>>3476173
>>A Knight, sworn to the duty of the kingdom in combat and service
Female

>>3476173
>A Knight, sworn to the duty of the kingdom in combat and service
>Male

>>3476173
>A Young Heir, soon to ascend your promised throne as ruler
>Male

>>3476175
>>3476179
Knight it shall be, then. Writing.

Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>3476227
Rolling for gender first
1= male
2= female

>>3476175
>>3476179
>Knight

Your name is Emberto, and you know your role, for it is one of duty and honor, you are a Knight. You've served the youngest prince as a bodyguard and steward for a long time now, after many more years of battles defending the Kingdom of Cadria. Your position in a dungeon is surprising.

If your memory is correct, you had attended the royal family's annual masquerade party, held in conjunction with the Festival of The Mask. The Festival of The Mask is a time honored tradition in many lands, celebrating the mysterious nature of the soul, and its ability to shift itself. You of course once more assumed the role of a bodyguard to the young lord, Federigo, despite him insisting that you simply enjoy the festivities along with him.

You wonder, have you failed him? Is that why you’re here? It is then you realize, you’re sitting upon some sort of throne, and you aren’t shackled in any way... Perhaps it’s time to get to the bottom of this?

As you attempt to push yourself to your feet, you fall forward unexpectedly when your right hand doesn’t connect with the armrest on the same side. That was strange... You take a look at that arm, only to find nothing there.

Your right arm is missing, and there's no blood coming from the opening, in fact, it seems to have been filled in by a black void.

Naturally, you...

>Panic, this is a serious problem!

>Regard this as a minor setback, you must keep going forth.

>Attempt to touch the void filling in the hole your arm would’ve occupied, for science.

>Write-in

>>3476255
>>Attempt to touch the void filling in the hole your arm would’ve occupied, for science.

>>3476255
>>Regard this as a minor setback, you must keep going forth.

Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>3476269
>>3476271
Rolling for tiebreaker
1=science
2=get the job done

>>3476290
Science it is. Writing.

>>3476269
After the brief shock of your limb being missing, you take the next logical course of action: inspect it thoroughly.

There’s no pain, nor any damage to the regal set of Royal guardsman armor you’re wearing. Whoever cut your arm was clean about it...

On top of that, there’s a lack of blood or viscera of any sort. Instead, only a strange black void is there. You reach out with your left arm and touch the opening with two fingers, they move through the void. It’s some kind of viscous fluid... After a brief moment of moving your fingers around and testing it, you pull them out of the opening. There’s nothing left over on your fingers, and the hole left by them morphs itself closed once more.

You’ve dismembered plenty of poor souls on the battlefield, and you’re quite sure this isn’t how it usually ended up. But you’re lacking any foothold for the answers, perhaps pressing on is the answer.

(You acquired skill: Analysis I, +1 to all actions such as searching, testing, etc)

You step outside the small cell, recognizing the dungeons of Castel Cadria, so... you’re still here. Perhaps the masquerade was attacked? Or still going on?

“He didn’t bleed?” You hear a voice boom further down the corridor.

“No, not even a drop. He only went unconscious...” Another, more nervous sounding voice speaks.

“Then the curse of the soul is spreading... Make sure you get that arm out of the party. I’m sure our lord would want to know his theory was correct.”

You hear one pair of footsteps scurry off, and one walking closer.

You can’t exactly fight without your right arm. You’ve got just a dagger on you, which should do the job if you get the drop on him...

>Hide, then try to hold up and interrogate whoever did this to you

>Stand your ground in fair combat

>Write-in

>>3476388
>Stand your ground in fair combat

>>3476388
>>Hide, then try to hold up and interrogate whoever did this to you

>>3476388
>>Hide, then try to hold up and interrogate whoever did this to you

>>3476394
>>3476462
Hide it is. Writing but it’ll be awhile, this is the part where posts get slow. I swear on god I won’t be a dead OP.

>>3476394
>>3476462
You quickly get into place, a shadowy corner of the area near where the assailant is walking into. Except, the assailant in this situation shall be you, not he.

You spy him in the light, a masked man in a light tunic, so the party was still going on... That’s good, maybe the prince is unharmed. The man gasps, seeing your body missing from the chair.

Springing into action, you quietly move behind him, careful not to make much noise with your armor, and hook your left forearm around the masked man’s neck. You hook your leg around his to keep him further locked, and angle your dagger against his neck. The position is awkward without your right hand, but it works, he grasps your arm, trying to escape to no avail.

