you wear the mask? How'd you know exactly what Xouide's gonna do?"

"I have never once confirmed that I am this 'Biff' they all speak of," the absolutely-Biff says, "and it doesn't matter who I am, or what I know. What matters is that I am here to facilitate fate. Xouide will not pass into Tarvos Valley, and a golden age will be ushered in by the Neirhalm family."

"And I'm sayin' you're the sketchiest dude around!" Edwyg says. "I don't got any proof, but if I think for a second you're leadin' us to a trap..."

"Can we get away from each other's throats for two seconds?!" Adelais snaps, moving between the two. "I'm trying to wallow and brood here, but you two are pissing me off too much to focus on being miserable for my friends' sake!"

"...she has a point," Dinah says, "we have to focus on fighting the one enemy we know we've been ordered to."

>A. Exactly
>B. Honestly he is bugging you a bit
>C. Write-in response

>>48347106
>A. Exactly

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>>48347170
"Yeah," you say, "while I'm... admittedly curious myself, I figure I'll ask him when this is all over. It's probably a whole large story, and I don't want to get distracted when Xouide could draw close any moment."

"Feh. Mysterious masked stranger leaves without a trace after the fight... I thought you were better-read than at least ME, Samshrimp!" Edwyg scoffs.

"...we read together sometimes," Dinah reveals, a bit pink in the cheeks. "She's actually really into it..."

"You could make a play-by-play of paint dryin' interesting with that voice of yours, Dinah," Edwyg flirts, "don't mean I'm some kinda lit buff."

"Anyway..." Adelais looks away, drawing her Wo Dao. "Remember, we're here to put the holding-back of Xouide above any and all else. That means that... Well, suit yourselves, for your own priorities, but if I'm in danger and the choice is between stalling Xouide and saving me..." Her grip around her blade tightens and her eye shuts. "I want to return the Dory Company to its old glory, but this is bigger than me."

"You shouldn't speak like that, Adelais Dory," Eichel says, "your destiny isn't to die here. It's to live on, return to the islands... Become a name that is remembered for generations to come!"

"Fuck fate!" Ada answers, "what happens happens! Nothing's predestined, and if you're so overconfident we'll win, you'll end up screwing us by getting cocky!"

"...if you say so," Eichel says, "but I doubt anyone is going to fight any less hard over..."

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

Your conversation is cut short by the sight of an ice dragon transforming in the distance. Looking over, you can see Sara, and the vague shapes of Traniel, Adam, Fabrice, and that talkative girl fighting a wave of bael and cyclopes.

"Alright, the big one can't be far if the monsters are startin' to show," Edwyg declares, hopping onto her horse, offering Dinah a hand up, "offer you a ride, my sluggish dear?"

>A. Go tell others
>B. Follow them!

>>48347588
>B. Follow them!

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>>48347697
You and the other four mentioned hurry into the fray, with the rest of the Holmstead crew taking a slight amount longer due to being further from the fight than you.

"Come on, Dyrus," you say quietly to yourself, "win quickly..."

As the bael are frozen, the harder-to-kill cyclopes begin to attack your group more aggressively, primarily ganging up on the transformed Sara who has immediately proven to be their largest threat.

Dinah hopes off of Edwyg's horse and brings her sword down into one's head in a single impressive move, while the axe-knight rides and cuts another one through. Sara reverts into her faster childlike form, getting away from the lot of them with only a few nicks. Still sucks to see someone who looks like a kid have axe wounds, even if she's actually your age.

"Is... Hal close? He's your healer, correct?" She asks.

"Mm," you point back a ways before tossing Dime Thunders at another one of the monsters, "they're just catching up."

"I see..." Sara looks between them and the rest of your group as they fight the monsters. "So I should be good to keep fighting until he arrives, right?"

>A. Yeah, just be careful
>B. Tell her to get patched up and then rejoin you
>C. Write-in response
>D. Her call

>>48348002
>B. Tell her to get patched up and then rejoin you

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>>48348043
"Take care of yourself first," you say, gesturing towards your one staff user of note, "we can survive for a few minutes without a dragon if it means you survive."

"Alright..." Sara nods, turning and flapping away towards them, clutching herself.

That being settled, you arrive to the side of Adam and Adelais in time to sing them out of a jam, the former pirate advancing forward to preemptively cut down a Mogall.

"What the... There's a whole mess o' these things just floatin' around," Adam notices, tossing a Hand Axe into it.

A few of the eyeballs are split into two, but other than that...

