File: Gina.png (164 KB, 648x505)

164 KB PNG

You give an amused snort, turning to Gina as you work the strap back into place and earning a disappointed ‘aww’ from your girlfriend. “I do hope you’ve actually soundproofed the doors, this time?”

“Double- and triple-checked…” She grins, shutting the door behind her before she falters. “…though considering Amara’s hearing, I may need to quadruple and quintuple just to be on the safe side.”

“I’d appreciate it.” You nod, turning back to your reflection. You’ve never been entirely comfortable with the face that stared back at you—particularly when you recall who it belonged to—but you have to admit that the ‘corruption’ has done wonders for making this body feel like your own.

“You okay?” Gina asks softly, all flirtiness gone from her voice as she places a comforting hand on your shoulder. Her normally-hazel eyes shine with both concern and Neuromantic light, neon flicking behind her irises and down the glowing veins that trail from her sockets and down her neck, disappearing underneath her hoodie.

“Yeah…yeah, I’m fine. Between the Disassociated’s launch and everything with those three, it’s…” You trail off, struggling to put into words the unease that’s settled in your chest.

“…it’s that you don’t know what to do with yourself when you don’t have an agenda?” Gina supplies with a weary smile. Standing on her tip-toes to rest her chin on your shoulder, she fixes your reflection with a grin. “Because it’s totally that.”

“Ha, you know me well.” You relent, reaching up to boop her on the nose and relishing her scrunched expression.

“We’re in each others’ heads, babe—if I didn’t know you by now, I’d be, like…the shittiest girlfriend ever.” She replies, sticking her tongue out at your reflection before you turn to face her in earnest. “Crimson Cord’s pretty much done my work for me. At least Mother was good for *something*.”

“Speaking of…any word?”

“I promise that you’ll be the first to know if I hear back from our alien overlord.” GG assures you, throwing her arms over your shoulders and pulling you close. “You *really* don’t know how to relax, do you?”

“Can’t I relax when this is all over?” You grin.

“Veering dangerously close to ‘I’ll sleep when I’m dead’ there, love.” Gina sighs, then shrugs in defeat.

“Alright, I’ll bite—what’s next on our to-do list of saving the world?”

>>You need to keep moving—form two squads like you’d planned on, one vanguard and one assault, and make your way further west than you’ve ever been before.

>>Set out for (destination of your choice)—there are things yet to do before you continue your journey to the west.

>>You’d prefer to wait for word back from Mother before committing to a westward march, so you’ll catch up with (select an ally/allies of your choice).

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Hello Everyone, it’s good to be back. I do hope the last two weeks have been kind to you all, and I appreciate both your patience and your well-wishes.)

>>5271150
(Additionally, voting shall remain open for the next three hours, with posting to resume in four.)

File: FP2-YlLXsAsKIsz.jpg (994 KB, 3016x4096)

994 KB JPG

>>5271150
the cycle of suffering has resumed. Plenty of things to gripe about. And a lot more things are on my plate.
Still. it is nice in this hell we live.

Glad to see you're able to see the departed off.

>>5271154
(Hey, as long as we keep marching on, we'll see this through to better things, my friend.)

>>5271148
>“Yeah…yeah, I’m fine. Between the Disassociated’s launch and everything with those three, it’s…” You trail off, struggling to put into words the unease that’s settled in your chest.
>“…it’s that you don’t know what to do with yourself when you don’t have an agenda?” Gina supplies with a weary smile. Standing on her tip-toes to rest her chin on your shoulder, she fixes your reflection with a grin. “Because it’s totally that.”

Man, Gina's always on point given the Crimson Cord connection we have. It's been so long irl time since we've come up with something long term in the sense. Watching the Disassociated Rocket Launch felt like one of the most concrete plans we've had in the long term and now we've got to find something new to work at it while traversing westward.

>For a brief, blessed moment, though…there’s no fighting to be done save for wrangling the strap of your dress down around your left shoulder. You stand alone in a rare moment of silence, staring at your own reflection in the mirror of your room as you inspect what the Crucible’s made of you. The pitch-black plates of steely chitin that were once limited to your spine have almost completely covered your left arm in a gauntlet of onyx, and as you roll your right the tell-tale clicking along your shoulder informs you that the other arm’s soon to follow. Wiggling your toes, you try and get used to their warped texture—what were once flat and unassuming have been twisted into spirals of rough-hewn flesh, eager to impose its will upon the Fleshscape at your whim. The fingers of your right hand trail along your arm before grazing the vertical slit that runs from your belly and up to your chest, the ravenous maw opening slightly at your touch to reveal the rows of guillotine-teeth that line the merciless void.
>You’ve never been entirely comfortable with the face that stared back at you—particularly when you recall who it belonged to—but you have to admit that the ‘corruption’ has done wonders for making this body feel like your own.

Goddamnit bhop. You give us juicy details on Shu's body and yet you keep her face (and Sam's face) shrouded in mystery despite showing us in the mirror like hair and eye color. For some reason now I can't help but imagine Shu/Sam's face being that of Carmen from Lobotomy Corp.

>Her normally-hazel eyes shine with both concern and Neuromantic light, neon flicking behind her irises and down the glowing veins that trail from her sockets and down her neck, disappearing underneath her hoodie.
Damn, Gina's also changing drastically too.

The whole description's really bringing back into focus on how much the Crucible's powers has changed us physically.

>>5271145
Ooh, an update on our Corruption, cool. Spiral toes, huh? Must be a result of us channeling Uzu's abilities through our feet into the ground. Sounds kind of gross, but I think once the chitin reaches our feet they'll look good, look sort of like drill-claws.

>>5271148
Yeah, Shu, don't do the "sleep when I'm dead" thinking. Otherwise once the Crucible ends and you have to do things like find hobbies you're going to have put too much pressure on yourself to relax and be unable to do it.

>>You need to keep moving—form two squads like you’d planned on, one vanguard and one assault, and make your way further west than you’ve ever been before.

>>5271150
Hey, BHOP. Nice to see you again. I've been mostly alright, had some trouble sorting things out with my health insurance but I'm gotten it resolved.

>>5271154
Oh dear. I'm sorry to hear that, anon. I hope you manage to clear them off without too much difficulty.

>>5271148
>You’d prefer to wait for word back from Mother before committing to a westward march, so you’ll catch up with (select an ally/allies of your choice).
I'd have to ask who's still in the house?

From the last vein we have
Julia and Dorian
Nerada and Amara
November and Francine
Cassandra and Pendra

Anyone else that I'm missing? oh wait. Who among the dream daughters in their spirit shells are still here?
Should we ask if there are any other dream daughters who want to come out and play in a spirit shell?

>>5271208
>not going for spiral heels
>The heels are shaped drills that constantly spin and either try to anchor Shu's feet into the ground with each step or repel Shu's feet from being anchored in the first place. Shu could even extend those drills to give herself "natural high heels"
Bhop, pls.

>Yeah, Shu, don't do the "sleep when I'm dead" thinking. Otherwise once the Crucible ends and you have to do things like find hobbies you're going to have put too much pressure on yourself to relax and be unable to do it.
Why not start now and relax by chatting with family members?

>>5271198
>The whole description's really bringing back into focus on how much the Crucible's powers has changed us physically.
Yeah. The whole party is slowly turning into something not entirely human. Well, except for Amara, I don't think she's changed beyond that initial catgirl mutation. Maybe the Corruption being impeded by emotional support means that Amara's is slowed to a crawl.

>>5271211
Well, we can't manifest Spirit Shells for other people's Dream Daughters. Not yet, anyway, I think we were told that was the capstone for Spiritus Ex Testa but that was so long ago I might be misremembering. We do have those two new girls we picked up scavenging Sam's kills, but we don't really know them well enough yet to trust them with bodies. We should visit them at some point. I guess we could do that now, pop into our Dreamscape real quick while we have a quiet moment.

>>5271221
It's starting with spiral toes so that's what I focused on. But yes, spiral heels would be pretty cool.

>>5271224
>>5271148

Speaking of Sam's bandit kills, did we consume their corpses them alongside with Merkabah's corpse in our last meal? or were they used as payment for Taylor's repair services?

>>5271228
We consumed them alongside Hamadryad, a while back. We've got two of them in Shu, one in Dorian, and I don't remember where the fourth went.

>>5271224
> Well, except for Amara, I don't think she's changed beyond that initial catgirl mutation. Maybe the Corruption being impeded by emotional support means that Amara's is slowed to a crawl.
Oh she's mutating for sure. She's probably becoming more cat-like in terms of instinctual behavior. It's just that because of the nature of the cat in question, she's the more affectionate type of cat. I wouldn't be surprised if Amara starts leaving out "toys/gifts" right in front of our bedroom like how some cats bring back kills for their owners.

>>5271229
Dream daughter check up? it's been a while since we've done one of those.

>>5271221
>>5271224
>>Spiral Heels

(Absolutely stellar, everyone. Consider it done.)

>>5271208
(I had a bit of an issue with my health insurance as well, but I'm glad you got it resolved!)

>>5271211
(You've got it, plus the Dream team.)

>>5271145
>You’d prefer to wait for word back from Mother before committing to a westward march, so you’ll catch up with (select an ally/allies of your choice).
Dream Daughters. It's been a while since we've had some meaningful time with them.
Either that or Nerada and Amara since we did make it one of our agendas to ask Nerada what her next move would be post-Rocket Launch in the last vein. If she's comfortable hanging out with us and Amara, we're absolutely okay with that.

>>5271234
Cats do that out of pity. It's a transplanted instinct from raising their kittens, they see us as poor hunters and so bring us wounded prey for us to practice our skills on easy mode. Amara knows her mom is a good hunter, though, so she shouldn't do that. If anything, as our kitten she should be expecting us to bring her dead animals. Which we do, actually, so I guess everything's good. Maybe that's why Amara hasn't shown any obvious Corruption. She has been, it's just that the circumstances of the Crucible mean that that's just normal behavior here.

>>5271237
Yeah, I think that's a good idea. Just do a quick one while we've got a quiet moment, then embark on our missions.

>>5271148
Changing >>5271208 to

>>Write-In
>Take a quick moment to check on our newest Dream Daughters. They've been percolating in there for a bit, let's see how they're doing.

I hope they haven't messed up the Coffee Shop AU Dreambubble.

>>5271249
Keep in mind we're expecting a phonecall from Ozmas at any point in time so we might get interrupted. Come to think of it, helping Ozmas and Charon in the mental department will help us get better insight in tackling the Cord itself, so the whole therapy session with the two Hexane would be a pretty noteworthy long term goal that we can work on while we make headway on our way west to the Cord.

>>5271249
>I hope they haven't messed up the Coffee Shop AU Dreambubble.
inb4 one of them's a tea drinker.

(Still writing, so thank you for bearing with me!)

File: The Coffee Shop AU.png (954 KB, 623x874)

954 KB PNG

>>5271148

You catch sight of your own reflection in Gina’s luminous eyes, and it’s the sight of your—or rather, Sam’s—face that prompts your answer.

“I think I’ll check in on the newest Dream Daughters. I’m not even sure if the Dream Team’s had the chance to touch base with them yet.” You inform your girlfriend, and before the next words are even out of your mouth her fingers are already on your lips yet again.

“Say no more.” She smiles with a quick nod towards the four-poster bed. “Lie down, and I’ll yank you back to the waking world if Mother gives us a call.”

You oblige with no small amount of reluctance, and as a narrow needle of bone slips from Gina’s wrist and into your own to usher you from the waking to dreaming worlds, you release her earlier words may hold more truth than you’re comfortable admitting.

It’s a thought you adeptly push to the back of your mind along with all the other ones you’ve told yourself you’ll deal with ‘after’, focusing on the task at hand as the door to the Dream Team’s communal coffee shop materializes before you, the sounds and smells of the cozy space filtering into your ears. Gently pushing it open, the gentle aroma of oolong tea is interwoven with the sharp tang of alcohol that wafts towards you from the pair of strangers at the bar, the latter you almost miss due to the size of the first.

The one closest to you has a level of muscle that would put even Johanna to shame, the girl’s jet-black ponytail practically sandwiched by her powerful shoulder blades. The tiny teacup she brings to her lips looks almost absurd with how daintily it’s held between her thumb and forefinger, and it’s as she brings the vessel to her lips (pinky out, of course) you catch a glimpse of the slight girl behind her as the smaller of the two slams a bottle of bourbon into her face like a weapon, crushing a third of the bottle in a series of sharp, desperate gulps…and judging by the empty bottles around her chair, she’s been at it for a while.

The smaller girl’s ruddy complexion darkest with a scowl at your approach, and her massive companion almost sputters out her delicate sip when she pokes the other girl in the ribs to inform her of your arrival.

“O-oh! Hello there!” The powerfully-built young woman greets you, rising from her barstool with surprising grace and speed, placing the cup and saucer on the counter with one hand and moving to shake your own with the other. “The others told me and Zuè you’d be coming by! I’m Sval, it’s a pleasure to finally put a face to the name!”

“Well, it’s a pleasure to know both of yours.” You reply with a smile, and Sval shoots her companion a grin. “See? They said she was a charmer!”

Zuè just fixes her companion with a withering glare as she finishes her bottle, saluting you with the empty container before lowering it to the floor.

(Continued)

>>5271384

“Hey, would you like to have a seat? We’ve been keeping it warm for you!” Sval offers, gesturing to her stool with a warm smile as the smaller of the two bandits reaches over the bar and pulls a bottle of black label from under the lip. You accept the taller girl’s expectedly polite offer, taking the offered seat as she takes her own, leaving the hard-drinking Zuè now stuck between you both.

“You’re…taking all this pretty well.” You admit, prompting a laugh from Sval and a roll of Zuè’s dark eyes.

“Ah, well…time runs a little differently here, as I’m sure you know.” The talkative Flesh Artisan chuckles with a sheepish shrug of her broad shoulders. “We’ve had a little while to adjust, and make the most of it. Johanna and Holly have been incredibly welcoming, and Uzu’s even offered to help me get back into baking!”

“That’s…that’s great.” You say, a quick glancing informing you that Sval’s been taking this far better than her friend here as Zuè chugs the booze like someone’s coming to saw her limbs off.

“I mean, I figured everything was going to catch up to us eventually, y’know?” Sval chuckles, her slight laugh tinged with guilt that she tries to cover with a (clearly) nervous monologue. “Your friend came out of no-where, and I have to hand it to her—she was the cherry on top of a crazy day, let me tell you! I mean, everyone was already out of sorts with that gigantic bird doing laps the past few hours, and that’s probably why the boss got sloppy. ‘Course the blame’s not all hers, but-“

“Sloppy?” You echo, confused.

“Oh, uh…so, you know how we…with people coming over the cliffs, yeah?” Sval asks, and you quickly nod—both to have her get to the point and to spare her the gruesome details of work she’ll no longer be capable of. “Well, the boss had some connections with some bio dealer on the west coast. Never gave a name, but we got paid a pretty pound of flesh if we found any unusual power sets, and they even gave us a relic to help scout ‘em out. Your friend probably wouldn’t have caught us nearly as off-guard if our latest haul hadn’t escaped like, two hours before she got us!"

Zuè scowls even deeper, her expression positively rancid as she listens to her ally recount their collective failure…but it’s one that gives you pause. You don’t want to dwell for too long in case Mother’s reply is forthcoming, but some of these details bear inspection.

>>Ask Sval a bit more about her boss and her connections—you have to wonder if this West-coast dealer has anything to do with the one who commissioned your attempted burglary.

>>Inquire as to who it was that escaped, and how—Sam killed these girls out of vengeance, so maybe there’s something of a lead, here?

>>Ask the bandits something else (Write-In).

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Voting shall remain open for the next two hours, with posting to resume in three. Thank you for your patience, and I hope your day is going well!)

>>5271385
Well, isn't she cheery. A monster, but a cheery one.

>>Ask Sval a bit more about her boss and her connections—you have to wonder if this West-coast dealer has anything to do with the one who commissioned your attempted burglary.

>>5271385
Yikes. Never knew the bandit girls were ones with connections. And looks like the plot is thickening with the upcoming faction wars arc given how Bhop's dropping us clues about people with connections hiring mercs and bandits to make our lives rather hard.

>Your friend probably wouldn’t have caught us nearly as off-guard if our latest haul hadn’t escaped like, two hours before she got us!"

>Inquire as to who it was that escaped, and how—Sam killed these girls out of vengeance, so maybe there’s something of a lead, here?
>"So what was your group name during the times you were 'trappers'? Any other work did you do besides your usual?"
>"You've heard about the Hassans? The Breaker's Dozen?"
>"Huh. never knew about the wider world. Didn't know about the mercenary companies too."
>"You've seen your dealer from the west coast in person or does your dealer contact your boss via proxy construct?"
>"Quick question: Was the one that escaped a centaur looking woman with a harp for a torso or a smaller mousey looking girl with mantis claws for arms? Have you seen any of those two?"

Mousey girl with mantis arms was the girl that Sam tagged along with briefly before she went to her apartment.