“How did you awaken so fast...? You really are a monster...” He breathes.

You didn’t think you had such a reputation...

>”If it’s a monster you’re looking for, I can grant your wish.”

>”You’ve committed crimes against this fair kingdom, tell me why you shouldn’t die where you stand.”

>”And why do you need my arm, anyway?”

>Write-in

>>3476554
>>”And why do you need my arm, anyway?”

>>3476554
>>”And why do you need my arm, anyway?”

>>3476633
>>3476587
“My arm, what are you going to use it for?” You ask, voice stern.

“What?” He questions, foolishly. You squeeze his neck harder.

“You cut off my damn arm, and I overheard you’re taking it away from here... Why? And where?”

“It’s... H-hard to explain-“

You squeeze even harder. “Do your best, then.”

“Hey, hey! I don’t know that much, we don’t get to meet our lord, only do his bidding!”

“And his bidding was to cut my arm off?”

“N-no, he was after... The prince... You were just in the way.”

That makes sense, a prince would be a target...

“Have you captured my liege yet?” You ask, letting go a little.

“Too many people at this party would’ve witnessed... We’re lucky nobody saw us knock YOU out as it is.”

He’s safe, good. But that still doesn’t explain your first question.

“So why aren’t you disposing of my arm?” You ask.

“Our leader... He believes the body holds the truth to the world.” Sounds like some sort of mage to you. A morbid one at that. “Perhaps he’d like yours, ahahah....”

This guy’s clearly not the sane sort. But you’re feeling pretty riled up too... There’s a feeling where your Limb once was, like it’s still there... You feel a strong urge to...

>Take his arm.

>Take his arm.

>Take his arm.

>>3476640
(No, I don’t expect y’all to vote on this one for obvious reasons. Just giving myself a little more time to write and get my thoughts straight. Writing.)

>>3476640
>Throw the dagger away and ask why you feel an urge to remove his arm.

>>3476661
(Actually, I’ll go with this because fuck railroads. Cool timing anon.)

>>3476661
Your remaining arm starts moving slowly to cut his, and then you realize what you’re doing is cruel.

You drop the knife, it clatters to the floor. The masked man’s breathing steadies a little in relief.

“...Why?” You helplessly ask, perhaps to the strange man, perhaps to god.

“I was thinking... Maybe you have the same thing we strive for.” He says. “The body is a house for the soul. Just like you can trade for a house, we wish to open trade for the soul, kee hee!”

“A prince’s soul is expensive, maybe you should’ve started with something cheaper.” You quip. You doubted he’d tell you more in this state, and there was still the urge to tear his arms off that you didn’t want invading your mind.

With a movement of your legs manipulating his, and a sharp movement of your arm, you harshly throw the man onto the stone floor. He falls unconscious with a thud.

Well, one thing was for certain. The masquerade wasn’t quite safe, and your arm is important to a cult.

You need to handle a lot of things tonight, but first... What to do with the strange man.

>Leave him as he is, he’s not a threat.

>Lock him in a cell.

>Succumb, tear his arm.

>>3476694
>Lock him in a cell.

>>3476694
>>Lock him in a cell.

File: BD85F28B-8D0B-491A-A4F1-0(...).jpg (36 KB, 320x405)

36 KB JPG

>>3476701
>>3476702
You take his body and lightly drop it in a cell, you take off his mask in case you need to blend in with the partygoers better. It would probably cause quite the commotion if a well known royal knight such as yourself was caught with his entire arm missing. The mask is white and gold, covering the eyes and nose. To finish this little altercation, you take the cell key ring and lock the sleeping assailant in.

(You got the strange man’s mask...)

Now that that’s taken care of... You don his mask and proceed up out of the dungeons into a back hall, then move toward the party, which is being held in the courtyards and bridged area of the castle. The playing of the bards can be heard, so it hadn’t been very long since you were knocked out and (quite literally) disarmed.

As you step through the masquerade, you take care to keep in the denser parts of the crowd. You can see his majesty, Eliodoro, watching from the top of one of the bridges. Your charge, Federigo, isn’t by him. That’s worrying. There was lots to be worried about aside from that... You wished you could simply tell the king of the intruders, but you might disturb the festivities and greatly stress the old sovereign. Plus, who knew how he’d react to one of his best men being unable to swing a blade with both his hands for possibly the rest of his life.