"Adam, get away from those Mogall!" Fabrice calls out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNWeJcL8gFg

From within the odd cluster, a... THING comes out. You have difficulty describing what it looks like, but... It looks at least seven, eight feet tall, surging in purple and gold, scales bringing dragons to mind covering its shadowy, winged form. The scales look more akin to a body armor than skin, though it's covered in it from head to toe, even seeming to have claw-like gauntlets fashioned from them. Beneath the scale-armor, it appears... Formless, like a shadow you convince yourself you didn't see slip away in the middle of the night.

You have a feeling this is Xouide.

Raising its hand, a hole in the scale armor at its palm erupts with some sort of series of rings, comparable to those of a Mogall, trapping Adam in place as it shambles closer.

Speaking of closer, you and Adelais seem to be the closest to Adam, with the young girl clutching her sword in uncertainty as the beast walks closer still to the ex-pirate.

>A. Protect Adam! (draw your sword and get in this thing's way)
>B. Hit it with Dime Thunder!
>C. Sing for Adelais!
>D. Write-in action
>E. Watch what it does

>>48348334
>A. Protect Adam! (draw your sword and get in this thing's way)

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>>48348427
You draw a Silver Sword, not hesitating to step between Adam and Xouide.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDvJ1r6d2w4

The up-close strike it seems to have intended for Adam instead goes for you. "Whoa!" Its gauntlet manages to swipe away a decent chunk of your armor, and you respond by cutting away at it. If you're fast enough, you can get at one of its fingers, you bet!

You're not nearly nimble enough with a blade to pull that off against the creature's alarmingly fast arms, however, and you swipe at air as it winds up to hit you again.

Moments before it can, however, Adelais slices clean through the hand with her own sword, saving you from what you're certain would have been a swift death.

"Ada! But then what was all that about saving ourselves?" You ask as she turns round to face your greatest foe. Its hand was cut clean off, even through the scales, by Ada's cut, but the vague form around it and the scales surrounding it seem to regrow as the severed digits vanish into the earth, turning into a small cloud of Mogall. You cut the eye monsters down quickly, and the field around Adam vanishes, though the obviously strained pirate collapses after being freed.

"I just said that to sound cool, alright?! Tease me for it later!" She demands, helping slay monsters.

"I... I think I get how this thing works!" Fabrice, from afar, says, speaking as Taniel just focuses on killing monsters, "notice how sometimes its scales just fall off! Those become monsters, and then it regenerates them!"

"So this thing can heal itself and summons more monsters every time it gets hurt?" The talkative village girl asks, stabbing through a gargoyle, "just great!"

Its arm fully healed, Xouide aims to trap Adam in rings once more, its opposite hand doing the same for Taniel.

>A. Try to cut one of the hands! (specify which)
>B. Sing for Adam!
>C. Switch to dime thunder!
>D. Write-in action

>>48348601
>B. Sing for Adam!
Hopefully Taniel dodges or Ada takes off that arm.

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>>48348741
You open up your mouth to sing for Adam, and he's able to dodge out of the way of the rings in the nick of time, them forming and dissolving against nothing as Adelais strikes the arm after Taniel. It turns into a single Elder Bael, which manages to strike and poison her.

"Grh..!"

"For the love of... This is what happens when you show off, youngster," Adam says, hurrying in, splitting the giant beast in two himself, and handing her an antitoxin before yanking her away from one of Xouide's swipes with the hand that isn't currently regenerating. A few more scales break off of its wings as it flaps them, taking flight as bael appear on the ground and approach the lot of you on the ground.

In the skies, Sara transforms, distracting Xouide from raining death from above with her timely intervention by ice breath, Hal also striking the beast at a distance with a Bolting tome.

Norman's arrows shoot through a scale, knocking it off as it turns into a gargoyle that he also shoots, courtesy of his sister's dance.

"Everyone here?" You ask, looking around, "great! Let's take care of business!"

>A. Join in on laying into Xouide
>B. The monsters are a more active threat than their summoner

>>48348913
>B. The monsters are a more active threat than their summoner
Always gotta keep the adds at a manageable level.

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>>48348979
More and more of the rapidly-regenerating monster's scales fall off as it gets attacked in the air, leaving those of you on the ground with more and more incentive to keep the monsters from overwhelming anyone. You still doubt that you're capable of KILLING this thing if the entirety of Teege couldn't, but lasting long enough for Dyrus to get here, giving it a harder time than entire armies...

It's manageable.

You strike down as many monsters as Xouide summons down as possible with Laurise's signature tome, but the more you hurt it, it seems to just regenerate faster, drop down more monsters...

A claw, recently regenerated, fakes a slash at Sara, prompting her to revert out of its way, only for Xouide to extend its palm and trap her where she dodged in its Mogall-like ring attack.