>>5271385
>Zue's just downing bottle after bottle and absolutely hating the afterlife.
Yeowch. She's not taking the fact that she's dead well isn't she?

>>5271514
(Yeah, she's not great...)

(...but hey, all the dream-booze you could want!)

>>5271516
double yikes. I'm not sure whether or not to offer her a Spirit Shell option for her to romp around in. On one hand a spirit shell would be a godsend for Zue to cope with the fact that she technically died. On the other hand, being alive again in a spirit shell means there's terms and conditions to piloting it, and she'll miss out on the conceptual dream booze.

File: Calcite Hills.jpg (321 KB, 1920x925)

321 KB JPG

>>5271389

“I’d like to know a bit more about your boss, if you’re willing to share.” You say, leaning on the bar and around the lush sitting between you and your source of info—at least, until Zuè slams her freshly emptied bottle down on the bar and harshly signs something to Sval.

“Hey now, she’s wasn’t-“ Sval weakly protests, giving a sharp yelp when the waif beside her socks her in the shoulder. “…okay, so she wasn’t the *best*, but she ran a tight ship, at least?”

Zuè levels a glare at her friend before sliding down from the stool to stalk around the bar and start rifling—loudly—through the liquors just out of sight, leaving her companion to continue her explanation.

“Carmen was…she made sure we were well-fed. Looked after. It was more than any of us had, and better than most of us deserved.” Sval tells you, each merit covering a multitude of regrets. “Her whole plan was to pick off the Daughters we could who were heading to the Cord, but clearly weren’t ready. She said we…we were giving them a better fate than what was waiting for them.”

The shorter girl looses a chilling sound, a high, screeching laugh from a throat that’s clearly not used with regularity. You must’ve shot her a startled look, given the guilty expression on her face as she stands back up with a pair of glasses in her hand and a bottle of amber liquid with a label that looks suitably imposing.

“This outfit of yours, did it have a name? And what other work did you do, besides?” You ask, shaking your head politely when Zuè thrusts a full glass your way. She shrugs, sliding it towards Sval instead as the larger Daughter takes a swig before answering your question.

“No, we never really had a name, not like some of the other companies that were out there. As for our work, it…we scraped by. We—or rather, Carmen—had been approached by Hassans because of her powers, and we’d scrapped with the Breakers once or twice when they tried to start stuff, but…” She trails off, staring into the depths of her glass. “…we mainly looked out for ourselves and tried to stay out of the greater politicking that we heard whispers of. At least, until Carmen made her deal.”

“Did you ever meet this benefactor in person, or did they interact via proxy?”

“Proxy…technically.” Sval corrects herself before finishing her drink, gently placing the glass back down on the counter before Zuè refills it. “There’d be a Daughter that came to our camp, and Carmen would tell us to stand down when she saw what they brought—it was always a Relic. Usually pretty small, and the rep would hand it over to Carmen and leave without a word. Then the boss would go to her room, stay in there a hot minute, and when she came out it was with a new plan or shipping schedule. We always assumed they were communicating via some sorta Relic-based system, probably to stay off the ’net.”

(Continued)

>>5271544

“She didn’t share a ton with us, but to be fair? Most of us didn’t ask.” Sval says, swirling the amber liquid in her tumbler. Zuè hands catch your and Sval’s attentions, the young woman saying something with her hands that makes her companion laugh.

“Oh, yeah! Duh!” Sval giggles, turning to you. “If there’s more you need to know, you’re welcome to ask Carmen herself!”

“Wait…she’s here?”

“Ah, well, not *here* here, but she’s in one of your friend’s heads! Zuè, who was it again?” Sval asks, rounding on the other girl. Zuè blushes, hastily signing her reply and prompting yet another chuckle out of the giggle-prone Sval. “She says, and I quote; ‘Carmen is currently in your *devastatingly* handsome artist friend.’ Quite the lucky one, I'd s-”

Zuè lunges across the bar, hands reaching out to strangle her friend as the larger girl fends off the assault as best she can, nearly doubled over with raucous laughter. They’re…an odd pair, to be sure, and you have to raise your voice to make your next question heard over their friendly scuffle.

“One last thing; was the one who escaped a centaur-looking woman with a harp for a torso, or a smaller mousey-looking girl with mantis claws for arms?” You practically shout, but it’s enough to give the two a moment’s pause. “Have you see either of those two?”

“Wait, yeah! Yeah, we have!” Sval exclaims, pushing Zuè back over the bar with one hand placed against the flailing girl’s face. “There was this girl with an Unnatural Predator mutation that made her arms look like insect claws. She was one of the three that escaped before everything happened, but I haven’t seen anyone that fits your first description.”

If your hunch is correct, then that might just be the person that Sam was looking for, though you’re hesitant to go all-in on that hope. She clearly means something to the previous owner of this body, but you wonder if renewing her hope is better than letting her stew in a potential falsehood. And then there’s the matter of this despicable circus’ ringleader, and as reluctant as you are to spend any longer than you have to around tyrants, you can’t deny the possibility of her parting with something you can use…

…especially if her patron has anything to do with whoever was bold enough to hire a thieves guild AND demolition experts to break down your front door.

>>See if Amara can catch the insect-girl’s trail by herself.

>>If Tinker Tailor’s still lurking in the Forgeroom, then see if she can get a message to Sam.

>>Pay Carmen a visit in Dorian’s Dreamscape…you’d like to know more about her benefactor.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(I shall be pausing here for the evening, with voting to remain open for the next eight hours with posting to resume tomorrow morning at 10AM, Eastern time. Thank you all for your continued patience and participation, and I wish you a restful evening one and all.)

>>5271547
>“Ah, well, not *here* here, but she’s in one of your friend’s heads! Zuè, who was it again?” Sval asks, rounding on the other girl. Zuè blushes, hastily signing her reply and prompting yet another chuckle out of the giggle-prone Sval. “She says, and I quote; ‘Carmen is currently in your *devastatingly* handsome artist friend.’ Quite the lucky one, I'd s-”

Oh my. Zue's a Dorian fangirl. No wonder she's feeling sour. She wanted to be in Dorian's headspace but got ours instead. How smitten is she?

>>5271551
(On a scale from one to ten?)

(Thirteen.)

File: teasing smitten women.jpg (108 KB, 1280x720)

108 KB JPG

>>5271558
Oh my. OH MY. That brings to question about the whole "mythical males" gender problem that I somewhat touched upon in the "Snowbird" omake.

just how BIG are the fanbases for those mythical men? Well for Dorian's case that is.

....I just have this devilish idea to tease and appease Zue. Given that she's a dream daughter, and can see through our eyes, we could technically ask Dorian a favor to perform a small gesture like pic related in front of us.

>>5271548
Thanks for running, BHOP.

>>5271551
>>5271558
Oh dear. Zue, it was never going to happen, Dorian is quite enamored with Julia. Still, if we do happen upon any corpses of male-identifying people, we'll try to eat them for you.

If we give the information on mantis girl still being alive to Tailor to pass to Sam, we need to make up a cover story. If Tailor acknowledges that we asked her to tell Sam, then that either reveals we spied on her or suggests that Tailor blabbed about their affiliation to us. That's not good for trust. So what's a reasonable excuse we could have to be talking to Tailor about mantis girl being alive, so she'd know?

I'm kind of blanking, honestly. Best I've got is us mentioning Sam as another cyborg to Tailor. Like "Oh, yeah, in case you ever meet this other cyborg girl, I figure you might wind up moving in the same circles". Like we didn't expect Tailor to pass it on immediately, but just something to remember if she ever did meet Sam in the future. Does that work?

>>5271614
There's always the Amara option. But you're also absolutely correct. We need a cover story to explain how we found out Mantis girl is alive.

Actually there's the more simple option of telling Sam that we interrogated them about their operation and got info about escapees whilst not knowing about mantis girl's identity.

>>5271638
Well, we know about mantis girl from Sam asking us to put out a Missed Connections ad on the Skinternet for her. And we inferred that Sam thought mantis girl was dead from how angry she was hunting the bandits. So we have a legitimate reason to have asked about the mantis girl (whose name we probably know, in character, but I can't remember it and I'm too lazy to look up the interlude where she said it). There's nothing we need to lie about, there. The thing we have to cover is how we knew that Tailor could get that information to Sam. Or, like you said, just have Amara hunt her down with Skintalking.

>>5271666
Didn't we give Sam a Fuzz-buzz Scarf when we first set her free? why don't we communicate to Sam via the Fuzzbuzz?

>>5271678
Did we? I don't remember. BHOP >>5271548, does Sam have a FuzzBuzz we can contact her through?

Though it could also be a bit awkward to do so. First time we ever call her up, and it's to tell her about us doing investigation for her. Like, I'm sure she'd be happy, but at the same time, probably feel like we're being a busybody.

>>5271681
>>5271678
(She does, yes.)

(Also, was briefly on data and someone within distance was banned from /vg/ for posting lewds, so I have a fun guessing game ahead of me.)

>>5271692
(In any case, it would be possible to reach her in any number of ways, if you choose to do so.)

>>5271689
I had a post that I replied to you. Belay that. I bamboozled it after further reading in the Archives in Sam's interlude.

>>5271689
Oh, good, then. We could send her a text like we did Ozmas, then, actually.

Also, that sucks.

>>5271692
Oh, she did? Darn. Okay, a cover story for Tailor it is.

What if Tailor just heard it in conversation? Like it was just part of our planning that she overheard. Like she just heard us say "oh, and I talked with those bandits Sam killed, the girl she was avenging actually escaped them, so we need to find a way to tell her that her friend is still alive out there".

>>5271697
Oh, so she got the FuzzBuzz back?

>>5271693
>>5271698
Hang on. Hang on. I'm re-reading the archives again. Yup. Sam still has the Scarf. I was misremembering things.

>https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/2019/3933303/#p3935328
>In the process of retrieving the Succulent Sauce, your hand grazes something you’d forgotten about; a thing hastily stuffed away, whether out of spite or as a reminder of who granted you a second chance, you’re not quite sure. You pull the Relic and the FuzzBuzz scarf out from the recesses of your cloak, wrapping the latter around your neck and pulling your hood back up over it as you turn to face the Joyous behind you.

“Shu said this thing would keep me company, if I was…upset, or whatever.” You say, tugging lightly at the scarf as you hold both Relics in one hand. “‘To remind you that you can always be a better person, and that you are always in control’, she said.”

The child takes a step back when you thrust out your hand, and just cocks her head when it becomes apparent what you’re offering.

“Take ‘em.” You say with a voxel-distorted sigh, shaking your hand a little as Goggles rattle against the Sauce. “Both of ‘em…and a message, if you’re up for talking.”

The Joyous steps forward, cradling both Relics in her small hands before looking up at you intently.

>>5271699
>>5271693
Sam still has the scarf around her neck. In the interlude, Sam was giving the joyous clone the two relics she found but she didn't hand over the scarf. Yeah. I was definitely mis-remembering and mis-reading things.

>>5271705
(I thought she did, but I'm away from my notes at the moment. Thank you for confirming that!)

>>5271689
preserve your data plan. reply when you have wifi

>>5271701
>>5271705
Great. Okay, then, time to actually vote.

>>5271547
>>Pay Carmen a visit in Dorian’s Dreamscape…you’d like to know more about her benefactor.
>>Write-In
>Once we're done in the Dreamscape, send Sam a text via FuzzBuzz. Keep it professional, try not to make it seem like we're being a busybody.
>Also inform Tailor that we've told Sam this, so that she's not blindsided, and to use her discretion in responding to however Sam relays the information.

For the text, I'm thinking something like: "Sam. Forgive me for intruding, but I believe you had a personal reason to target those bandits I recently encountered you hunting. I've interrogated their Dream selves, and I've learned that some of their victims managed to escape. One was a mantis-armed girl similar to the one you asked for help sending a message to. I don't know if that's why you targeted them, but I thought it would be remiss to not inform you that she may still be alive."

How does that look?

>>5271681
To be fair on our end, we were a very busy busybody bee in the last several threads regarding both the launch of "The Defiance" and the Negotiations between the Three Children of Morningstar.

So making the time to go get the information to help Sam in her investigation and deliver to Sam would be helpful to her. But I do understand the impersonality of the delivering of the message. Although to help out Sam we could have Amara have a Joyous clone accompany Sam and aid her in tracking Mantis girl down. (I hope the Joyous clone that Amara sends to accompany Sam is the same one that got sidetracked and trailed Sam during Sam's interlude period)

>>5271712
Yeah, that would help her a lot, though obviously we should get her permission for it. Should we offer it first? That might be too busybody-ish, coming from us, but maybe if Tailor suggested it? Though the fact that I'm suggesting we have Tailor stealthily influence Sam to ask for help means I'm turbo-busybodying, so actually, no. That's a bad thing to do.

Okay, we could have Amara offer, then. Ask her if she'd be okay helping Sam, and if so, could she send one of her Many Sam's way with the offer to assist her in searching. That could work, I think?

>>5271720
We could frame the request to Amara as something of a fun "stealthy search & Rescue Mission" for Amara and her clones.

>Ninja Army on a rescue mission to help Sam reunite with a girl who Sam wants to be a friend of!

>>5271732
Yeah, that could be fun for her. Just put it as an additional objective for the Many to be on the lookout for. They're already searching for lots of stuff, what's one more? And the one that is following Sam should have fun with it.

>>5271547

>Pay Carmen a visit in Dorian’s Dreamscape…you’d like to know more about her benefactor.
>As Amara to see if she could help aid Sam in her search for a friend that Sam made along the way. Frame it as a fun "Search and rescue/escort mission for one or several of Amara's Joyous Many." ("Amara I have something fun for you and your Joyous many. A fellow cyborg ninja is looking for a friend and wants to reunite with said friend. This will be a dangerous ninja mission. Send out your finest ninja clones to aid our cyborg ninja friend! Please?")
>Send Sam a message via Fuzzbuzz, tell her we just got a lead on her friend and we're sending her help in aiding her search.
>Also inform Tailor that we've told Sam this, so that she's not blindsided, and to use her discretion in responding to however Sam relays the information.

>>5271736
Also, is it me or is Amara more something of a tomboy when it comes to things she finds cute/cool? She likes DMC, she's got a ninja theme about her, and she frequently does things that reach "peak anime" in terms of farce.

>>5271759
Yeah, a little. She's not the sort of tomboy that rejects girly things outright, she's been wearing a dress this whole time, but she's a rambunctious child. She's going to be drawn to things that let her express that, action and adventure and stylish heroes. Also squirmy gross bugs. Amara sure loves her gross bugs. Thinking about it, that might be part of why she bonded with Shu so quickly. Shu's the cool bug lady, of course she's going to want her to be her mom.

Oh shit, speaking of that, we do need to talk with Amara about the revelations she dropped about her birth mom dying, don't we? That got lost in all the preparations for Behemoth and dealing with the Hope Fragment, but she did definitely imply (if not outright state) that her birth mom died before the Crucible and she was being shuffled between foster families and had run away from one of them at the time of the Crucible. That's something to talk with her about.

File: __original_drawn_by_osaba(...).jpg (123 KB, 850x1177)

123 KB JPG

>>5271775
>Oh shit, speaking of that, we do need to talk with Amara about the revelations she dropped about her birth mom dying, don't we? That got lost in all the preparations for Behemoth and dealing with the Hope Fragment, but she did definitely imply (if not outright state) that her birth mom died before the Crucible and she was being shuffled between foster families and had run away from one of them at the time of the Crucible. That's something to talk with her about.

It's a heavy topic that's for sure. But how could we approach the topic?

Hmm....I think we could tackle this together with Nerada by her side now that Amara has a peer friend her age. With much of the stress that we had to tackle with Morningstar's three children having passed and now that we have much downtime on our hands while waiting for Ozmas to work up the courage to contact us and for Charon to be in a better emotional state to continue the Cord insight and emotional therapy, we could spend time that we have now to be an actual mother figure to our surrogate adopted daughter.

something to keep in mind. We had our session with Charon because Charon offered us insight in the Cord's obstacles, but then ran into the emotional roadblock of her fallout with Ozmas.

This prompted an emotional therapy session with her which resulted in Charon gathering the nerves to contact her old friend, and us sending Ozmas a message to both give her a heads up as well as an open door invitation for a long path to emotional recovery.

So while we wait for those two, we now have two or three other issues that we can tackle:

>Amara's past which can be delved into via family time with her and Nerada
>the Faction wars investigation phase via interrogating Carmen
>Sam's search for her Mantis friend.

File: Amara.jpg (1.34 MB, 966x1420)

1.34 MB JPG

>>5271547

“Thanks for all this, it’s been a big help.” You say, giving the odd pair a polite nod as you take to your feet, and it’s only your imminent departure that snaps them out of their friendly toustle.

“N-no, you’ve been…amazing, actually!” Sval exclaims, practically leaping to her feet and practically dragging Zuè over the counter and onto the floor before the smaller girl lets go, more out of self-preservation than any sense of decorum. “It’s thanks to you and your family that we’re still…that we’re here, at all.”