What to do...

>Go looking for Federigo.

>Go looking for your arm.

>Tell the king of the threat.

>Write-in

>>3476736
(Taking a nap, I’ll take the votes in a few hours or so. Thanks for playing, those of you that have so far! Sorry it hasn’t gone too many places mechanics wise, but I guess y’all aren’t fans of taking people’s limbs.

>>3476736
>Go looking for your arm.

>>3476736
>Tell the king of the threat.
Our life is less valuable than the king's.

>>3476736
>>Go looking for Federigo.
Your duty is more important than anything else. The king has his own knights to protect him.

Rolled 1 (1d3)

>>3477276
>>3477410
>>3477458
(I’m back, sorry for sleeping too long. Gonna be using pic related as the ref for our protagonist. I’m also likely only gonna be able to do one post this morning, but I’ll be back later today once work is done. Tiebreaker rolling.)

File: 37B55A4B-AC07-4B4C-8243-1(...).jpg (470 KB, 1021x982)

470 KB JPG

>>3477477
(Forgot the pic, here)

>>3477276
You decide you’ll track down your arm. The prince is your duty, but you believe in him. He’s likely finding some way to avoid the diplomatic parts of the masquerade he frankly abhors.

You peer through the crowds, scanning for anyone wearing the same mask as you, while moving toward the exit. Sure enough, you spot someone in the same outfit and mask as the man you jailed earlier, he’s making a move to leave the party, and is carrying quite a large bag, likely holding your arm.

You begin to follow, eventually you’re both standing on the castle’s drawbridge...

>Confront the other strange man.

>Distract him, attempt to make him set the bag down so you can take it. (Roll 1d20 best of 3)

>Write-in

>>3477487
>>Write-in

approach him as an ally. shank him quickly while hes encumbered with the bag.

>>3477493
(Gimme a 1d20 for success and I’ll get to writing it when I can.)

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>3477487
>Distract him, attempt to make him set the bag down so you can take it. (Roll 1d20 best of 3)
Now is not the time for force.

Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>3477498

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>3477498

>>3477615
>>3477597

>Critical success!

You’re both wearing the same mask, maybe you could impersonate the one you took it from...

You nonchalantly sidle up to the man as he takes a moment to look out onto the river, you approach from the right in order to better hide your arm. He turns to you and laughs.

“Did you take his armor? How much do you think that’s worth?”

“I got a lot more than that,” You do your best to mimic the voice of the one you’re impersonating, which seems to work. “Take a look.” You hold your left hand out, fist closed as if there was something valuable in it, in reality you’re concealing the dagger.

You watch him gently place the bag on the ground, just as planned. When he leans in, you swiftly plunge the knife into his ribcage, remove it, and shove him over the bridge. It’s not until he’s about to plunge into the river that he even makes a sound, and nobody was around. You doubt that one will live, you did cut quite deep.

For a Knight, you sure are doing a lot of assassinations tonight.

You seize the rather heavy bag. It looks like there’s a lot in here... But that’s enough suspense for one night. You take your dagger and cut it open...

Sure enough, there’s your arm, still fitted to your armor. The place where it was cut has the same black void as the hole where it used to be on your body. But there's one problem. There are a few more arms in here, all with the same sort of effect, each one a right arm. These guys have been busy. Looking at the sizes and sleeves, one of them belongs to a small child, another arm covered in lace may belong a courtesan, and another frail looking long arm seems to belong to an elderly man.

Staring at all these cleanly cut limbs is bringing back that urge to tear once more. You don’t understand why, but thinking about all the possible owners of these limbs is interesting to you. You want to inspect them a little more thoroughly... Maybe there really is more to this than a silly crazed cult. But maybe this isn’t for you to look into. You recall Cadria's reclusive court mage, Claudia, was away from the masquerade, likely studying. Maybe she’d know how to best explain your complicated feelings...

>Stick your right arm back where it’s supposed to go

>Stick the child's right arm in

>Stick the courtesan's right arm in

>Stick the elder's right arm in

>Go speak with Claudia, see if she has any clue of this business.

>>3477933
Stick the old arm in. The previous owner's heart probably gave out from the shock of that ordeal. They won't miss it. A hookers arm will probably carry blood borne diseases. Stealing the arm of a child is cruel and not at all knightly.

You can always cut it off and put in your own arm again if it doesn't work out.