"A-anngh..!" She cries out in anguish, transforming into her dragon form, only to plummet, feeling even more pain at the behest of the rings and forcing her to transform back, curled up in pain as it surrounds her as it did Adam.

"Sara!" Someone calls in alarm, Norman firing arrows at its hand and Hal trying to hone in on it with electric attacks. Before its hand can be blown away and turned into killable monsters, however, it rips it off itself, tossing it into the air to prolong its time until it hits the ground and transforms into something that can dissolve the rings.

>A. Wait for it to be visible and blast it into the earth!
>B. You need to focus on actually FIGHTING things!
>C. Attack Xouide itself some more
>D. Order Hal to get over to her
>E. Write-in action

>>48349187
Vote time renewed.

>>48349187
>E. Strike the hand from above with a weaker bolt from Dime Thunder to drastically hasten it's descent without shattering it into more than one piece, then blast the resulting monster with the other three
Assuming we have that level of control and a good enough feel for the durability of Xouide's pieces to reasonably be able to pull it off. Avoiding shattering since, as shown previously, if the hand splits into several monsters, all of them have to be destroyed to cancel the rings.

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>>48349415
"Alright, focus..." You shut your eyes, knowing that the beast is focused on trying to trap Hal as he presumably goes to heal her, unfortunately stalling such an action.

Thinking about it more, Dime Thunder is too strong and imprecise to prevent it from shattering into many monsters, and time is already of the essence. You crack open your original Wind tome at the last moment, a gust of strong wind from above being enough to knock the hand into the earth, Millie hurrying to dance for you as the scales shift into a massive, heavily-armored cyclops.

Hardly a match for the dancing-motivated return to Dime Thunder, though, and a crumpled, half-dead Sara is freed from being crushed to death in the nick of time.

Distracted by this, Xouide turns to face the two of you, flying forward and attempting to slash you through, giving Hal and Norman the opportunity to easily dispose of the monsters closing in on the wounded Sara, with aid from Edwyg riding in.

Healed up handily, Sara immediately flies up behind Xouide as it comes dangerously close to hitting you many times over, transforms again. and attempts to bite a chunk out of the back of its neck.

She crushes the scales in her teeth in tandem with ice breath, and they dissolve without transforming into anything. The scales and "flesh" behind them return to their normal state easily, however, and it turns around, slashing at her once more. This time, however, when she reverts to dodge, she flies directly INTO his hand, taking a blow from his palm fakeout and being shot back into the ground, but not being trapped in the ring attack.

>A. Write-in action
>B. Say something cool (write-in dialogue)
>C. Just keep holding out..!

>>48349573
>C. Just keep holding out..!

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>>48349692
"Alright, everyone, just... keep fighting smart, alright?!" You call out, attacking another monster, "this Xouide thing is smarter than your average beast, apparently, but don't let that intimidate you!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pKXzeWQRAo

You fight on and on, the lot of you refusing to bend against the forces of exhaustion, near-death, and an immortal monster none of you have any hope of destroying.

Hal helps you up after healing you out of a nasty axe wound at the hands of a Cyclops, both of you wanting nothing more than to pass out and give up.

But Xouide is still there, so all you can do is keep going.

"Every... Every nerve in my body is aching, telling me to crumble, that I'm just a schoolboy... But we can't do that now, Hal. No, all we have to do is... Stop this thing in its tracks... Stall it until... Until Dyrus..."

Xouide flies towards the two of you, and you begin to slump over.

"Sam! Sam, come on, man, we need to GO!" Hal helps you up, the two of you supporting each other as you hurry out of the way of attack after attack, barely able to lift your spellbooks.

If help doesn't arrive soon, you're... You're going to die. No ifs-ands-buts about it.

"Dyrus... We're counting on you." You break away from Hal, flipping open Dime Thunder and staring Xouide down.

>to be continued next thread
As for whether Dyrus WILL appear over that hill or not, time will tell. I mean, Veiz doesn't exactly hate Sam either, so maybe she'll take the initiative with her warp pendant if team Rene wins.

Thanks for playing, as always. Update twitter/ask.fm are qmgrandflocto, and I'll be around in-thread to chat for awhile.

>>48349843
Thanks for running.

Glad we managed to pull through this fight without casualties, hopefully we can pull off a miracle in the Rene/Dyrus battle and accomplish the same feat.

>>48349933
Always a pleasure.

By nature, the losing side will most definitely have casualties, with it being far from an impossibility for team winners.

Way things are looking, it's gonna be a thread 50 starring whoever you choose for the final confrontation, and then an epilogue/endgame thread showing the aftermath for however many of the protagonists are still alive/closure to the "Samson against Xouide" situation.