You’re not sure if her comrade shares her enthusiasm, but Zuè salutes you with a freshly-opened bottle of scotch, regardless.

“Can I…uh…I mean, if it's okay?” Sval begins timidly, extending her massive arm span to you with an expression that wouldn’t look out of place on Amara, with those puppy-dog eyes. You smile, beckoning her in and finding that her gentle nature extends—mercifully—to hugs, as well. It’s up-close that you get a sense of just how young she is; her physique’s clearly been augmented by her Core, and while you’re still at a loss for any obvious tells as to Zuè’s’, it strikes you that both these girls are younger than you by several years.

It’s a fact that you can’t seem to shake, even as you softly shut the door behind you, feeling the handle dissolve before your fingers slip away from it’s hilt.

They don’t seem like bad people…

…but you know full well how bad people can get when under the thumb of someone in control.

“Done already?” Gina asks as you come to, an expression of pleasant surprise flitting across her soft features.

“Not quite. I’ve got an assignment for Amara, and then I need to get into Dorian’s head to ask his newest Dream Daughter a few questions.” You say, swinging your legs off the bed and promptly striding towards the door with Gina in hot pursuit. Finding Amara’s a simple enough task; she’s lying on her back in the Fuzzpit, reclining like an eccentric millionaire with what you hope is a virgin drink clutched in her hands and resting just above her belly button.

“Hey sweetie…up for a secret mission?” You ask, kneeling at the edge of the pool as your little one’s head snaps to you, obviously thrilled. “I need you to help…a friend of mine. She’s a cyborg ninja, and she’s looking for a friend of her’s she’s lost. Your mission, should you choose to accept it-”

“I do! I absolutely do!” Amara exclaims, quickly stifling her volume and shushing you as if you’re the one that shouted.

“That’s my girl. It’ll be a dangerous mission, and you’ll need a lot of Joyous to help scour as far as you can. Now, as for your target-”

(Continued)

>>5272249

You’re no stranger to multitasking at this point—it comes with being a Hive Mistress, after all—so while you give Amara a detailed description of her mission parameters, a quick message to Gina sends her to find Tinker Tailor so she’s not blindsided by what you’re about to do next. With a sharp salute to your little soldier, you leave Amara to her task as you go to the far end of the Roost for a moment of privacy. It takes a little effort and a lot of focus, but you reach out to Sam's Fuzzbuzz scarf, first to make it vibrate, and then to shift the down into a legible message transcribed from your own voice.

"Sam - forgive me for intruding, but I believe you had a personal reason to target those bandits I recently encountered you hunting. I've interrogated their Dream selves, and I've learned that some of their victims managed to escape. One was a mantis-armed girl similar to the one you asked for help sending a message to. I don't know if that's why you targeted them, but I thought it would be remiss to not inform you that she may still be alive."

It's no more than a few seconds after the message manifests that your commling goes off, and as the construct scuttles up to your ear, Sam's voice…your voice…crackles to life.

“How?” She chokes out on the other end of the line.

“I got a lead that she might have been taken prisoner by the camp you brought to task.” You explain, avoiding the word ‘slaughter’ for the time being. “Like K said, it turns out there was an escape a few hours before you got there, and she may have been one of the ones who got away.”

The line’s silent, so you continue; “I’ve got Amara’s Joyous scouring the fleshscape for her, and my little one’s no stranger to the Skinternet, either. If she’s out there, we’ll find her.”

“...Okay. I…okay.” She repeats, swallowing the rest of her words before she chokes.

“Okay.” She says for a third time, a sliver of hope slipping between those two short syllables, compressed between doubt and disbelief. And then, stiffly-

“Thank you.”

The line cuts, your doppelganger’s words lingering in your mind even as you find yourself knocking on Dorian’s door. Footfalls sound between long strides, their owner swinging open the door and greeting you with a smile. You return it with your own, though your expression falters when you notice Julia rising from the edge of the bed just beyond your line of sight.

“Oh…shit, I’m-” You stammer, taking a step back as Dorian chuckles, shaking his head as he open the door fully, Julia arriving at his side.

“No n-need to fret, we were only t-talking.” Julia says, and you feel rather chided by the pointed look she gives you, though the wink that follows it cuts the bitterness. “Is everything alright?”

(Continued)

>>5272250

“Well, I think I’ve got a lead on something, but my best bet at getting some answers is in Dorian’s head.”

The young man shoots you a quizzical look, one that’s quickly replaced by one of realization; “My new Dream Daughter?”

“Bingo.” You confirm, and Dorian’s already bidding you enter, shutting the door behind you as he ushers you to take his place on the edge of the bed, his copied Neuromancy flaring in his eyes with a light that’s at once familiar and at the same time wholly his.

“Are you ready?” He asks, and the moment you nod, objective reality is stripped away like so many layers of paint, substituted for the void of subjective dreams.

Focusing in on Dorian’s mind, you feel material coalesce around you as his dreamscape takes tangible, coherent form. You expect something unfamiliar to spring into existence around you, to be met with some novel locale…but you recognize the lane of well-kept trees leading to the front steps of the Gardner estate, proudly looming before you with all the imperial grandeur that familial trauma can muster. You tentatively take a step forward, eyeing the trees with suspicion given your last foray past the aggressive arbor. It’s to your relief that your caution is for naught, and as you scale the house’s front steps you’re struck with the eerie silence that’s settled over the place like a funerary shawl.

You’re not sure if it's a blessing that the quiet is broken at that moment by a cold, clear voice from behind you.

“It’s a lovely piece of architecture…though I understand completely why Dorian destroyed it.”

Rounding on the source of the voice, you find it at the foot of the staircase you’ve just scaled—a woman draped in a loose-fitting sheet of ashen skin, her genuine flesh beneath barely hidden by its folds, and proving whiter than the deadened veil she bears. Red eyes stare up at you, with jagged razors of bone cutting bloodlessly in and around every exposed inch of skin, slicing aimless across the canvass of her bodt like the fins of alabaster sharks swimming just below her dermis.

“Carmen, I presume?”

“Or 'Alabaster Shrike', if you prefer.” She shrugs, her bony shoulder briefly tearing through the skin before they’re subsumed by her regeneration. “It hardly matters, now.”

“Does Dorian know you’re here?” You ask, taking a step down and suppressing a shudder when an errant blade briefly splits her left eye in two.

“I did not seek out this place, Defiant. This and many others have been thrust upon me, no doubt due to the young man’s introspection.” She sighs, casting a lazy glance about the familiar space before settling on you with a curious glint. “There’s truth to be found here, if you know where to look.”

(Continued)

>>5272253

“I understand you struck some sort of deal with a broker of Relics.” You begin, taking another pair of steps closer to the unnerving figure below. “I’d like you to share what you know about them, if you please.”

Another step, and as perspective becomes clearer you realize the woman before you is edging seven feet in height, her bony frame at once as rigid and fluid as sculpted marble.

“They came to me at my lowest point. The flow of food had slowed. Our group had grown too large to sustain. I’ll be the first to admit that my sentiment had gotten the better of me.” She explains with a voice as level as the steps that separate you, and you bite your tongue at the casual dismissal of the lives she’s taken as mefe 'food'. “A messenger arrived, one that bore good tidings at a cost; food, in exchange for keeping an eye out for individuals of note. High power ceilings, unusual variants…Deprived, even.”

Her lips split into a smirk as your expression betrays your knowledge of the term, and Carmen continues; “It was the first time I’d heard of the thirteenth class, and I’m sad to say I hadn’t been lucky enough to find something so valuable. Still, I kept my end of the bargain, and in doing so I kept my family fed.”

Her head tilts to one side, as she adds; “Surely, you of all people can relate.”

It’s not a question, but you ignore it regardless.

“Did you ever meet with your benefactor personally?” You press, and Carmen simply shakes her head with a slow, deliberate motion as calcite blades swim through her throat. “Did you learn anything about them? Anything at all? Motivations, methods?”

“I was a bit player, but I was glad to play the part for my girls’ sake.” Carmen muses, pacing the short length of the step she’s chosen. “I was kept in the dark by design, and I was not fool enough to look this gift horse so obviously in the mouth.”

You sigh, staring out over the grounds in frustration just as Carmen’s bloodless lips curve up in a more pronounced smirk.

“The Relics were exquisitely crafted. Pridefully so, but with notable influences from a sect of particular artisans along what was once Ontario. If my benefactor didn’t hail from there, then they have a Artisan of their ilk in their employ. I’d assumed I was dealing with a Daughter with some years under her belt, but…” Carmen trails off wistfully.

“...but?” You prompt, and her pale smile widens.

“You’ve proven anything’s possible. After all, it was your rise to power that prompted my patron to extend their hand to me in the first place.”

You swallow.

“Did they tell you that?”

(Continued)

>>5272254

“Of course not, but the timing is too serendipitous to dismiss as anything other than intentional.” Carmen replies with another grotesque shrug. “My group was hardly one of any renown. We were sedentary opportunists, but we were uniquely situated at a breakpoint, of sorts. Given what little I’ve heard of your exploits, I would assume they’re trying to outrace Mara’s precious chosen one to the Cord…and I suspect they’re not the only ones.”

You flex the fingers of both hands, trying to stop them from curling into fists.

“I’m nothing special. Certainly not special enough to-”

“While most Daughters are still desperately trying to stave off the hunger and eke out a meager existence, you’ve negotiated with titans both literal and metaphorical.” Carmen interrupts, her even tone honed to a razor’s edge as she takes another step towards you. “You’ve slain the heirs apparent to vast and terrible powers, and the dead walk among you, returned to life.”

Another step.

“The echoes of Crucibles long past shadow your steps, and you’ve set foot in cities untouched by eons.”

Another.

“Everything that was certain and sure about this world of ours unravels at your touch, woven into something greater by the hands of you and those that act in your name.”

One final step, and despite being three below you she’s eye-level with you, her scarlet irises boring into your own.

“You and your family are as gods, whether you acknowledge that reality or not.” She declares, her words as precise as a physician’s scalpel. “It’s folly to try and deny it, even if you wish to God it weren’t so. Positions like ours come with responsibilities, and to turn a blind eye to them is to blind yourself to those that look to you for guidance and hope.”

“And what is our position, exactly?” You ask.

“We’re mothers, Defiant. By bonds, if not by blood."

(Continued)

File: Carmen, the Porcelain Shrike.png (209 KB, 794x1200)

209 KB PNG

>>5272255

You…you’re not sure how to reply to that, and in the face of your silence Carmen takes two steps down, giving you room to breathe.

“If you have more questions, I bid you—ask them.” She announces, pacing once more along the length of her chosen step. "I welcome the distraction."

"From what?" You find yourself asking, teasing out another bone-dry smile from the woman's cracked lips.

"From wanting to kill you." She replies. "You loosed a wild dog on my children, after all."

"She only came after you for what you'd done."

"Oh, I do not blame her. Or you, for that matter. But I'm not so detached from it all that I can't help but harbor a little murder in my heart for the one indirectly responsible…but that's of no import. Go. Ask your questions, and I'll tell you no lies."

Blood beads at the corners of her fractured, mirthless smile.

"What else am I to do, in this place?"

>>Drill down harder on any details. Anything, even the most insignificant details could be relevant.

>>Demand details as to precisely what types of Daughters Carmen sold to her benefactor…it may give you some kind of lead.

>>You've nothing more to ask her - return to the waking world, and await word from Mother.

>>You're done here, and you'd like to cleanse your dreamscape palate with a visit to one of your other Dream Daughters (Write-In).

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Voting shall remain open for the next three hours, with posting to resume in four. I do hope your week is going well, one and all!)

>>5272260
Let's start with:
>>Demand details as to precisely what types of Daughters Carmen sold to her benefactor…it may give you some kind of lead.

Specifically ask about the escape that took place before Sam got to them, see if she remembers who exactly got away.

>>5272253
>“Or 'Alabaster Shrike', if you prefer.”
Hang on. HANG ON. Shrike was one of the OCs submitted during one of the intermission threads I think. Hang on. lemme check the archives

>>5272343
(She's not the same one, but she has a weaker powerset that's similar.)

(...besides, that particular OC will get more screen time than a mere dream sequence.)

>>5272257
>>5272255
>>5272254
There's a certain twisted dramatic irony in all of this with multiple levels of it throughout the conversation.

>>5272353
(It's moments like these - when you and everyone else catch on to these things - that gives me hope that I'm not a complete hack of a writer.)

>>5272257
>Mull over her words.

>"Mother of All. There it is again."
>Pull up a seat for both us and Carmen offer it to her.
>"You do have a point there Carmen. Multiple actually the more I think about it and consider things from your point of view. Some points more uncomfortable than others."
>"Two mother figures adopting a family in a harsh world, doing what they can to survive. And all of that unraveling the moment someone chooses violence."
>"Yeah, I can empathize with your place and mood. You've got soft spots for people you care about, and I'm not so different in that I have people that I'd love to tear heaven and earth asunder for, whether it be love, vengeance, or grief."
>"Although I'm not sure if you're also willing to stomach having a prominent cult who hangs of every word like gospel."
>"I apologize on behalf of Sam. In your words She is my responsibility after all."
>"If it's any consolation, I could make arrangements for you to visit Sval and Zue if you'd like. They're currently living in my headspace. Would you like to visit them after I ask a few questions?"

>"So about your contact, how many times have you contacted them?"
>"How often were you contacted?
>"When you were first approached, were you approached by a construct or by an actual daughter? What was their apparent class mutation?"
>"What sort of "food" did you able to deliver to them during the deal? Vitruvians? Skintalkers? Was your benefactor specific with their details in their "tastes"?
>"It seems your benefactor's a picky eater from what I can already gather."
>"When you were given the relic to communicate with them, who or what delivered it? And who delivered your meals when you were at your lowest?"
>"When you communicated with your benefactor, did they have any discernible accent of a sort? Given that the artisan who made the relic you were gifted was likely from ontario, and that your main benefactor was from the west coast, "our" mystery woman or "women" is likely a wealthy woman with a group of multiple nationalities under her belt given the quality of the relic and the resources she could dispense. Like a Relic Forge and its cores, but the tier of its cores is a mystery. Given that she or they attempted burglary through hired proxy."

>>5272254
>“The Relics were exquisitely crafted. Pridefully so, but with notable influences from a sect of particular artisans along what was once Ontario. If my benefactor didn’t hail from there, then they have a Artisan of their ilk in their employ. I’d assumed I was dealing with a Daughter with some years under her belt, but…” Carmen trails off wistfully.

File: tumblr_mlp72jf4Ev1rvcvbio(...).jpg (35 KB, 480x320)

35 KB JPG

>>5272260
Time to make you break into a sweat and see what the amount of detail that I can manage to glean and infer from this exchange with Carmen.

If they were being specific about what was being delivered, then that means they had the resources and the means to give you what amounts to be scrap to others. Waste not and all that. And given that they're a picky eater and have gone through enough biomass filtered through their gaze that they're willing to share what they don't 'want' to others, means they likely don't have.

And the fact that this deal exists means that they don't have the relics needed to efficiently sift through biomass for the powersets that they crave to consume out of "want" instead of "need". Having vast quantities of biomass to filter and no means of efficiently filtering them for personal enrichment? Having to shuffle all the excess waste and use them for resources to bargain with others? Which means they lack Consumption enhancing relics an Engine (purified or corrupted) or a like our Arbiter's Appetite, or are getting their core powersets enhanced by augmentations out the wazoo after they've got their core sets capped off. The third possibility is that they have enhancing relics and are capped off, but they're committing to excess predation in order to slow us down with the current contracts that they have. Which means they aren't as "wealthy" in hard assets but like valuable relics but more wealthy in "liquidity" like spare bio for consumption.

They've got a hint of someone hailing from ontario Canada, and their main benefactor came from the west coast. And given the west coast is mainly dominated by California and what not and how the west coast is a entry port of hub for international daughters....I can extrapolate that our benefactor is likely an Asian in ethnicity. Ontario Canada's got a sizable asian community in toronto, and given how Asians tend to keep to others of similar ethnicities (mostly by language) we might expect Carmen to divulge that the benefactor having a thick or slight Asian Accent to their voice.

>>5272401
>>5272257
Amending my vote in editing this line
>"Although I'm not sure if you're also willing to stomach having a prominent cult who hangs of every word like gospel."
To
>"Although in my case, I'm not sure if having to tend to a cult as well as three children the size of Kaiju is a point of commonality between us two."
And add this line after the above.
>Sigh that same tired sigh like that of a frazzled mother with multiple plates to juggle in keeping house. A gesture that Carmen might empathize with.

>>5272257
Carmen's clearly the sort of Yamato Nadeshiko (soft spoken woman hiding a silk of steel) given how measured and practiced her steps are. She's given us her steely side. I wonder if there's anything we can do to help her soften that hardened image.

>>5272401
Adding an amendment line after:
>"If it's any consolation, I could make arrangements for you to visit Sval and Zue if you'd like. They're currently living in my headspace. Would you like to visit them after I ask a few questions?"
The line added
>"Oh the two of them are doing well. They're hanging out in a coffee shop space that I made for dream daughters. Zue's going a little hard on the scotch and bourbon though."
>Whisper conspiratorially: "She's jealous of your spot in who's hosting you. Practically smitten with him."