>>3477933
Stick your right arm back where it’s supposed to go
Mybe go to the king and prince to make sure there safe

Rolled 2 (1d2)

>>3477976
>>3478000 (nice trips)
Rolling for tiebreaker
1=elder’s arm
2=your arm

>>3478019
Trips have spoken

>>3478000

You shake off the urge, taking your arm and inspecting it. You ponder why anyone would need arms like this, and recall that the leader of these fiends has a sort of collection, a sick individual to be sure. You haven’t heard of dismemberments happening throughout the kingdom, though, how long has he been collecting?

It dawns on you the nature of your situation. You’re missing your sword arm, you’re good enough with your left, but even still you are severely disadvantaged in your duties. You’ve heard tell of the development of magical prosthetics, but they’re slow going developments... Is this the end of your long career in the service of Cadria?

You stop thinking cynically, and decide you’ll cross that bridge when you get there. The urge only seems to get stronger when you take your own arm into your hands... You decide to act on your instinct, and as a little jest in the light of the strange circumstances. You stick your right arm back into where it was supposed to be.

The results are surprising... A small flash of light, and then a really strange return of feeling in your right arm. You look again, and it’s reattached as if nothing had happened. But there’s some pain in this reconnection... And all of a sudden, some thoughts are pushed to the top of your mind.

''Who are you...?''

As quick as they came, the thoughts are gone. You could hear the words, a child spoke them, but it was as if this child was quickly kicked out of your mind. That was more than a little strange... But your arm is back, it doesn’t feel any different...

The urge is still there, but it’s mostly sated it seems... You tie the bag of arms up and lift it. What should you do?

>Go inform the king that a threat has been taken care of.

>Go ask Claudia if she knows anything about this strange occurrence.

>Keep this incident to yourself, go seek the prince.

>Write-in

>>3478050
>Keep this incident to yourself, go seek the prince.

>>3478060
Writing, will be a little while.

File: 57A04804-127B-46A5-A9E5-F(...).png (579 KB, 960x1306)

579 KB PNG

>>3478060

You take a deep breath. For now, this was over... Nobody would really need to know, certainly not the king, and the cultist sleeping in the cell can be explained. Time to get back to your assigned job, you take off the mask, sheathe your dagger, and tuck the bag under your arm.

(You got and equipped Emberto's right arm...)

(You got a bag of arms.)

You walk back into the party, keeping your eyes peeled for any familiar masks, and the prince. If your suspicions are correct, he’s avoiding the festivities out of some anxieties. The king has left his position from the balcony, likely preparing to give some speech.

You feel a hand reach to tap your shoulder, turning around, sure enough there stands prince Federigo.

“Where've you been?” He whispers, lifting up his mask. “I know the royals aren’t supposed to wear masks during the party, but... I was tired of people staring at me the whole time.”

“I had er... Other matters to attend to, my lord.” You mutter.

“Like what?” He presses, smiling a little. “Did you catch a dance with a sweetheart you haven’t told me about?” His eyes drift to the large bag. “What’s in there?”

Damn. You probably don’t want to traumatize your liege with a bunch of severed arms... You think up a lie to placate his curiosity.

>”You’re perceptive, yes, a lady did give me this as a gift...”

>”It’s just some garbage I packed together, broken bottles and the like.”

>”Nothing to concern yourself with”

>Write-in

>>3478162
>”You’re perceptive, yes, a lady did give me this as a gift...”
But what avout you have you had many dances?
And how about we get you back where your ment to be.

>>3478217
Writing.

>>3478217
“You’ve a keen eye, yes, I did catch a dance with someone. They wore a mask, I can’t say who it was... And they left me this as a gift, I was about to take it up to my quarters...” Federigo nods, his smile fading a little. “But have you found anyone you fancy to dance with?”

“I’m a little worried I’d just step on their feet, even after all the practice.” He says with a sad chuckle.

“Nonsense, just keep careful, okay? If you have a mask, you can use that to forgive yourself for a mistake or two... You won’t know each other.” You grin, sure you’re lying to his face, but at the least you’re giving him some advice on the side. The prince is a good kid, and he needs all the help he can get to stay that way, his mother passed when he was too young to remember and his father is quite busy ruling.

“Okay... I’ll try with the mask. Talk to you soon, I hope?”