File: Shrike's Heyday.jpg (410 KB, 1536x2048)

410 KB JPG

>>5272257

Mother of All…there it is again." You mutter to yourself, taking a few steps up to the front porch and pulling a pair of nearby chair closer, the white wicker leaving a dusty sheen on your hands that you only notice when you beckon the Porcelain Shrike to take a seat beside you.

"You do have a point there, Carmen.” You finally admit as the older woman makes her way to your side. “Multiple, actually…the more I think about it and consider things from your point of view. Some points more uncomfortable than others—two mother figures adopting a family in a harsh world, doing what they can to survive. And all of that unraveling the moment someone chooses violence."

You meet her blood-red eyes with a knowing smile. "Yeah, I can empathize with your place and mood. You've got soft spots for people you care about, and I'm not so different in that I have people that I'd love to tear heaven and earth asunder for, whether it be love, vengeance, or grief."

You look out along the tree-lined avenue with a beleaguered sigh, adding; "Although in my case, I'm not sure if having to tend to a cult as well as three children the size of Kaiju is a point of commonality between us two."

Carmen’s smile softens, and she folds her pale, drawn fingers in her leap before voicing her reply. “Ha, in my experience? Being a child is a mindset, regardless of the body it inhabits.”

A commonality established. Common ground, forged.

"Look...I apologize on behalf of Sam.” You say, meeting Carmen’s eyes once again as you shift back to more serious matters. "In your own words, she is my responsibility, after all. If it's any consolation, I could make arrangements for you to visit Sval and Zuè if you'd like. They're currently living in my headspace. Would you like to visit them after I ask a few questions?"

“…they’re alive?” Carmen breathes, her voice carrying a deeper version of the strained hope that was woven into Sam’s voice only a few minutes ago. “Are…are they well?”

“Yes, actually...well, Sval is, at least. They’re hanging out in a coffee shop space that some of my other Dream Daughters made.” You admit, Carmen doing her best to hide that she’s hanging on your every word. “Zuè’s going a little hard on the scotch and bourbon.”

And then, leaning close to the Shrike with a conspiratorial whisper, you add; “She’s jealous of your spot in who’s hosting you. Practically smitten with him, by the sound of it.”

You almost jump out of your seat at the squawk of laughter than Carmen lets slip, and her hand flies to her mouth as if to catch whatever other joyful sounds are on its heels. She’s quiet, after that—taking a few seconds to study your face in silence before she smiles again, but it’s different, this time.

Softer.

Kinder.

Like looking in a mirror.

“Ask your questions, Shu.” She finally says. “I will do my best to answer.”

(Continued)

>>5272504

"So about your contact, how many times have you spoken in total?" You begin, turning in your seat to face the woman fully.

“After our first meeting, there were ten subsequent shipments. Any new messages were brought by representatives that were themselves contractors. Ten shipments, with any alterations to the deal described to me by relics similar to the one the messenger initially brought.” Carmen thoroughly explains, and then, as if to head off your next question; “I was always contacted by Daughters, but I could tell by their body language and snatches of overheard conversation that they, too, were acting on orders from an unseen employer. They were all rather low-level. Easier to exploit, much like myself when I was first approached.”

"What sort of ‘food’ did you able to deliver to them during the deal? Vitruvians? Skintalkers? Was your benefactor specific with their ‘tastes’?” You ask, giving Carmen a moment to reflect. "It seems that whatever they were after, they were already picky eater from what I can gather."

“Well, as I said before—I was told to scan for unique morphotypes using a Relic that was gifted to me…by the way, do you happen to know where that ended up after the attack? No? Ah well.” She mutters, taking your blank expression as answer enough before she continues. “In any case, the Relic did seem to have its preferences already dialed in; Unnatural Predators, Neuromancers, and Phantasmal Conduits were the bulk of what I shipped out, all with abilities that were odd ones out.”

“I need specifics, Carmen.” You say, gently. “Anything can help, even if it doesn’t feel like it.”

“Well, for starters; there was a Neuromancer whose body was deaf and dumb, but whose ability allowed her to see, hear, and taste through all other entities in a wide radius. Not powerful at all, but the scanner tagged her as one to be shipped out. Another, a Conduit, she passively evened out the emotions of all around her. Those are some minor examples, but there were a handful that, while under leveled when we captured them, were gifted with tremendous powers despite their freshness. A Generator with devastating powers of transmutation, and an Unnatural Predator whose body was a rare chimeric strain. Exquisitely adaptable, but it was clear the girl didn’t even know what she was capable of...she started mirroring my girls' Predator power sets the moment she set foot in our camp. Quite a few rookies whose powers easily outpaced even some of my own, and would have proven a challenge if they had more experience when they crossed the ridge.”

Carmen adds with her own lean-and-whisper to mirror yours from earlier; “I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but he balancing in this little cosmic game is rather horrendous.”

It’s your turn to chuckle, though the gears of your mind are already churning with possibilities, turning over the facts as you choose what to ask next.

(Continued)

>>5272511

"When you were given the relic to communicate with them, who or what delivered it? A low-level Daughter, like you said?” Carmen nods. “And who delivered your meals when you were at your lowest?"

“The very same…I never saw the same girl twice, and they were all low-level, save for the occasional escort who was, of course, always a mercenary, and never from a company of note."

"When you communicated with your benefactor, did they have any discernible accent of a sort?”

“Oh, no…it was always an automated voice. Barely human, but quite discernable.” Carmen says, making a face at the recollection before arching one severe eyebrow at you. “A good question, but why do you ask?”

“Given that the artisan who made the relic you were gifted was likely from Ontario, and that your main benefactor was from the west coast, our mystery woman or women is likely a wealthy woman with a group of multiple nationalities under her belt given the quality of the relic and the resources she could dispense. Like a Relic Forge and its cores, but the tier of its cores is a mystery…but they’re careful, judging by how cautious they’ve been to stay off the Skinternet’s radar and work almost exclusively through proxies."


That word.

Why is it always ‘proxies’?

You’ve come to respect a villain who has a personal touch, if nothing else.

“I do hope this helps.”

You’re snapped out of your own roiling thoughts by Carmen’s unexpectedly soft tone of voice.

“It did, thank you. I’m not sure if anything will come of it, but I’d still like to get to the bottom of this, if I can.”

“Of course you do.” She smiles, and while the words could be construed as her talking down to you, there’s something genuine in the way she’s shaped her words. As though in this short conversation, she understands who you are.

Maybe it’s a mother thing.

“If there’s anything else you can think of to ask, I’ll do my best to remember.” She offers, shifting her body language to match your own—open, and willing to listen.

A far cry from where you started.

>>Ask Carmen something else that’s occurred to you (Write-In).

>>Bid carmen goodbye for now…

AND

>>Return to the waking world to speak with an ally/allies of your choice (Write-in)

>>Visit another one of your Dream Daughters, since you’re already knee-deep in the dreamscape.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Voting shall remain open for the next three hours, with posting to resume in four.)

>>5272513
>>5272511
well this is sus as all hell. A benefactor who works through proxies and has the resources to dispense bit-player mercs on fetch quests to get others to do her dirty work. There's also the quality of the food that the benefactor wants to consume. Transmutation, Instant chimeric adaptation, Amplified and weaponized mirror touch-synthesia, Zen-level conduit aura, they're powersets that are straight up esoteric or arcane. We may be dealing with a daughter or a group of daughters who are trying to replicate powersets that only deprived are capable of, or straight up min-maxing their build to lean into the more powerful wizard build.
Not to mention the proxy network. They're macro-scale farming and treating things as impersonal objects and such.

Not only that the network they're using to get others to do the work for them is a straight up pyramid scheme of a sort. Very business-like but without Mara's personal touch. I wouldn't be surprised if Mara had a rival who chose to lay low and attempted to farm resources that could match Mara's Deprived causality wrecking powerset. A dragon of a different kind, but a dragon nonetheless.

>>5272511
Huh. That's a weird mix. So the most physically divergent class and the two psychic classes. And those specific examples Carmen gave seem to be based around accessing or sharing data between Daughters. Makes me wonder if someone is trying to make the Slivers, from Magic the Gathering. A big army of networked Daughters, each of which contributes a separate power which gets shared among them.

>>5272532
That would fit with the timeline being so recent. Mara goes up to be the final boss of the Cord, so this person decided to make an anti-Deprived toolkit to be able to get past her.

>>5272512
>>Bid carmen goodbye for now…
>>Visit another one of your Dream Daughters, since you’re already knee-deep in the dreamscape.

Wasn't there a fourth Daughter we ate from this group? Looking back at the Vein we ate them, she wound up in Amara's head. Let's see how she's handling hanging out with the kids and the alien. Okay, and two adult humans, but still. It's funnier to focus on the Sororitas and Cheruem.

>>5272545
(There is a fourth, yes.)

>>5272511
An even bigger sign is that the proxy network is multi-layered. where the informants are in a double-blind.
Then there's the aversion to the skintalking network.

>>5272539
This somehow smells of Mind-path Neuromancy.
Not to mention the powersets that the benefactor is trying to farm is modular as all hell.
>>5272545
>>5272547
There's actually five cores from the Bandit remains. But...we somehow ate only four dreamstate daughters? what happened to the fifth? did we not pick up that girl?

>Ruby Maurader
>Poreclain Shrike (Carmen)
>Duplicitous Doppel (
>Soul of Swole (Sval)
>Malleable Masquerade

>>5272512
>Ask Carmen something else that’s occurred to you (Write-In).
>"There may be one more among your group that's among my family in the dreamscape, I think my daughter's hosting her? She's in good company regardless. Duplicitous Doppel was her powerset I believe.

>>5272557
>There's actually five cores from the Bandit remains. But...we somehow ate only four dreamstate daughters? what happened to the fifth? did we not pick up that girl?
That's right, I'm remembering now. There were five cores but we only actually ate three. But BHOP said that we could grab the Dream Daughters of the ones we didn't eat anyway, using the Arbiter's Appetite. That's why Shu had two of the Daughters from this group. And looking through the archives, the fifth Dream Daughter is actually also in Dorian. Oh. Well, let's go next door and see her, then. Ask Carmen about her first, too.

>>5272512
>>Bid carmen goodbye for now…
>>Visit another one of your Dream Daughters, since you’re already knee-deep in the dreamscape.
Well, with there being five Daughters, let's visit the other one in Dorian first, before we hop over to Amara's head. Malleable Masquerade, is her Core's name. Where's she hanging out?

>>5272570
(Indeed, there are two new ones in Dorian, though judging by how Carmen's speaking she doesn't seem to realize Malleable Masquerade's user is present in the same headspace.)

>>5272577
Poor Carmen, she must be feeling so isolated. First she doesn't realize that she can hop across to other party members' heads, now she doesn't realize she's got another member of her party in Dorian. Has she at least been able to interact with his other Dream Daughters like Ruth or Vultha?

>>5272580
(I'm afraid not - due to a mixture of her own guilt and just how tumultuous Dorians mind has been as of late as he's been working through things. It's made it much harder for the Dream Daughters to communicate, doubly so for newcomers.)

>>5272581
Oh no, now I'm worried for Dorian. I was already thinking that we've been neglecting him a bit and should talk to him more, now I really want to. Okay, Dorian, you've moved a few steps up on the list of priorities.

>>5272575
>>5272577
At the very least we should mention the fact that we've got two other daughters. the fact that Masquerade's in the same headspace as Carmen means that Carmen could easily visit Masquerade.

>>5272580
>>5272581
Well, we do have the Silver key, so traversing Dorian's headspace should make things easier despite the internal brooding and angst our gothic friend has been of late.

>>5272512
>Ask Carmen something else that’s occurred to you (Write-In):
>Pause as a thought comes to you when you try and think about what Carmen says...
>"Hang on...There were five of you that my family ate who you're now sharing headspace with...There's Zue and Sval are in my headspace, Duplicitous Doppel's in my daughter's headspace, You're in Dorian's headspace...That's four. Isn't there another one in the same headspace as Dorian's? Masquerade?
>Whip out the Silver key.
>Aid Carmen in searching for her other party member albeit briefly, if only to help Carmen reunite with another one of her family members.

>>5272595
>>5272592
Well we're in Dorian's headspace at the moment, and masquerade's in the same space as Carmen, so why not take a romp through Dorian's space while looking for Masquerade while keeping an eye on what sort of subconscious problems our painting friend has been trying to work through as of late? We know he's got temperament issues and a loathing against his dad, not to mention he's somewhat disgusted that he's taking after his father to a degree. But there's also the matter of his chivalry and his introspection and doubt as to whether or not he's being a good girlfriend to Julia.

>>5272598
Well, it seems a bit rude to go intentionally poking in someone's head like that, without their permission. I guess it would be okay if we happened to get some context cues along the way, though, that's just us being observant of something Dorian consented to us seeing. So let's not go off the path, but just look at what we can see from it.

And yeah, I think Dorian's family is probably on his mind, given that this is the stately Gardner manor. At a guess, I'd say there's probably some guilt about his mother and sister weighing on him, making him question if he can be properly supportive for others if he wasn't able to be there for them when his father was being so awful. I might be wrong, but that just seems to fit how they were important enough to him to shape his Core but never get brought up by him.

>>5272606
>And yeah, I think Dorian's family is probably on his mind, given that this is the stately Gardner manor. At a guess, I'd say there's probably some guilt about his mother and sister weighing on him, making him question if he can be properly supportive for others if he wasn't able to be there for them when his father was being so awful. I might be wrong, but that just seems to fit how they were important enough to him to shape his Core but never get brought up by him.

Oh, you're right on that. Didn't Ringo say that Dorian and Julia wanted to start a family of their own in a sense?

>>5272612
Yeah, though I think that's Ringo being a bit premature. They've known each other for a couple months, Ringo, give them some time.

>>5272616
a reminder that Ringo sees time non-linearly. so when a 5D Doggo says that they wish to start their family, then that means said 5D doggo has implied on some dimensional level, time-skipped to the part where the two have started a family. How successful it is is up to debate. But Shu doesn't know that.
Anyways, any thoughts on my idea to use the key to help Carmen reunite with one of her family members in Dorian's dreamscape?

>>5272625
True. Ringo has seen her own death, in that light a lot of things probably seem like they're going to happen soon.

And using the Key to help bridge to the missing member of Carmen's family seems sensible to me. Though maybe we should ask Dorian if he's okay with it, first. Just in case there are psychological effects to stabilizing his dreamscape. Just a quick "hey, your Dream Daughters are having some trouble navigating your mind, is it okay if I try to make a path with the Silver Key?" before doing it.

On my way to work. Hope work goes well on your end bhop.

>>5272673
(Thank you so much, and I hope your shift goes well!)

File: Specters of His Past.jpg (464 KB, 1280x1399)

464 KB JPG

>>5272512

You appreciate Carmen’s willingness to help, especially after everything that’s happened…but as you reflect on recent events, an errant thought comes to the fore.

"Hang on...There were five of you that we were able to save.” You announce, rattling them off one by one as Carmen’s scarlet eyes go wide with shock. “Zuè and Sval are in my headspace, while Duplicitous Doppel's user is in my daughter's. You're in Dorian's head, so that makes four, but I could’ve sworn there was another one here. Malleable Masquerade’s holder, I think?”

“Chloe made it?!” Carmen demands breathlessly, her former decorum discarded as she leans towards you, fingers digging into her chair with a white-knuckled grip. “Where? Do you know where she is?”

“No…” You admit, rising from your chair as you draw the Silver Key from your pocket. “…but I can find out. Dorian, are you able to hear me down here?”

“Loud and clear, Miss Shu.” Comes his reply, his warm voice carried by a gentle breeze that wafts over the porch. “Need some help?”

“Permission, actually, but only if you’re willing to grant it.” You explain to his disembodied voice. “You’ve got two Dream Daughters in you that know each other, but they haven’t been able to make contact for some reason…would you mind if I use the Silver Key to try and connect them?”

A pause.

“By all means.” The young man finally relents, but you know him well enough to hear the forced smile his words are filtered through. “But proceed with all due caution, my friend.”

“Thank you, Dorian.” And then, extending a hand to Carmen; “Shall we?”

Her cold fingers find yours, the Silver Key pulsing in your other hand as the door to Dorian’s family estate swings open, bidding you entry to its familiar and gloomy halls. You trace the same path you took the first time you explored these forbidding corridors, looping around the right side of the house towards the dining room, the structure’s ornate filigree and exquisitely carpeted floors only serving to deepen the shadows that lay claim to every surface. The paintings that filled the house in the waking world’s past are absent, replaced only by an empty silence that’s promptly shattered by a voice that forces your stomach into knots.

The entire building seems to shake under the hateful roar of a distant giant, the bone-shaking vibrations of thunderous footfalls from the floor above you forcing both you and Carmen to steady yourselves on the too-long dining table, as though you were both aboard a violently pitching ship.

It’s then that something sinks its teeth into your ankle.

(Continued)

>>5272769

You leap back from the offender’s jaws, your joint dully throbbing as a hideously abstract form struggles to take shape from the shadows. It crawls out from beneath the table as you and Carmen both ready yourselves for combat, and the ever-growing monstrosity’s skin sloughs off and back into itself with nauseating speed, the process only hastening as its bulbous form expands to fill the entire dining room.

You and Carmen take another step back and into the moonlight that streams in from the window, and a tremor wracks the thing’s bloated body, its mismatched eyes going wide with shock.

“Mom?!” It yelps with the voice of a child.

“Chloe!?” The woman beside you exclaims, and with that the creature’s form suddenly and violently compresses into the form of a girl around Nerada’s age, the lingering imprint of her paper tiger’s distorted features lingering on the girl’s child-like proportions. Carmen drops to her knees, the knives swimming over her form shifting to her back just before the brown-haired little girl collides into her mother, their arms thrown wide.

“I thought I’d lost you.” Carmen says, voice barely holding together as she clings to the girl in her arms. “Where have you been? Are you hiding from that thing upstairs?”

“I’ve been here! I followed the rules, like you said!” The little girl proudly declares, her face contorting into a picture-perfect likeness of her mother’s as she recites; “One, never pick a fight you can’t win! Two, if I get lost, don’t wander off!”

Carmen, for her part, is absolutely beaming with pride.

“And three! If I find someone like me, stick by ‘em!” Her little one concludes, prompting a furrow in Carmen’s severe brow.

“Who are you protecting?” Carmen asks, with a shadow of movement underneath the dining room table serving as her answer. For all Chloe’s posturing, she did an admirable job—it’s only now that you notice the willowy young girl curled up in the dark, knees clutched tight to her chest.

“I found her running for cover when the mean man and the scary boy started fighting again.” Chloe explains, cocking her head to one side and aiming her ear at the ceiling. “I think they’ve stopped, so it’s okay to come out, if you wanna! Come meet my mom!”

The wispy, ethereal form of a young girl hesitantly crawls out from her hiding place, and when the echo of Dorian’s little sister stands up the rumbling starts again, in earnest…but this time, there’s another voice that rises to oppose it.

A high, violent howl from somewhere upstairs that cuts through the thunder.

A blood-curdling screech issued from something lost to rage and savagery.

>>You’ve done what you’ve come here to do—return to the waking world, now that Carmen and Chloe have reunited.

>>Meet with the fifth and final of the new Dream Daughters.

>>Offer to help Dorian with…whatever it is he’s going through.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Voting shall remain open for the next eight hours, with posting to resume tomorrow morning at 10AM, Eastern time. I wish you all a restful evening, and have a great night!)

>>5272773
So the house echoes with the yells of Dorian and his father fighting. That's spooky. I want to offer to help him, but not right here and now, where these other people can observe. Even if, as Dream Daughters, they're kind of always here. This is a conversation to have in private, and something to start as a conversation instead of as psychic therapy. Never jump right into battling someone's inner demons.

>>Write-In
>Lead Carmen and Chloe away from the darker parts of Dorian's mind, see if we can find our way to Ruth's deli or Vultha's library. Bring the echo of Dorian's sister (I think she's named Estelle?) along if she can leave, but as a setpiece for this psychodrama she probably can't.
>Afterward, go on to Amara's head to meet with the last of the new arrivals, but also resolve to speak with Dorian once we're back in the flesh.

>>5272779
Thanks for running, BHOP.

>>5272860
>Never jump right into battling someone's inner demons.
back from work and mind offering me a reason as to why that sort of logic? I mean I kinda get it, but an explanation would be nice.

>>5273019
Well, this is a symbolic representation of Dorian's issues, right? And any symbol is going to be subject to our own interpretation of it. So what we think is obvious and intuitive as a way to fix his problems might not actually be. Working on something like this definitely merits his own input. It's his mind, he might not be able to fix the problems himself, but he does know them best because he's experienced them. It's important to get Dorian's own viewpoint on this, otherwise we could cause more harm than good. Plus, it's just an issue of consideration and respect for him, that we're not acting like we know better than him and so can act unilaterally. He's our friend, we shouldn't go rummaging through his brain cavalierly.

>>5273034
Lots of good points. We could and rather should also let him know when there aren't any more possible collateral effects if we have the Mansion vacate itself of unnecessary components so he could be of sound mind. I do like the idea of escorting Dorian's sister, but don't forget about the echo of his mother too.

>>5273037
Yeah. And of course, it's entirely possible that just regular conversation can resolve this problem, not everything requires psychic dungeon crawling as a solution. Just us being open and willing to listen to his worries and offer advice could do a lot of good.

>>5273039
It does bring to mind a question though:
If Dorian's father didn't die from illness and was instead nommed into the Cord, what would he think of his daughter-turned-son and his journey so far while watching from the "Closed Cord Television"?

>>5273043
Well, we don't know a ton about Gardner the Elder, but given what we do, probably he'd be very critical of Dorian. Like considering him a failure for not being the leader of the party, or disapproving of Dorian getting in a relationship with that weird artist girl with her bizarre fashion (to be fair, I think most people would find Julia's fashion a bit outre, but still, she rules, shut up Papa Gardner). He'd probably approve of Dorian being so good in a fight, though, at least.

>>5272773
>>Meet with the fifth and final of the new Dream Daughters.

File: Echoes of a Broken Home.jpg (387 KB, 1280x1769)

387 KB JPG

>>5272773

“Let’s not linger here.” You say, beckoning for Carmen to follow. The Porcelain Shrike seizes Chloe’s hand, but the young girl refuses to budge.

“I can’t leave her!” The little one protests, pointing at the ethereal specter cringing nearby, with every violent footfall serving to make her curl in on herself, diminishing her very presence.

“Chloe, she’s not-“ Carmen begins before you stride over to Dorian’s sister.

“Hey, are you able to follow us out of here?” You ask, hands on your knees to bring you to level with the spirit’s averted eyes. She barely registers you’re there, and when the footfalls approach the stairwell and the voices intensify, she darts off and through Chloe, hiding behind the couch in the adjoining room. Her, Dorian’s father, and whatever else haunts these halls…

…they’re just going through the motions of a house rotting from within.

“Let’s go, you two.” You say gently, ushering the pair to follow you as you lead the way out of this wretched place. Reaching to close the door, you catch a glimpse of a lean and blood-soaked form darting down the stairs before you snap the thing firmly shut, breathing a sigh of a relief as the palpable tensions and despair of that place release you from their clutches.

“Thank you for this.” Carmen says, her crimson eyes boring into yours even as she clutches Chloe to her off-white robes. “For all of this. I think I’ll take it from here.”

“You’re welcome.” You say with a firm nod, making your way down the steps before turning to look back up at the mother-daughter pair. “You should be able to make contact with the other Dream Daughters that’re in here with a bit of work, and there’s a library made by one of the Daughters adjacent that would make for a good place to chill. Also, I’ll make sure that you’ll be able to contact the other ones in your group soon enough.”

“That’s more than I deserve, Shu.” Carmen says, her cool voice strained like piano wire as her hold on her daughter tightens accordingly.

“That’s not for me to decide.” You shoot back as the little girl leans forward to shout down at you.

“Thanks for finding my Mama!” Chloe waves, and you return the gesture with a knowing wink at Carmen before you depart for the grove of trees, the scene dissolving around you as Dorian and Julia’s concerned faces fill your field of view when your eyes futter open.

“Are y-you okay?” Are the first words out of Julia’s mouth, with Dorian’s consternation plan on his handsome features. You wave off their concerns as you rise unsteadily to your feet, your back-and-forth between the waking and dreaming worlds taking more of a toll than you’d bargained for…

…but you’re not done quite yet.

(Continued)

>>5273589

A few words of reassurance later—while making your own mental note to discuss with Dorian about what demons he’s clearly dueling in his own heart and head— and you’ve left Dorian and Julia to their devices as you find Amara in her room surrounded by five Joyous in a pentagram, their collective eyes closed and their hands joined in a ring with your daughter in the center. Despite the scene looking perfectly normal for your average witch’s coven, your unease is allayed a bit when Amara’s eyes fly open and she fixes you with a smile of accomplishment.

“Got her!” She announces with pride, and you feel your eyebrows shoot up involuntarily.

“Already?!” You say, unable to contain your surprise as your daughter ferociously nods.

“Yep! Found a girl matching everything you said to look out for.” Amara says, patting her clones on the head and whispering ‘good job everybody’ as she stands up with, still bearing her triumphant grin. “She tried to follow the other two girls who escaped, but they were kinda mean, so she’s traveling alone right now. Or she was, ‘til the Joyous found her! Do you want me to bring her here?”

You have to admit that you’re a little taken aback that Amara found her so quickly, and you briefly wonder just how many Joyous she has wandering the Crucible’s expanse before you rein in your mind to more pressing matters. It’s still on your agenda to meet the final member of the bandits whose minds you were able to rescue from oblivion, but you should probably make a call on this here and now.

Amara absent-mindedly scritches at her cat-like ears as she awaits your verdict.

>>Have Amara bring her to the Roost, or at least the Town of Rust nearby—you’d like to have a chat with her before you bring Sam in.

>>Have the Joyous escort both Sam and the girl she’s been looking for to the Town of Rust for a reunion, and let them have some time on their own before you greet the newcomer.

>>Let Sam know immediately, and let her decide what to do next before you proceed with your original plan to meet the fifth and final ‘survivor’ of her rampage.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Voting shall remain open for the next two hours, with posting to resume in three.)

>>5273590
Hmmm....there's some merits to some of these approaches, but I wonder which one would impact Sam in a more positive light?

>>5273590
>Have the Joyous escort both Sam and the girl she’s been looking for to the Town of Rust for a reunion, and let them have some time on their own before you greet the newcomer.

>>5273590
>Write-in: pat Amara's head.
>"Good job sweetie. Mission clear!"
>Offer to carry Amara down to see Sam and her friend after the two have had their reunion. It wouldn't be fair for Amara to miss out on the satisfaction of seeing the results in helping Sam out.

>>5273590
Wow, good job, Amara. That was fast. A distributed hive mind of ninjas is an efficient search tool, even if those ninjas are seven years old.

>>Let Sam know immediately, and let her decide what to do next before you proceed with your original plan to meet the fifth and final ‘survivor’ of her rampage.
>>Write-In
>Though try not to let her talk herself out of this. It's clear that meeting this girl has meaning to her, she shouldn't doubt whether she should do it.
>Also, thank Amara and praise her for her good work.

>>5273682
really brings in mind Carmen's comment on how powerful our family is in comparison to many others when she says "Shu and her family are as gods"

Huh. Are you saying that we should coach her into seeing her face to face?

>>5273688
Yeah, we're pretty OP compared to the average Daughter. We just rarely notice because we're so often fighting those even more OP than us.

And I'm not sure coaching is the exact word, but something like that. I can see Sam losing her nerve and not wanting to approach this girl because she doesn't know how to, and if she does I think we should try to convince her not to listen to the social anxiety. If she really can't do it, then I don't think we should force her, I do ultimately want to give her the choice. But come on, Sam, go talk to your friend.

>>5273590

compiling my votes:
>>5273670
>>5273660

>Let Sam know immediately, and let her decide what to do next before you proceed with your original plan to meet the fifth and final ‘survivor’ of her rampage.
>>Write-In
>Though try not to let her talk herself out of this. It's clear that meeting this girl has meaning to her, she shouldn't doubt whether she should do it.
>If she's still shy, offer to escort her the girl she’s been looking for to the Town of Rust for a safe and danger-free reunion, and let them have some time on their own before you greet the newcomer.
>Offer to carry Amara down to see Sam and her friend after the two have had their reunion. It wouldn't be fair for Amara to miss out on the satisfaction of seeing the results in helping Sam out.

(Finishing the update and I'll be done in a few minutes, everyone.)

File: The Wanderer.jpg (166 KB, 1280x558)

166 KB JPG

>>5273590

With one finger pressed to your Commling yet again, you open a call to Sam’s FuzzBuzz scarf to tell her the news. After a single vibration the line connects, and you’re greeted with a pair of syllables barked into your ear.

“Update?” Sam demands, toeing the line between urgency and her casual dickishness.

“We found her, so how do you want to play this?” You ask, allowing the girl on the other end to mull over the question before she gives you a hesitant response.

“…I just needed to know her name.” She begins, her tone of voice uncharacteristically withdrawn.

“You can ask her yourself, Sam.” You counter, pacing around the ring of Joyous before you. “It’s clear this girl means something to you beyond just that.”

“Goddamnit Shu, I…” She starts to protest before you put a foot down with nothing but a calm, level tone.

“Sam? You were desperate to find this girl for reasons that are important to you. You thought she was dead. She isn’t. You have a chance to do…whatever it is that you wanted, now. So are you really going to stand there and tell me you’re willing to let her slip by again?”

A beat.

“Fine. Fuck it, fine.” Sam finally curses under her breath. “Where is she now?”

“Wherever you want to meet her.” You reply, simply.

“That rust bucket town near where you’ve got your batcave. Is…that cool?”

“I’ll have the Joyous escort her there.” You relent, giving an affirmative nod to Amara as she joins hands with her clones once more. “Want me to give you two the whole time alone, or do you mind if I say ‘hello’ after you’ve had a turn?”

“Sure, it’s whatever. You found her, so you make that call. I won’t be long.” Sam replies, and the line goes dead once more.

She’s…never easy to deal with, but you had at least hoped that doing her a favor would do something to soften her thorny facade. Trying to shake off the bad taste that lingers in your mouth, you turn to your little one, still firmly ensconced in her little ritual.

“Thanks again, sweetie. You did an amazing job.” You smile down at her, taking a knee. “You want to go down and introduce ourselves after she’s done? It’s only fair you meet her in person, since you’re the one that tracked her down.”

“Maybe! But…” Amara trails off, her two-tone gaze holding yours as she tilts her head curiously to one side. “…you look busy. Like there’s something else you need? What is it? I can help!”

…You didn’t think giving up the power to see into people’s minds would leave you looking like an open book, but here you are.

“Yes, sweetie. There is one more thing…think I could pop in and say hello to your newest Dream Daughter for a second?”

Amara beams; “Oh, yeah! Everybody loves her, and I’m sure you will, too!”

A jack, a jump, a dream.

Here you go again.

(Continued)

>>5273788

You can’t help but wince as the void of interstitial dream space is suddenly overwhelmed by the bright blue sky of a cloudless day, it's natural light lancing into your eyeballs. Robbed of sight, the first sensations to take shape are the smell of freshly-cut grass and freshly-cooked hotdogs filling your lungs as the sounds of shouts and cheering dance across the green. Stumbling forward you catch yourself on a wire fence, and as your eyes adjust to the glare it becomes apparent that you’re at the edge of a soccer field with a game well underway.

You recognize one team immediately, with the gaggle of younger girls that made of the Sororitas Amalgam running around the field, inexpertly trying to jockey the ball away from the other team but having a blast, regardless. As for the other players, well…as your eyes dart between their faces, you realize that you’re looking at the singular user of Duplicitous Doppel, split into a number of copies to equal the Sororitas. The athletic teen’s moving so quickly, weaving between the younger children with a professional eye paired with a friendly smirk, her baby-face flecked with sweat that pours down from her head of short-cropped sandy hair. She notices your arrival almost immediately, flashing you a grin and a wink as her steps falter, the calculated slip allowing the dogged children to take control for the ball. The teen scrambles after them with dramatized frustration, falling to her knees in defeat when they score against her, cheering even as they rush to overwhelm their opponent with tackle-hugs.

Reminding you of when Amara spawns her Joyous, you watch as a mass of amorphous flesh claws its way out of the teen’s back with bare-fly formed limbs, hauling itself towards you until another copy finally takes shape by the time it leans on the fence, running a hand through its hair.

“Heya. Shu, right? Gabby.” She greets you, her clipped voice still struggling to drag in the breaths that the rest of her doppelgangers are catching up on. “The alien lady said you’d be making the rounds.”

You follow the tilt of her head to the tops of the nearby bleachers where Cheruem diligently studies the blade, the Hexane’s form impeccably highlighted against the pale blue sky.

“So, did anyone else make it?” Gabby asks, waving to Cheruem before turning back to you. “I know me and the others got caught by surprise, but I figure I can’t be the only one who you picked up?”

“Yeah. Sval and Zuè are in my head, while Dorian’s got Chloe and your boss, Carmen.” You quickly inform her, and Gabby gives you a sharp, satisfied nod.

“Good. Glad some of us got out.” She sighs, with one of her clones gathering the Sororitias for another game. “So, what can I do you for?”

(Continued)

>>5273792

“Well, if you’re willing…I’d like to know a bit more about the people Carmen brokered her deal with.” You say, leaning on the fence, yourself. “I’m not one-hundred-percent sure, but I think whoever dealt with her might’ve tried to break into my home and steal something pretty dangerous.”