“Of course, and... My lord...” You think it’s at least fair to clue him in on something, you’re not usually one for cloak and dagger affairs. “If you see anyone in one of these masks-“ you show the mask you took from the cultist, “seek out and inform me immediately, do you understand?”

“Looking for a troublemaker?” He asks, inspecting the mask. “Okay... I’ll keep my eyes open, what did he do?”

“Just... A pickpocket of sorts. Run along now.”

Federigo nods and puts his own regal mask back on, going back into the crowd. You make your way away from the crowds once more up to your room, opening the door, walking inside, and locking it tight.

You toss the bag of arms onto your bed, pondering what to do next...

>Go wake up the prisoner, perhaps he has more to tell of your strange predicament?

>Indulge the slight urge some more, experiment with your arms.

>Speak to Claudia about your arm.

>Go back to the masquerade, you don’t want to miss king Eliodoro’s speech.

>>3478356
>Go and tell the king and court mage (if he has one) about the freaky shit happening.

File: 80ADD2F8-EBE5-405D-94BE-4(...).png (115 KB, 303x452)

115 KB PNG

>>3478400

You’re still not sure it’s a good idea to tell the king, and at this point he probably wouldn’t believe your tale. But you know an eccentric court mage who definitely would.

And so you go to the top of Castel Cadria’s eastern watchtower. When the kingdom was initially founded, this tower watched the field for enemies. Now that Cadria has evolved into a great city, it’s no longer needed for such a task, and so the court mage, Claudia, had it made into her permanent office.

You actually don’t have too much idea of what she does. You know she’s responsible for granting magically warded armor in the case of emergencies, and that the kingdom grants her funds for research as long as she agrees to do so...

You also know she’s something of a brat.

“I know why you’re here...” She says, mysteriously.

“Really now? Then what do you know about this cursed arm business?” You ask, a little bewildered.

“No, I didn’t know about that. I just assumed you were having woman troubles and came to find me. By the way, I’m not interested in a mutual partner. Sorry.” She laughs, because she’s obviously not at all sorry. “Anyways, your arm is cursed? Or are you just overreacting to how hairy it is?”

You groan slightly.

>”Some people who may belong to a cult are dismembering people and stealing their limbs. Do you know any cults that fit the description?”

>”Do you know anything about soul curses and limb removal?”

>Show her the bag of limbs, it’ll probably intrigue her enough to work with you in a rational manner

>Cut off your arm and show her the curse.

>>3478443
>>Cut off your arm and show her the curse.

>>3478443
Do you want me to show you?
*Cuts arm off and puts it back*
Believe me now?

>>3478462
>>3478463

“See for yourself, witch.” You take your dagger with your left hand and hesitate for a moment, this is a bit brash, you’re not even sure if it works when you cut yourself-

But the minute the blade even grazes your armor, it cuts through the rest of your arm as if it were a hot claymore cutting cheese. There’s no pain or blood, and the openings are filled with void just like before.

Claudia raises her eyebrow at you. But you decide to go further, in case she thinks this is some sleight of hand trick.

You pick your arm off of the floor and place it back into the socket.

It’s painful like before, but sure enough the arm locks into place. Again, you feel disoriented, and what you think is an old memory is pushed to the surface.

You’re on a battlefield, the battle is over, but there’s something wrong. Someone’s there...

Before you can think on it more, the memory is ripped away. And you focus on the task at hand.

Claudia is clapping. “Now that’s interesting for once! Was that necromancy? Or maybe voodoo? We have to test a little more...” Claudia thinks for a moment. “Cut the left one off, too.” She says abruptly.

>”If you think it’ll help...”

>”Do it yourself!”

>”I’d rather not attempt...”

>Write-in

>>3478502
>Write-in
only if you have a way to reattach it if it doesn't work

>>3478512

“Only if you can put it back if it doesn’t work...” You say.

“I’ve got a magically charged prosthetic with your name on it if this goes wrong! ...But it’s only a prototype.” She giggles.

You roll your eyes. Taking a deep breath, you bring the dagger to your left arm and slice true.

Just like with the right, the cut is clean and painless. You pick it up and put it back on again. There’s a flash of memory, but it’s much too vague to know when in time it is, or even if it’s your memory. Why does this happen?

“I see... How did this start?” Claudia asks.

“I was knocked out by some cultists... They cut my arm off, they paid dearly, but I managed to get the arm back... And now, I know I have some sort of curse.” You state. Claudia gives you a confused glare.