“Yeah, that tracks.” Gabby chuckles, leaning back and doing some stretches as she continues. “You’re probably looking for someone on the west coast. Northern Cali, if I’m guessing right. If you want a solid lead, you could try looking for Daughters that haven’t hatched yet. Particularly ones in their early teens, at the very oldest. Most of the girls sent our way had been contacted within minutes of hatching, so someone’s scoping them out and hiring them on the spot.”

“Wh-…how do you know all this?” You ask, and Gabby’s leaning back when she looses a laugh at the sky.

“No offense to Carm, but she’s not the most approachable person in the world. I mean, she looks like a goddamn porcupine half the time, so what’re you gonna do?” She snickers, leaning down to touch her toes as the rest of her squad mirror her motions. “Stick around enough different types and you learn everybody’s got a story, if you’re willing to listen. But yeah, most of ‘em had never even heard of the Skinternet, and they all wore jammers. Whoever’s roping these girls in is a real paranoid type, and none of them had any clue what the real deal was. They were given instructions daily and a place to rest their head—and with the world like it is, that’s all any of them could hope for in of this meaty shitshow.”

“Wait, rest their heads? You mean-“

“Yeah, they’re staying somewhere off-grid, but I couldn’t wrangle out exactly where, and I wasn’t about to try and push my luck in case I got them in trouble.” Gabby sighs, hands planted firmly on her hips.

You’re about to follow up on that when Gina’s voice sounds in your ears, cutting through whatever other thoughts were forming at the fringes of your mind.

{Mother replied} She quickly announces. {Says she’s ready to talk when you have the chance}

[…Okay] You say, letting out a sharp sign in both the waking and dreaming worlds. [How did she sound?]

{Tired…but she said there’s no rush, obviously. She can see you’ve been busy}

[Okay, let her know I won’t keep her waiting long] You fire back, and GG just chuckles.

{…where’s she going to go, Shu?}

When you focus back in on the here and now, you realize Gabby’s staring at you with one eyebrow quizzically raised, awaiting your impending reply.

>>Bid Gabby goodbye for now, and connect to Mother via Gina’s Neuromancy.

>>Ask Gabby something else before you return to reality to have a chat.

>>Mother can wait a little longer—you’d like to go down with Amara and see Sam’s friend before you converse with the Crucible’s former ‘winner’.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Voting shall remain open for the next three hours, with posting to resume in four. I do hope your day is going well, one and all!)

>>5273795
>Mother can wait a little longer—you’d like to go down with Amara and see Sam’s friend before you converse with the Crucible’s former ‘winner’.

Oh Sam. At least you're trying to be a better person. You asked for help and you got the help you wanted.

As for our West Coast benefactor...
>Wealthy in liquidity
>works through proxy and child labor by handing them simple tasks by delivering messages in exchange for food and shelter from the alien world.
>Provides them a spot to rest their heads.
>Always hires "newborns" who are children or early teens at the most.
There's something personal yet impersonal about how she handles things. like a Large-scale orphanage. But even more telling and concerning is the fact that she tries to ensure that there's no skinternet connection. Running a closed circle eh?

We've got a better picture of our mystery woman. But now that brings to mind a question about her motive. Why hire the Hassans, the Breakers, and Carmen's group? Carmen's group I can somewhat understand, and the Hassans and Breakers are for originally nabbing the Fragment with the rumors it generated upon our discovery. But the fact that it was discovered upon us unearthing it means we have sets of eyes other than Orwell's, West Prime's, and Mara's spying on us.

It's one thing to run a large network of proxy messengers, it's another to maintain it routinely to ensure the network stays intact.

There's also the matter of keeping the kids informed about the strange and dangerous new world which they inhabit while keeping them in the complete dark to the greater scope of current events.

Even more concerning are how the Breakers Dozen got eviscerated. While the surgical style of evisceration could be easily attributed to the West Proxy network, it could also mean that there's another faction out at play looking to interfere, curry favors, and attract attention. Then there's the proxy sorority themselves. After their emancipation from West Prime, they've been strangely quiet in terms of overt activity. Given their preference to Solitude from what we've seen, them coordinating with each other to eviscerate the Breakers seems strange.

Lots of questions.

>>5273795
>>Write-In
>"Sorry, I got a call from back outside. I should leave soon, but before I go: You're doing alright? It looks like you're getting along well with the rest of Amara's occupants, but might as well ask."
>Then
>>Bid Gabby goodbye for now, and connect to Mother via Gina’s Neuromancy.

>>5273815
I think the tip Gabby gave us is a good direction to look in. She said to talk to Daughters that have hatched recently, since that's who's getting recruited. Let's ask Hai, the Hassan girl we just sent to Laoc. Someone might contact her, and even if they don't, learning how the Hassan found out about her could still give us some idea into how people find newly-hatched Daughters.

>>5273830
>I think the tip Gabby gave us is a good direction to look in. She said to talk to Daughters that have hatched recently, since that's who's getting recruited. Let's ask Hai, the Hassan girl we just sent to Laoc. Someone might contact her, and even if they don't, learning how the Hassan found out about her could still give us some idea into how people find newly-hatched Daughters.
Didn't we get a hint of that sort of operation happening with the flying fairy that Leviathan's pet turtle island was attacking?

Although I'd like to point out as a reminder that even if we do manage to suppress or hamper the smuggling operation in one branch, that only results in the consequences of increased hunger and cannibalism among humanity. Amalgams are running in short supply and with the Crucible's world system as is (given Ozma's choice to increase the rate hunger attrition), people will have to keep eating to stay fed and find different sources. And even if we do stop the Crucible system after climbing the cord. the powersets that we wield require a tremendous amount of energy for upkeep when reality sets in.

>>5273837
True, though I'm interested less in solving the Hunger than dealing with whatever potential threat this person presents.

If we did want to end the Hunger, though, we should see if we can get our swarmling cap removed to the point we can feed everyone on Thousand's Matron swarmlings. Those stave off the Hunger. Nerada said the Hive Halo removes the swarmling cap, I'd like to get a copy for ourselves. I really want to ask her to do a trade before she leaves us, give her a level of Calcite Halo in exchange for a level of Hive Halo.

>>5273855
>I really want to ask her to do a trade before she leaves us, give her a level of Calcite Halo in exchange for a level of Hive Halo.
Fair, but that also proves her cynical point of "Everyone wants something from another." And so far we've been proving her wrong on most accounts. And it's also clear that she's been enjoying her time here with Amara despite her saying otherwise.

>>5273855
But there's Also a long term problem in this solution. Getting the hive halo and removing the cap limit for Thousand's Matron to work as a long term solution would effectively cement Shu as a keystone to post-crucible civilization when it comes to keep the world fed. Even if Shu takes up the responsibility of feeding the world, she still wants to live a relatively normal "human" life, and that includes dying of old age. If she goes, then the "solution" to the hunger system via Thousand Matron will be nothing more than a short-term fix.

>>5273864
Maybe. That's why I haven't asked her yet. But I think it's possible to frame a trade as something non-exploitative, so long as we can make it clear it's something in addition to our friendship, not something the friendship is built on. We can do a transaction without the relationship being transactional, so to speak. We just have to establish some trust outside the bounds of commerce, first.

>>5273867
Oh, certainly, it's not a long-term solution. Ultimately, we'll need to remove the Hunger entirely, which should be possible from what we know about the reboot procedures. But in the meantime, being able to manufacture swarmling meat could save a lot of people from the Hunger. Especially if we can get the swarmlings to reproduce on their own so Shu doesn't have to pump out bugs directly. Maybe a splice with a level of Joyous Many given to us by Amara? Use the crow swarmling skill we got from Magpie, so we don't have to give up Trypophilic Hive making the hybrid. Feed everyone Shu-crows.

>>5273795
You know what, gonna change my vote>>5273830 to

>>Mother can wait a little longer—you’d like to go down with Amara and see Sam’s friend before you converse with the Crucible’s former ‘winner’.

Just so we don't need to resolve any ties. I'm fine with meeting mantis girl first before we talk to Ozmas, though I don't particularly want to sit in on her conversation with Sam. That's something they should have privacy for.


Oh, but still ask Gabby if she needs anything, before we leave. That part I want to keep.

Off to work early. have a nice day on your end. Although tomorrow will bring out my very cranky side.

91 degrees high? fuck that.

>>5273964
Have a nice day, anon.

And ouch, 91 degrees, you have my sweat glands' sympathy.

>>5273964
(It's been getting insanely hot here, too. Heat is one thing I cannot tolerate. I moved north to escape that garbage and it's seen fit to follow me.)

(In any case, stay cool and I hope you have a good shift!)

File: Sam, Spiegelbild Form.jpg (237 KB, 743x1139)

237 KB JPG

>>5273795

“Sorry, I got a call from back outside.” You say apologetically, leaning away from the fence as you speak. “I should leave soon, but before I go; are you doing alright? It looks like you’re getting along well with the rest of Amara’s occupants, but I thought I’d ask.”

“Well aren’t you just as sweet as they say?” Gabby grins, and you only have a split-second to wonder who ‘they’ are before she continues. “But yeah, I’m getting on just fine. Amara’s lucky to have good people inside and out.”

“I’m glad you’re one of them, Gabby.” You smile, and with that she gives you another wink and smile before turning on her heel to challenge the Sororitas to another round as the dream gives way to reality once more. Taking Amara by the hand, you leave the Dragon’s Roost to see what’s become of your other half’s meeting.

The two of you find Sam at the edge of the City of Rust, leaning against one of the more stable shacks as she regards a blonde girl talking animatedly with a rather alarming number of hand gestures to accentuate nearly every word. The Joyous that escorted the pair are currently playing a game of tag along the rooftops of the neighboring structures, darting along the eaves with practiced grace and their ever-present stoicism. The bubbly blonde suddenly squeaks when she feels her ears shift into a cat’s trademark triangles, and she’s whirling around to find the source of her empathetic mutation before finally noticing your arrival.

“Ah, you’re adorable!” Are the first words out of her mouth as she dashes forward dropping to her knees and skidding the rest of the way towards Amara who—as though rehearsed—does a twirl-and-curtsy before breaking out in a wide grin from the praise.

“She looks the same as her clones.” Sam drolly points out as the blond blows her a raspberry.

“Well, *yeah*, but that doesn’t make the real deal any less special!” She fires back dusting off her knees and snapping up to greet you. Her clothes have seen better days, with her yellow, faded shirt wearing almost immodestly thin, while her shorts are faring little better…not that she seems to mind, as she throws her arms wide for a hug. “Hey, thanks for tracking me down!”

“I understand you’ve had quite a time of things.” You say, giving her a quick hug before pulling back, noting with a glance that Sam hasn’t moved from her sulky position. “I’m Shu, and you are-?”

“Sam!”

You blink once.

Then twice.

…no fucking way.

You have to bite down pretty hard on your tongue to keep from laughing, with the cyborg behind her giving you a sharp shake of her head to dispel the notion even further.

“It’s crazy, right?!” Human Sam laughs, skipping back over to Cyborg Sam. “Sam, squared! Though I usually went by Samantha to my friends, so if it’s easier, just call me that!”

You happily oblige.

(Continued)

>>5274028

“So, Samantha…” You say, every syllable of her name deliberate. “…I heard you made a break for freedom shortly before I found you. Are you doing alright?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m fine! Us Unnatural Predators pack the regen from what I hear, so I’m right as rain!” She says, throwing her arms wide again and pausing to scratch at the patches of fur that’ve sprouted along her shoulders.

“You’re taking all…this…” You say, gesturing at the ambient fleshscape you’re standing on; “…fairly well, I have to say. How long have you been awake?”

“Oh, uh…a couple days, I guess? It’s been a crazy blur, but you just gotta keep on keepin’ on!” She smiles. “No time for feelies while you’re doin’ wheelies, as my brother used to say!”

Getting the distinct impression Samantha and Holly would get along famously, and you try to ignore the fact that Sam made a noise suspiciously like a laugh as you continue. “Glad to hear it. So, where are you headed from here?”

“Uh…I kind of thought that was your thing?” She stumbles, glancing between you and Sam. “Finding places where people belong. That’s what she said—that you find people out in the wild and help them get to settlements and junk. Isn’t that how you found us?”

Goddamnit, Sam…would it kill her to tell the truth for once?

You shoot her a neutral glance before fixing Samantha with a smile. “I suppose you could say that, yes. You kind of have your pick of the litter, limited as it is…though I’d have to recommend Laoc for sheer coziness.”

“I trust your judgement, Ma’am!” Samantha replies with a grin, at once making you feel wholly appreciated and a hundred years old.

“What about you?” You ask, turning to Sam and trying to keep your voice free of condemnation.

“What about me?” Sam fires back, arms folded until the blonde rounds on her cyborg friend.

“Oh! Have you been? You could show me around!” She grins, leaving Sam faltering, daring to look to you for some sort of ‘out’. In the face of your silence, she says instead-

“Crowds aren’t my thing. Sorry.”

Samantha’s face falls for a half-second before her smile redoubles again. “That’s totally fine! It was just really nice to see you again! *Loving* the cyberpunk thing you’ve got going on!”

Sam makes a non-committal sound, while the girl that shares her name and precisely none of her personality turns to you expectantly, placing her fate in your hands with a smile.

>>Have the Joyous escort Samantha to Laoc, and as for Sam…you’d like a word with her before she stalks off.

>>Offer to have Samantha warped close to the Ikean Fortress. It’s a place of unbridled optimism, and you have a hunch that she’ll fit right in.

>>Pointedly ask Sam to show the girl around Laoc—having Sam spend more time around this particular ray of sunshine sounds like a fitting plan.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Voting shall remain open for the next eight hours, with posting to resume tomorrow morning at 9:00AM, Eastern time due to a conference call I’ll be on at 10. I wish you all a very pleasant evening, and a good night’s sleep when you tuck in.)

>>5274030
>Oh, uh…a couple days, I guess?
But you met Sam back before Laoc, even. Has it really only been a couple of days? No, no, that's impossible. Julia had enough time to settle into a routine helping Laoc rebuild. It has to have been a week or two, at least. Samantha must just have some time fugue, right? Damn it, now I"m going to get paranoid.

Right, so Sam doesn't want to reveal her identity to Samantha yet, and I think that's something to respect. It's her choice. But Sam should at least take the opportunity to hang out with her and talk with a friend. Maybe we should make Samantha a FuzzBuzz, too, so they can call each other. Make a whole FuzzBuzz-based chat client, even, for all the people who don't have access to Skintalking.

>>5274031
Thanks for running, BHOP.

>>5274099
(It's time fugue, since she's actively trying to block out as much of the bad as humanly possible. Girl's been through hell.)

>>5274105
Ah, poor girl. Yeah, let's send her someplace nice, then. I'm thinking the Fortress, the normality there would do her some good. And maybe we could introduce her to Tailor as a "she tends to go back and forth between Laoc and the Fortress, so if you decide you'd rather go to Laoc she could help you get there" thing, and give Sam an excuse to happen to meet Samantha again? That could work. And give her a FuzzBuzz with communications privileges to call Sam, too. Just so they can check in on each other.

I'm blanking on how to phrase it, though. I'm trying to write it but am not liking what I put out. I'll try again after I've eaten dinner and my blood sugar is more normalized. The other voters should be back then, too.

>>5274139
(Hey, get some good food, and if you or anyone else have any questions, then I'll be happy to address them after I finish making my own dinner.)

>>5274030
>>Write-In
>Spawn a FuzzBuzz for Samantha. Give it a bunch of different decorative features, to reflect her own chimerism. Some moth fluff and wings, a glowing thorax, a rhinoceros beetle horn, etc.
>"I think you'd like it at the Ikean Fortress. It's nice there, this little hideaway of normality. It was actually pretty close to where we found you, but it moved recently. Might still be moving when you get there, actually, try not to freak out if you see a giant monster carrying it on his back. Behemoth's actually kind of sweet when he's not angry."
>"But it's a good place. A bit calmer and less crowded than Laoc is, should be a good spot to rest up. Though if you decide you'd like to give Laoc a shot, look up a lady named Tinker Tailor. She cycles between the Fortress and Laoc semi-regularly, I don't know what she does in between visiting them but she should be able to help you make the trip."
>Hand her the ChimeraBuzz
>"Here, this is for you. It's not just an adorable fuzz ball, it's also a communicator. Sam's got one, too. She's going to be real mad at me for telling you this, but she was worried for you. Stay in touch with her, okay?"

Does that work? Am I overthinking this? I want to tell her to stay in touch with Sam, but I'm worried that it will get Sam upset because we're meddling. This is the best I got for now, I welcome critique.

>>5274028
>>5274030
oh. my.
>Cyborg Sam
>Chimera Sam
What a fucking twist.

Oh dear. the sheer naming scheme between if Shu, Cyborg Sam, and Chimera Sam ever work together in any instance. "The Clone, The Chimera, and the Cyborg." would sound something straight out of a sci-fi spaghetti western.