“Curse? This may be an interesting power of immortality... But it doesn’t seem to have any hallmarks of known forms of magic. It’s new to me, and I’ve seen a lot, trust me.”

“So, is there a way to stop it?” You ask.

“I don’t think anything I have can... I don’t really know why you’d want to!”

“I may be effectively immortalized like this, but there’s some side effects, I keep feeling the urge to... Tear at my foes.”

“Oh?” Claudia’s smirk turns devious. “Even tear me apart?”

“I admit, yes... A little. So we’re both in the dark then?”

“Mhm, unless one of those cultists is alive... They’re the ones taking the limbs...”

She had a good point, and matter of fact...

———

“Kee hee! You do have our master’s power!” The prisoner laughs.

“I do...?” You take a look at your arm. You wouldn’t call this a power.

“You do! I’ve only heard tell of it... The soul exchange... Do you see anything when you reconnect with those pieces of yourself?”

>”Yes, visions that feel like some kind of memory...”

>”I heard a child’s voice.”

>”I don’t need to tell you anything.”

>>3478612
>>”Yes, visions that feel like some kind of memory and I also heard a child’s voice.”

>>3478621
Writing. This’ll probably be my last post before I turn in for the night, but I’ll maybe post a character sheet before I go.

>>3478666
I’ve been forgetting to add my tripcode for the last few posts. Forgive me.

>>3478612
Yes, visions that feel like some kind of memory.

File: 4E37AE70-89D2-47BC-A0F1-F(...).png (957 KB, 1920x1080)

957 KB PNG

>>3478682
>>3478666 (!!!DEVIL TRIPS!!!)

“When I reattach-“

“Reconnect!”

“Reconnect, I guess, I heard a child’s voice the first time, and a memory the second and third. They didn’t last long...” You explain. “Why?”

“You’re exchanging your own soul, things you’ve kept deep down inside are coming to the surface most likely. At least, that’s how I interpret our master’s power to see the past.”

“Repressed memories? Like, embarrassing things you want nobody to know~?” Claudia quips. “Go ahead and tell us, Sir Emberto.”

“I will do no such thing...” You sigh.

So, from what you gather, the leader of this group wants memories? Or does he draw power from severed limbs?

“No matter, take us to where you were going to take the other limbs.” You order.

“And if I dooooon’t?” The cultist asks.

“You join your friend in the river.”

“Silly knight, Lucci has no friends, only connections!”

So his name is Lucci. You probably didn’t need to know this.

“Well, I can disconnect you from this world as I see fit in my duty. Your group will harm no more.”

“If you say so! Kee hee!”

You let him out of the cell, putting him under the watch of Claudia temporarily. If you’re going to put yourself (or in this case, others) in any danger, you need a heftier weapon. You take a short trip to the barracks near the dungeons.

You take

>A sword and shield

>An axe

>A halberd

>>3478726

>A sword and shield

>>3478726
>An Axe
Specifically, one combined with a sledgehammer, like a splitting maul. The Master-at-Arms Didn't train no wimp.

File: Maul.png (3 KB, 225x225)

3 KB PNG

>>3478797
Pic related, but a longer war handle.

>>3478797
(I’m gonna go with this since a splitting axe is actually really fitting for where I want to go with this. I’m headed off to bed for the night, will write tomorrow, thanks for playing, as usual!)

>>3478726
>A sword and shield
Best to use something that requires only one arm. We can strap the shield to the other arm.

>>3478726
>A halberd
The coolest of the options

>>3478797
Backing

Rolled 2 (1d2)

>>3478754
>>3478797
>>3478911
>>3479241
(Tiebreaker roll...)
1=Axe
2=Sword/Shield

File: D4C59D26-BB4D-474C-965A-4(...).jpg (239 KB, 1200x774)

239 KB JPG

>>3478911
>>3478754

You take a shortsword and a round shield. You’re proficient in many weapons, but you need one you can use in case you’re only left with one arm. This should do the job nicely.

You head back to Claudia and Lucci, who are standing at the castle gate waiting for you.

You head into the city, which is quite lively with most of the folk masked. Every corner is alight with torches, and people generally seem to be enjoying themselves.

“So, where’re we headed?” Claudia asks of Lucci, who’s walking between you and her.

“The chasm under the colosseum... That was to be the meeting place!” He chirps.

“Isn’t the colosseum active tonight?” You recall a tournament in light of the festival being held.

“Yes, but the corridors beneath have long been abandoned. Before the colosseum’s existence, it was a graveyard for those who fell in battle... Nobody would dare touch the underground of such a place these days...” He answers.

It’ll take a little while before you’re there. Good time to ask some more of your own questions.

>Why are you so eager to help us?

>Do you know anything more about the group you serve?

>Should we expect an ambush?

>Write-in

>>3480065
Do you know anything more about the group you serve?

>>3480065
Ask Lucci is it just arms that we can sever and reconnect? Do legs work? Entire bodies? Single fingers? How far does this go?

>>3480070
>>3480252
Tiebreaker roll
1=Group origins
2=Arms

Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>3480414
Forgot the dice

>>3480070

“So, Lucci was it? You’re with a rather large group... Who are they?”

“We call ourselves... The Severed.” Lucci beams. “Our leader is nameless, and our reach isn’t even fully known... In order to join, you must connect with our leader somehow. In a dream, one usually witnesses his power. It’s something like yours... And then, on this night, we all allegedly received letter orders to reconnect the realm.”

“By disconnecting people’s arms?” Claudia asks.

“Arms, legs, of all kinds, species, and races! In the master’s words, one must disconnect to reconnect!”

“As far as I’m concerned, you’re all dangerous lunatics. Here’s hoping the other kingdoms your kind occupy realize what’s going on...” You mutter.

You briefly wonder. Are you disconnected? You don’t recall anything changing about you... Or any strange dreams of people with detachable limbs... Curious.

>Ask Lucci another question (write-in or use the remaining ones from the last post)

>Ask Claudia her thoughts

>Stay Silent until you reach the colosseum

(Also, OP isn’t dead, just a bit busy today, which wasn’t the plan but shit happens.)

>>3480455
>Ask Claudia her thoughts

>>3480455
Ask Claudia her thoughts

File: 3FA4B542-F430-46FD-8267-9(...).jpg (62 KB, 736x1038)

62 KB JPG

>>3480932
>>3480977

You lean in to whisper to Claudia, “And what do you make of all this?”

Claudia chuckles. “We’re either in deep shit, or we’re dealing with drunkards. What difference does it make? At least he seems to be helping us.”

You look over to Lucci, who hasn’t really stopped staring at you. He seems to really believe you have a similar power to whoever this mysterious leader is. Taking a closer examination, Lucci’s actually only a little older looking than Federigo, with his orange hair covering his eyes.

The colosseum comes into view... Lucci points you away from the crowds, towards a run-down alleyway. There’s a sewer entrance, where garbage and other waste is dumped, or rain is drained down.

“This is the way!” He exclaims, opening the cover and stepping aside. “Guests first!”

Claudia looks over to you, clearly against jumping down a garbage pit.

>analyze for another passage to the catacombs (1d20+1)

>Tell the others to wait, go alone.

>Have Lucci and Claudia follow your lead.

>”After you, miss Claudia.”

Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>3481527
analyze for another passage to the catacombs (1d20+1)

Rolled 14 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>3481527
>>3481548

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>3481548
>>3481556

Rolled 18 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>3481548

File: C3A9DE29-B462-4FDF-A684-E(...).jpg (44 KB, 690x460)

44 KB JPG

>>3481548
>>3481556
>>3482824
>>3482843
>18 + 1 = 19, success

You know there must be another way down there... Going through the waste route may be alright for someone like Lucci, but you and Claudia agree that you can do better.

You quickly lead the other two to scour the surroundings, theorizing that there must be some way that the basic guard can get down there for maintenance. Sure enough... There’s a stairway not far from the chute that leads along the canals, and from there one can drop down into the catacombs.

The only issue is... Now that you’ve made it down. You have to blindly find your way through the underground to the colosseum. You vaguely remember it being north of where you’ve entered.

Claudia sparks some fire in her hands to create a light source. “Lucci, you know the way?”

“Of course! ...Just give me one moment.”

You decide it’s better if you continue to take the lead. Using your vague notions of the colloseum’s location, you eventually can hear the rumble of the audience above, which greatly helps...

Your group comes to a gap. You can see a lever on the other side to lower the bridge, but it’s much too far to jump over.

“Oh! I remember this part... We were supposed to call for someone on the other side to allow us entry... That might not work if I’m with you two now. Hm, I wonder where Vieri went... Say... What’re your names again?”