>>5274105
>>5274145
Oh Cyborg Sam...I get that your name's got a stigma given your history with us and what the public knows of Shu and our history with you, but please try to be honest with yourself? We didn't give you the cyborg body just so you can ghost a girl.

>>5274253
Do you think we should still have Cyborg Sam tag along with Chimera Sam for that matter?

I kinda get that you're giving Cyborg Sam an out by not having Sam tag along, so what's your reason for that?
>making Sam upset because we're meddling.

ah. Understandable.

Then how are we gonna get to an understanding between us and Cyborg Sam then? I know we're still somewhat sour given Sam's attitude, And given how abrasive and defensive Sam gets.

At least call her out on starting a chain of lies again, because that shit is exactly the path that got her beaned in the head with a lava lamp.

>>5274322
I want Sam to at least have a way of talking to Samantha, since she seems to care about her. Sam doesn't have to be completely honest and upfront yet if she doesn't want to, I'm fine if she's hesitant about that, but I think her overall mood will be better if she has someone she can talk to. And she's never going to get to the point where she can be honest with people if she never talks to people to begin with. So I do want to nudge her into hanging out with Samantha, or just chatting with her over the phone, but the trick is how hard we can push without her pushing back out of resentment.

>>5274329
Fair, but the issue remains is that Sam's already started a chain of lies with Chimera Sam in terms of lying about her origin story, which is understandable given the history already known to the public. The problem I fear is whether or not the chain of lies will result in Cyborg Sam stringing Chimera Sam along up to a point where things blow up and Cyborg Sam gets Lava-lamp'd again due to the lies she's built up. That and the public opinion that's currently resentful of Sam for her existence given Sam's last encounter with the Shu fanbase.

>>5274335
Yeah, I can see that. I'm kind of hoping that Samantha being at the Fortress with its Skinternet lab would eventually lead to her discovering it just from Googling her new friend, but that's too uncontrolled and could end poorly. So what's a good way to encourage Sam to be honest with her new friend without getting her pushing back too hard against the idea?

>>5274338
Technically a one-on-one talk with Sam would work best after sending Chimera Sam on her way where we help her talk about her hang-ups. And given that somehow despite Sam being such a blunt instrument with low Wis and Int, she's somehow able to lie her way out with her insane charisma. We can give Cyborg Sam a temporary "out", but in exchange we're gonna have to get serious in terms of having her talk about her hang-ups and chronic lies.


>So what's a good way to encourage Sam to be honest with her new friend without getting her pushing back too hard against the idea?
Not only do we have to encourage Sam to be honest, we have to make it clear that we're trying to help her become a better person, which is where Bhop's other two options come into play, having Cyborg tag along with Chimera. The idea of giving Chimera Sam a Fuzzbuzz that doubles as a phone so Cyborg-Sam could maintain long-distance contact with Chimera Sam is a neat idea to help Sam keep contact.
We can't really force Cyborg Sam. I get that ultimately it's her choice on whether or not to oblige our offer. I do like the idea that the Ikean Fortress would be a better place for Cyborg to be more comfortable given that it's less crowded. But we'll have to warn Cyborg about the dangers of not being honest, sooner or later. Try to empathize with Sam about being gun-shy with Chimera Sam and the whole past history and the Lava Lamp scenario.

Talking about painful pasts takes a lot of willpower.

Alternatively, we could try and guilt-trip Cyborg Sam into exploring the Ikean Fortress with Chimera Sam. and build upon Sam's "cover story", offering to help get the two more comfy.


I'll be honest there are no easy way out when it comes to Sam. Earning trust is hard, losing it is easy, regaining that lost trust? even harder, but if Sam's swearing to be a better person than before, she's gonna have to put in effort and grind her way through this thick and thin.

This will be a very awkward transition and stage for all three characters involved. I'll try to think of alternative solutions that would help Cyborg Sam gather courage and honesty.

>>5274145
>Chimera Sam
>Cyborg Sam

It's a mouthful typing the two out.

How about
Chi (pronounced 'ky' for Chimera)
and Sci (for Cyborg)? for a more distinguished pronoun?

>>5274338
any ideas from you in the meantime? I'm still trying to come up with something to help Sam gather courage for honesty.

>>5274253
True. Sam does need to pull off that bandage eventually, it's only going to be worse the longer she avoids it. And I like the idea of talking to her after we send Samantha off, and sort of repeating what you just said. Okay, give me a bit, I'll hack this together.

>>5274354
I'm fine with just Sam and Samantha. It's a bit much to type out the longer name, but it works alright for me. But Chi and Sci do make good shorthand nicknames.

Okay, how does this look? Not a huge change, but some:

>>Write-In
>Spawn a FuzzBuzz for Samantha. Give it a bunch of different decorative features, to reflect her own chimerism. Some moth fluff and wings, a glowing thorax, a rhinoceros beetle horn, etc.
>"I think you'd like it at the Ikean Fortress. It's nice there, this little hideaway of normality. It was actually pretty close to where we found you, but it moved recently. Might still be moving when you get there, try not to freak out if you see a giant monster carrying it on his back. Behemoth's actually kind of sweet when he's not angry."
>"But it's a good place. A bit calmer and less crowded than Laoc is, should be a good spot to rest up. Though if you decide you'd like to give Laoc a shot, look up a lady named Tinker Tailor. She cycles between the Fortress and Laoc semi-regularly, I don't know what she does in between visiting them but she should be able to help you make the trip if you can catch her."
>Hand her the ChimeraBuzz
>"Here, this is for you. It's not just an adorable fuzz ball, it's also a communicator. Sam's got one, too, by the way. She doesn't want to admit it, but she was worried for you. Next time you want to get in touch, you can just call instead of needing an army of ninja catgirls to hunt you down."

>After we've sent Samantha on her way, accompanied by a Joyous escort, talk to Sam.
>"Hey, so I know I'm already overreaching a bit with this, and you probably don't want to hear my advice, but you should keep in contact with her. It's pretty obvious you want to be friends, most people wouldn't slaughter a bandit group over someone they don't care about. I understand if after...everything, there's a lot of uncomfortable thoughts tied up in that idea. But I do think it will do you some good to have a friend you can talk with. SI want you to be happy, Sam. I'm sorry if I ever game the impression I don't, I was in a bad headspace and I'm trying to be better. You deserve to have some people you can get along with."
>"Also, and I promise this is the last bit of meddling I'm going to say, you should consider telling her about how our stories are connected. Maybe you can't trust her yet, but someday. I think it'll be better than her finding out on her own and thinking you've been lying to her."
>Just let that percolate for a bit, then ask Sam where she's planning on heading next. Assuming she wants to tell us, of course, no pressure.

>>5274366
Sorry, was typing some stuff up. How's it look?

>>5274372
Looks good.

Linking the post >>5274372 to >>5274030

While adding a proposal amendment:
>"The truth of how our stories are connected and our past will be out for Samantha to find outone way or another. Whether that truth comes out on your terms or not, only you have that ability to make the call."
>"And in that, I believe that you'll be able to make the right call."
>"You've gotten this far for a friend like her, what's another small step?"

>>5274030
Oh, yeah. Supporting>>5274422

File: FuzzBuzz Diplomacy.jpg (157 KB, 910x1024)

157 KB JPG

>>5274030

You take a breath, another life in your hands. You thought it’d have gotten easier by now.

It never does, but you smile anyway.

Keep smiling.

Your hive itches as you take part, yet again, in a tradition you feel honor-bound to continue. A small swarmling wriggles forth from your shoulder plates, crawling down your arm and to your cupped palms, and Samantha squeals with delight as you offer her a custom-spawned Chimera-Buzz.

She takes it with all the care due a newborn, marveling at its marvelous mess of features; a luminous thorax, the proud horn of a rhinoceros beetle, discreetly folded mantis claws…every degree of inspection reveals a unique feature, and it takes you clearing your throat to snap the girl out of her awed stupor.

"I actually think you'd like it at the Ikean Fortress.” You say with finality, your lungs aching a bit as you draw in a much-needed breath. “It's nice there, this little hideaway of normality. It was actually pretty close to where we found you, but it moved recently. Might still be moving when you get there, actually, try not to freak out if you see a giant monster carrying it on his back. Behemoth's actually kind of sweet when he's not angry."

“Wh-...is he a Daughter too, or-?” Samantha stammers before Amara tugs on the hem of what remains of her tattered shirt, and you’re amazed the thing holds together in the face of your daughter’s enthusiasm.

“Rath and Bear-hemoth went there, so you’re definitely gonna see ‘em!” You little one beams. “They’re super cool!”

Rath.

Rath took Behemoth to the Ikean Fortress.

Christ, you almost forgot that was a thing. And that reminds you, you haven’t heard back from Paloma and Magnus about whatever it was they were dealing with there. Is it too early to give them a call, or would that be too much?

“...you were saying?” The blonde girl prompts, and you realize you’d zoned out for a second there.

"Yeah…anyway, it's a good place. A bit calmer and less crowded than Laoc is, should be a good spot to rest up. Though if you decide you'd like to give Laoc a shot, look up a lady named Tinker Tailor. She cycles between the Fortress and Laoc semi-regularly, I don't know what she does in between visiting them, but she should be able to help you make the trip. And what’s more…"

You reach out and pet the chimera with a tired grin. “This little guy’s not just an adorable fuzzball, he’s also a communicator. Sam's got one, too.” You inform her, and with a glance over your shoulder to make sure Sam’s sulked out of earshot, you confide; “She's going to be real mad at me for telling you this, but she was worried for you. Stay in touch with her, okay?"

(Continued)

>>5274736

“I will.” She replies with a wink, and as she takes a step back Amara trots up to you with purpose writ large on her cherubic features.

“Can I introduce human Sam to the Pyreants? I think she’d really like them!”

You blink, considering the possibilities in an instant.

Fuck, you should probably check in with them. It sounded like everything was going well by what the workers said when they arrived to help you with the whole Behemoth situation, but-

“Ah, maybe later, sweetie?” You say diplomatically, feeling a bead of sweat roll down your neck as you try and let your daughter down gently. “Let’s give Samantha time to settle in to the Ikean Fortress, first.”

Wait. Is it safe there? What if something happened with Paloma and-

No, that’s dumb. She or Rath would’ve reached out to you, either way. It’s safe.

It’s safe.

They’re fine, and you need to focus.

“Amara and her Joyous can escort you to the Waystation closest to the Fortress. You can also reach me through that construct of mine, so don’t be a stranger, okay Samantha?”

“Will do, Shu!” She replies with a salute and, after chuckling at the rhyme, moves to see where Sam’s disappeared to. “Um…I guess I’ll give Sam a call later to check in, but could you tell her it was really nice to see her again? She really saved my hide when we first met, so…well, I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for her. It means a lot.”

You glance over your left shoulder, your Halo-enhanced sight catching the shimmer of distorted air a few meters away that escapes Samantha’s hopeful—and hurt—gaze.

You take another breath, shallow and hot as you turn back to the young Daughter with yet another forced smile that you pray helps her more than hurts you.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’ll tell her…be safe, Samantha. We’ll be in touch.”

Filing away another person you need to check in on, Amara takes Samantha by the hand with all the solemnity of a trained bodyguard…which she may as well be, what with the full detail of Joyous that leap from the rooftops and to their side as Samantha gives another happy little giggle at the sight.

Okay.

Okay, good.

One more thing crossed off the list. What was next? Mother, right? You’ll talk to her, and then you’ll touch base with Charon. Charon needs to know, and then there’s Dorian. You’ll probably need to get him alone, at some point, but should Julia be there? Would he want her there, with everything that’s going on? But Julia deserves to know, too. You’ll need to ask him about that, but you should probably ask Julia if she even wants to be there…what are you saying, of *course* she’ll want to be there, if you asked. If he asked. He needs to ask, actually. It should be his call.

{Babe?}

(Continued)

File: Back Where it Began.jpg (59 KB, 850x499)

59 KB JPG

>>5274738

Rath may be gone, but should you wait for her to come back from the Ikean Fortress before you go westward. It makes sense, since she’s one of your heaviest-hitters, but she should have some bonding time with Behemoth. Maybe Tailor could whip up some new Relics to give your team a bit of extra insurance for the journey? You wouldn’t want to ask without offering something in exchange, though, so what do you have to bargain wi-

{Shu?}

Wait.

No, you need to circle back to Charon—you need to ask about the cult. If something was wrong, would they tell you? Hell, Charon didn’t even realize it was a cult until you brought it up, so if something was wrong, would they even *know*? Maybe you should check on them.

{SHU!}

Gina’s voice comes out of nowhere,the sheer volume of her shout making you jump.

[Jesus, yeah? What’s wrong?]

{I was about to ask you the same…} She says, voice taut. {You were zoning out something fierce, love. What’s the matter?}

[Huh? Nothing’s the matter, I’m fine. Are you doing oka-?]

A hand on your shoulder breaks your focus, something going hot in your chest as you look to your left and find yourself staring at your own reflection, thrown back at you by Sam’s chrome skull.

Your spine prickles at the face that glares back at you.

“Look, whatever you’re gonna say, I don’t wanna hear it.” Sam begins hotly, seizing your arm and spinning you around to face her, and in that moment it’s all you can do to stop from digging in your heels and slamming her face into the dirt here and now with Uzu’s Core.

{Shu?} Gina’s voice filters into your mind as gently as she can manage, but it’s still not enough to hide the clear concern in her tone. {Babe, listen to me, you need to take a brea-}

“What, Sam? What don’t you want to hear?” You demand, heart hammering in your chest.

“Any judgy bullshit, got it? Sure I lied to her, but it’s-” She stops when you hold up a hand, drawing in a trembling breath and every ounce of patience you possess before saying-

“I get it.”

She leans back, confused.

“What?”

“I understand why you kept that from her. It’s messy as all hell, and she’s clearly covering up for a lot. I know I'm already overreaching a bit with this and you probably don't want to hear my advice, but I think you should keep in contact with her." You calmly explain as you try and get your pulse back under control. “It's pretty obvious you want to be friends…most people wouldn't slaughter a bandit group over someone they don't care abou-”

You freeze when Sam’s luminous visor snaps to your gaze, leaving a streak of frigid neon in its wake.

"Go FUCK yourself, you self-righteous cunt."

(Continued)

>>5274739

“I…I’m sorry, I just-” You stammer, raising your sweaty palms to try and de-escalate the situation before it-

“Yeah. You know what? Yeah, you’re totally right. I’m a fuckin' murderer. So why go after that dumb bitch in the first place, huh? Why stain her with all the blood and shit on my hands?" Sam growls, squaring up on you with every inch of her taut, angular frame. “Fuck me, I guess. Fuck me for not wanting her to get caught up with a fucking castaway. You should be happy she won’t have to deal with your fuckin’ dregs.”

Hot palms curl into fists that drop to your sides.

“Hey, you *asked* for this.” You snarl back, your blood boiling over, hive aching with something you’ve been pushing down for what feels like forever. “You came to me, you asked—no, PLEADED—for freedom, and I gave it to you. Are you saying you want something different? Look, just…just tell me what you want, and maybe we can-”

“I don’t want anything from you, okay? You’ve done *more* than enough.” Sam scoffs, turning on her heel and starting to walk away from you when you find yourself shouting;

“What the FUCK is that supposed to mean?” You angrily demand as you stride over to match Sam’s stiff, robotic pace. “What is it that you *want*, Sam?”

“I don’t fucking-!” She starts to yell, voice testing the limits of her speaker before both Samantha and Amara cast a concerned glance your way.

Sam’s voicebox crackles, drawing in a breath she can’t taste as she struggles to steady her frayed nerves. “She’s safe. I know she’s safe. Me sticking around won’t do her any favors. For her, for you, or for me.”

“Look, I don’t…I don’t understand any of this. Help me understand?” You plead, practically begging for some semblance of clarity, some thread you can tug at to unravel this whole thing. “Samantha means *something* to you, I know that much, or else you wouldn’t have been so laser-focused on finding-.”

“She makes me FUCKING sick!”

You recoil as if you’d been slapped. It feels like you have, with the insane amount of hatred that drips from every word Sam’s hurled your way.

“What?!” You blurt out. “B-but I thought you wanted to see-!?”

“I DID, god damn it! I DID, but…but her stupid fucking face, that dumb, DUMB look in her eyes makes me want to hurl, okay?!”

“...I don’t understand ANY of this!” You wail, throwing your arms wide in a plea for some sort of coherent explanation. “You found her, now you hate her? That doesn't make any sense!”

“She’s WEAK!” Sam spits with all the poison and hatred in the world. “She’s a fucking idiot who’s going to be taken advantage of by the first rotten bitch that gets her hands on her, and she’ll fucking DESERVE it!”

(Continued)

File: An End, Or A Beginning.jpg (53 KB, 960x1280)

53 KB JPG

>>5274740

“Wh-...where is any of this coming from?!” You demand, utterly bewildered at the turn this entire interaction’s taken. “She’s a KID, for god’s sake! She woke up in a place where nothing makes sense, and she’s trying to make the best of a situation that she has no precedent for, with people that keep looking at her like she’s supposed to have everything figured out, but she doesn’t, and she-”

“Shu, what the FUCK are you talking about?” Sam sneers, and you find yourself wondering the same thing as you scramble to get your mind back on track.