“Emberto.” You say. Not wishing to mention you tossed Vieri over a bridge.

“Classified.” Claudia laughs.

“Her name is Claudia...”

It seems you’re at an impasse, but at least you’ve introduced yourselves. Your urge to tear is growing a bit stronger, something is beyond here... Someone strong.

>Have Lucci call out

>See if Claudia can use magic to help

>Succumb to your urge, try something... (Roll 1d20)

>>3483321
>See if Claudia can use magic to help

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>3483321

Succumb

>Imagine not rolling every chance you get

>>3484528
Lol

>>3484528
I rolled a based natural 20 of truth but where's OP?

Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>3483321
>Succumb to your urge, try something... (Roll 1d20)
Countering with a 1

>>3484528 (based 20)
>>3485985

You’re feeling pretty on edge down here... But you can’t go chopping off the limbs of your two allies (you use the word allies a bit lightly)

But it’s getting a lot harder to control yourself. You stare across the gap at the lever, you feel pain in your left arm before moving. You reach out for the lever...

To your surprise, your arm detaches itself, launching forward. But you can still feel it as it connects to the handle of the lever.

“A nifty way to use that ability...” Claudia silently applauds. Lucci looks on in awe.

Okay... So now you just have to pull it back. You don’t have any idea how you launched it in the first place, it was so natural... You just focus on pulling the bridge release, sure enough, it works. The maintenance bridge comes down allowing you entrance into the space under the arena.

“Wait...” Claudia and Lucci walk ahead, but you stop them, Lucci in particular. “Who lies beyond here?”

Lucci thinks for a moment. “I don’t know, we were simply ordered to dump the arms we’d found here. We’re a little bit late, so other groups may have already made their drops!”

Well that’s not too helpful, if there’s no fight, then there’s at least a clue.

———

You step into a large open space. The perimeter is filled with bones, likely of deceased fighters and animals who met their end in the arena above. But something has been constructed in the center of the room... An altar of sorts. There’s many limbs on top of it.

Lucci rushes forward with the bag of arms you took from him and Vieri.

>Stop him, you have a bad feeling about this

>Let him continue

>Write-in

>>3486202
>Let him continue

File: 233BB281-6B22-432A-8553-D(...).jpg (72 KB, 1000x600)

72 KB JPG

>>3486328
You decide to at least let him finish what he started, he seemed pretty eager about it.

“What do you gain from this?” Claudia asks Lucci, who gives an ironically innocent looking smile in his return.

“Who knows? The master is quite enigmatic, but we trust him fully... In the dreams he gives to those who happen to fall into his domain, he exhibited the power to read the mind, predict the future... He’s a visionary.” You raise an eyebrow, this all seems unlikely to you. You’re not very superstitious. Then again you had cursed limbs now, but you couldn’t read minds or see the future. “I didn’t know any other followers, but Vieri was like me, didn’t really have much to look forward to in life, trying hard to just make sense of it all... But with everyone just working to live, it’s hard to connect with anyone.”

“So, you joined a cult to make some friends and exit the pit of nihilism? Does that not strike you as somewhat irresponsible?” Claudia says with a teasing tone.

“No... It doesn’t! I don’t have a purpose in life. Serve my family? Don’t have one... Work for power? I’m too young... People everywhere have the same dilemma, they want to do anything, and cannot.”

“And what will chopping limbs do?” You ask, gesturing to the altar. “It looks like you’ve been had... Nothing’s happening.”

Lucci looks over, pondering. Then he looks to you. “Well, there’s one missing! You stole yours back, remember? Try placing it there...”

That does make some sense... But you’re no cultist.

>Do it

>Refuse

>Use Lucci’s arm

>Use Claudia’s arm

>>3486455
Do it

>>3486455
Dooo eeeet

>>3486455
Let's get some something straight with Lucci first. How do we acquire more arms? How is it that Lucci severed your arm and presumably the other arms in the bank in such a way that they don't drain if blood and can be magically attached to yourself? How can you do it? Say you put your arm on the altar and it goes away, how do you get a replacement? Can you cut off anyone's arm and render it a magical prosthetic usable by anyone with your gift? Or did that child, harlot and old man also have your gift?

>>3487525
(I’m gonna take this write in tomorrow, since it’s key lore I’ve totally missed out on telling. Sorry for updating only once a day; getting my ass kicked by life wasn’t ever the plan like this.)