“Sam, please, I am begging you, here…can we *please* talk about this like-”

“Like what? Like adults? Like *equals*?” Like we’ve got ANYTHING in common at all? Oh, yeah, says the second coming of Mother Theresa over here, solving everyone’s problems like this is one of B’ni’s long-ass RPGs. Got Sims Jesus over here fixing anything that dares to fucking LOOK at her funny. What’s next, you gonna spawn a bunch of fuckin’ edible bees or some shit and solve the Hunger crisis?”

“That’s-!” You falter, and Sam just barks out a peal of harsh laughter as you find yourself considering the logistics before you force yourself to focus. “M-maybe! But none of that’s relevant, I’m just trying to figure out what-”

“What comes next, huh? What’s going to happen to me? Or November?” Sam demands suddenly, and you’re reeling as you try to figure out where Rath’s aunt fits into *any* of this as Sam continues her inexplicable tirade. “She may have some biomass left in her shell, but I ain’t got SHIT. What happens to me when you save the world, huh? You’re so fucking focused on saving everybody, so what happens to me at the end of all this?!”

“Is…is that what this is about? You?!” You take a step back, disgusted. “Always, ALWAYS about YOU! Do you ever think of anything else?!”

“What do you think I was trying to do with HER?!” Sam roars, a finger thrusting in the direction Samantha was led off to. “I was trying to think of someone else’s feelings for ONCE in my stupid fucking-!”

“No, no no no, if you actually cared about that girl you wouldn’t have thrown on an invisibility cloak like a scared little kid. You wouldn’t have…Jesus fucking Christ, you wouldn’t have strolled into a camp and SLAUGHTERED everyone in it! Do you know?! Do you have ANY idea, even the slightest fucking CLUE what I just spent the last hour doing? I was talking to your VICTIMS. I was checking in with the people we were able to salvage from your shitshow, and I had to look a kid and her mom in the eyes and act like everything was okay, when they’d still be alive if you hadn’t flown off the handle! If…if you hadn’t killed EVERYONE there!”

“They...they had it coming.” She says, as cold and as simple as the machinery she chose to be in.

You feel like you’re going to throw up.

(Continued)

>>5274742

“Oh, for fucking-...EVERYONE has it coming, Sam! EVERYONE is shit, but they still deserve a CHANCE! They still deserve a CHOICE!

“And where do those choices end, huh? C’mon, you’re a whole hell of a lot smarter than I’ll ever be, but even I can see that giving everyone a choice is just asking for a world of hurt and pain and fighting and bullshit. So what’re you trying to do exactly, Shu?! What’s your grand fucking plan, huh?!”

You feel like your whole body’s on fire as burning tears roll down your cheeks, blood oozing out from between your fingers from where your nails bore into the palms of your numb, aching hands.

“I am trying my FUCKING best!” You cry through teeth grit so hard your head feels like it’s about to burst open. “Which is a FUCK ton more than you ever did with your miserable life!”

“Why do you feel the compulsive fucking need to baby EVERYTHING around you?! You’re not a god! You’re just a nobody! You didn’t even EXIST before me!”

“I know, I just…I just want the people I love to be okay! That’s IT!” You sob, every syllable coming out ugly and wrong and raw and- “I don’t KNOW what comes next! Everyone keeps looking at me like I know what I’m doing and I DON’T! They’re all depending on me, and I can’t—I don’t know what to do except-!”

“Who asked, huh?” Sam fires back. “WHO asked YOU to save the fucking world?! No-one’s forcing you! No one’s put a gun to your head! It’s you! YOU chose this! You've been in control from the start, so don’t start back-pedaling now!”

“I can’t stop! If I stop going, I’ll-!”

“WHAT?!” Sam screams in your face. “You’ll what, Shu?!”

“Because if I stop, then…I don’t know what happens! Something bad, okay?!”

“Because you’re in control, yeah? Because without you they’re nothing, right?”

“NO! I’m nothing without them! If I lost them, I’d…if I lost them, I’d-”

Your voice cracks halfway through, and when you open your mouth to finish the thought the words won't come. You try to breathe, and there’s concrete where your lungs should be.

You're freezing cold.

You're burning up.

Your mind goes electric, needles running up and down your spine as it dawns on you with horrible, crushing finality.

You’re dying.

You’re going to die.

(YOU ARE NOT IN CONTROL)

File: The Tick of the Clock.jpg (607 KB, 1280x1774)

607 KB JPG

>>5274746

No no no, it can’t end like this. You can’t let it end like this. Amara, Gina, Rath…everyone. They’re depending on you.

You try to scream, but it’s a soundless agony that overtakes your entire body. You’re standing. You’re burning up. You’re on your knees. You failed them. You’re on the ground. It’s all over. It’s a blur, and you’re dying all the while.

Tick.

Tock.

You’re running out of time.

Every second. Every minute.

You’ve failed them. There’s still so much to do. Your vision warps and swims as your lungs scream for air that won’t come. Stick to the plan. You have to live. So they can live. So they can be happy. Stick to the plan.

The plan.

There was no plan.

You’re just winging it.

Would they hate you if they found out?

Maybe they know. Maybe they hate you. You’re letting them down. You’re dying.

Then they die. Amara. Gina. Rath. Dorian Julia Francine November Jackie Ivey NeradaJerahaRosaQuinnAceKeaneTinkerTailorandsosososososomany

It’s all-

“Hey, HEY!”

“Look at me!”

“Fucking LOOK at me, okay!?”

Your eyes struggle to focus, your body reeling as you’re hauled upright to stare at your own miserable reflection.

Sam’s face. Your face.

Both.

Neither.

“Look at me, look at this body.”

You try to gasp out that you don’t understand what she’s trying to do. You can’t think straight.
Your vision’s swimming, you-

“Do what I do, okay?! Don’t close your eyes, just look at my eyes, or visor, or what what-the-fuck-ever! Breathe with me, okay? In! IN!” She orders, the chestplate of her frame rising and falling with every false breath. You feel something crack in your chest, like piano wire about to snap.

“Then out, got it? We’re gonna do this again, as many times as it takes, okay? In…out. Don’t stop!”

You try.

In. Out.

In. Out.

In.

In.

…

There’s a cup of tea in your hands. You don’t know where it came from. Julia? Probably. You sniff, and after you swallow the last remnants of your tears the vague scent of oolong triggers something in your mind.

Julia.

So kind.

So thoughtful.

You channel her more than she’ll ever know.

You’re sitting with your back against one of the countless rusted shacks that make up a town in which you fought simpler battles, staring out at the rolling fields of flaxen hair before you. Roaches? Dogs? They were both at once, you think. Amalgams, when it was just the three of you. Gina, Isabelle, and…

…West was there, too. Fighting alongside you, a lifetime ago.

Movement in the corner of your right eye makes you turn your head, and it’s just about the hardest thing you’ve ever done with how your body feels right now. Sam’s chrome form glistens in the Crucible’s profane light, her shawl…

She’s naked.

You look down to find it’s draped over your knees, and when you look to the left with tremendous effort, you see them.

The ones who make it all worth it.

(Continued)

>>5274747

Gina and Julia are at the front of the group, rage and concern burning equally bright in the girls’ eyes. Dorian’s behind and between them, with November further back, one hand on the Geschoss’-

…

…really?

The tank, November?

Regardless, they’re at the ready, a hair’s-breadth away from tearing Sam’s prison of freedom to pieces. When you meet their eyes, they move towards you.

With a meager wave of your hand, you hold them back.

They relent, and the power you wield makes the breath hitch in your tattered throat, your heart aching with something you never asked to wield. Maybe…maybe everything’s catching up with you. Maybe you’ve been burning the candle at both ends. Maybe it’s-

“Panic attacks.”

Your neck screams in protest as you turn to look at Sam, her words hanging in the air with the hatred that only comes from intimate familiarity.

“They’re bitches.” Sam groans as she continues to stare off into the fleshscape’s infinite distance. “Your body was mine once, y’know? Thought I’d take that bullshit with me when I left, but…”

“...here we are.” You finish, weakly.

“...Yeah.” She nods as you raise the cup to your lips, the burn of the tea a welcome respite from the raw fire that coats the back of your throat.

“Thank you for…that.” Are the next words you’re able to voice, the effort required to craft them prompting you to take another sip of the restorative liquid as Sam chuckles bitterly.

“Yeah, well…” She shrugs, and you know it takes no small effort for her to finish her thought with; “...thank Isabelle. She coached me.”

“Did…was it a lot?” You ask, and Sam leans her head back against the shack as the thinks back.

“Not really. Every other week. Maybe more?” She shrugs and, after a moment’s consideration; “More, but only when-”

Whatever Sam was about to say dies on the wire as she slumps forwards, and it’s a long moment and a few more sips of tea before she speaks again.

“...Something’s wrong with me, Shu. Been wrong, for as long as I can remember.” She begins, softly, her razor-edge tone dulled by exhaustion. “It just…it feels like every time I reach out to something that might help, something I think I want, I…I ruin it. It just…rots, when I finally touch it.”

She shakes her head at something only she can hear before continuing. “With Samantha, I thought I’d have a fresh start, but…people know. This…Skinternet bullshit, or whatever…they know everything. I can’t escape it, I…Samantha will figure it out sooner or later. S’better I’m not there when she does. I think she’d try to be nice about it, but she deserves a clean break. ‘Course she’d be nice…she’s the ‘type’, same as you.”

“What type is that?”

“Dumb.” Sam replies without a trace of sarcasm or cruelty. “Dumb, and good, and kind, and…yeah.”

(Continued)

File: Rusted Town.jpg (549 KB, 1200x1865)

549 KB JPG

>>5274749

You don’t reply to that and Sam doesn’t continue, leaving you both staring out at the windswept plains for a few long moments until-

“Do you…” Sam begins, and you’ve never once heard her sound like she does now—smaller, more ashamed than you thought possible. “...do you remember our—my—mom?”

Fragments, mostly. Recollections that weren’t yours, manifested through dreamscape logic or the whims of Hexane technology. You shake your head.

“She…was like you. Nice. Kind. But not strong. Never strong, when it mattered.” She says, whatever anger the recollection could’ve summoned instead dulled by weariness and pain. “I promised that I’d never be like her. That that’d never be me. I told myself that I’d be the one in control. I wasn’t going to be weak, like she was. I’d never bow to someone’s whims, to…I don’t know. I don’t know why she did what she did. To herself. To me. I don’t-”

She shakes her head again, staring down at her knees as she pulls them close to her chest.

“When saw Isabelle, I…it was her. It was mom. Kind, and dumb, and weak. I…I took control. But I didn’t, really. We were both just…just…”

“Trying your best?” You offer.

“...Yeah.”

“When I looked at Samantha, and she looked at me, I…it was Isabelle all over again. I…” Sam trails off, struggling to find the words to form something that she’s never voiced before. “...I hate it. I don’t want to *be* that. It’s not strength, it’s…it’s diseased. It’s a fucking cancer. It’s awful, and I could feel it happening all over again. Me just…just fucking digging around in the dirt for something I could take hold of and take control of and choke until I felt good again and I-”

There’s a crackle of static over her speakers, and your family almost moves to your defense when Sam brings her fists down on her knees, denting them with the screech of metal-on-metal.

“I want to cry, but this body, I can’t…it won’t-!”

“I want you to be happy, Sam.”

“Wh-what?” She stammers, sobs tugging at the edge of her voice, ones that her form won’t allow her to let go of.

“I'm sorry if I ever gave the impression I don't, I was…I’ve been in a bad headspace, and I'm trying to be better.” You say, fighting tooth and nail to form the words that your throat’s protesting against with hot needles. “You deserve to have some people you can get along with. You deserve friendship, Sam."

“Bullshit.” She retorts, talons digging between her layered pauldrons as she holds herself tight. “I don’t know that girl, and she sure as hell doesn’t know me. I’m not dragging her into-”

“Maybe you can't trust her yet, but I think her hearing your story from you will be better than her finding out on her own and thinking you've been lying to her."

(Continued)

>>5274750

“Yeah, well…” Sam says after a moment’s consideration. “...our story’s plastered all over for any dumb fuck to pick up and read. She can make up her own mind, when the time comes.”

“Whether that truth comes out on your terms or not, only you have that ability to make the call." You say, finishing the last of your tea as you add, voice strained; "And in that, I believe that you'll be able to make the right call."

Sam turns to you.

And she laughs.

She laughs with a sound that’s long and bitter and cruel. A sound that’s distilled from a lifetime of hate and cruelty directed inward and outward, all at once.

“Not sure if you’ve noticed, but I got kind of a shit track record when it comes to ‘right calls’.”


"You've gotten this far for a friend like her.” You reply, your voice soft and tired and so very, very raw. “What's another small step?"

Sam regards you for a long, hard moment before she speaks again, and when she does, it’s with an earnesty that you’ve heard before. At once familiar, and alien.

In your own voice, time and again.

“I don’t understand you, Shu. Can’t you just…stop? For, like—two fucking seconds? I look at you, and…fuck, I don’t know. You look like I did when I looked in the mirror back in college. Like a wild fuckin’ animal.”

“Rabid’s in, this season.” You chuckle, the sound turning into a groan as you try and adjust your posture.

“I’m fucking serious, dude.” Sam snaps. “I felt like I was gonna die when I had the same look you do, now. Maybe they’re too nice to say anything, but me? I’m an asshole, and I’ll say it to your fucking face; you’re killing yourself.”

“…I know.”

Maybe it helps that the words that escape your lips don’t sound like you. They sound like they’ve been choked out from something on the edge of living, a thing that’s barely real.

A hodge-podge. A scarecrow.

An amalgam.

“This. All this—The Crucible. The Fleshscape.” You say, nodding out towards the plains of flaxen hair as the words tumble out of you. “They’re all I know. All I’ve ever known. I’m…I don’t feel real, Sam. It feels like I’m-”

“Floating? Living moment-to-moment while the whole world feels like it’s out to get you?” She offers, softly.

“...Yeah.” You admit, turning to her at the same moment she tilts her helm towards you, her eye-slit flickering. “I’m just-”

“Trying your best?” Sam finishes. "Yeah."

“Yeah.” You say, your voices harmonizing as one.

>>...Get up. There's still more to do (leave Sam, and go talk with Mother).

>>...You...you think you need to lie down (Return to the Dragon's Roost).

>>...It hurts to talk...but you have to. Something. Anything. Everything.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE (BACK) IN CONTROL

(In case you were curious - two Nat 1s for your diplomacy rolls, while Sam rolled a crit to stabilize herself.)

(Oof.)

(Voting shall remain open for the next four hours, with posting to resume in five.)

>>5274752
>>>...It hurts to talk...but you have to. Something. Anything. Everything.
Well. Uh. Rolls aside, THAT was probably a long time coming. This feels like one of those "all hands on deck, please hug the Shu" moments.

>>5274755
Wow. Well, that went places I wasn't expecting. The power of dice do some crazy things sometimes. Though yeah, like >>5274759 said, it's something we needed to get out at some point. Just didn't think it would be here and now.

>>5274795
>>5274759
>>5274755
What in the fresh hell did I wake up to?
Oh shit.
Well Dice giveth, Dice taketh away. A moment of weakness, a set of flubbed diplomacy rolls, and the one who manages to stabilize us is the one whose body and face we now wear.

I think with the things that have happened, the timing couldn't have been better narrative-wise. And I think this would be a good point of commonality to help connect with Sam better.

Huh. Now that I think about it more, Sam feels more like that type of friend who's an asshole but she's the sort of asshole who you can count on to call you out on bullshit and you're trying to pull when she sees it's a stupid idea while you're tunnel visioning on that stupid idea.

>>5274806
When she's not being actively manipulative, yeah. Then she's the kind of friend who you beat to death with a lava lamp.

But yeah, it's an opportunity to bond with her some. Or risk angering her more. We'll find out.

>>5274752
>...It hurts to talk...but you have to. Something. Anything. Everything.

You know it's fuckin wild when you consider Sam's perspective. From her point of view Shu (or us for that matter) is essentially retracing the same steps that Sam took back when she was "alive", but the scale and pace was accelerated to a ludicrous scale. It's no wonder Sam's trying to hold back the face palms and the angry ranting. We're essentially the same as Sam when it comes to control and anxiety issues but they manifest in different forms. Small wonder, it is that it's been so long and it's wild that Shu essentially suffers her first real panic attack episode at this point.

>>5274752
>>...It hurts to talk...but you have to. Something. Anything. Everything.

Shu has had a weird day. Granted, that's something you can say about every day she's had. Which is exactly why she's running herself ragged. Some day Shu will have a day where she doesn't have to fight for her life or negotiate for the fate of the world. It's just not going to happen for, like, several years, probably. I feel like after we regenerate everyone we should ask them to, please, just for a bit, everyone be cool for a day or two so we can just celebrate a victory and not jump into the stressful work of rebuilding humanity.

>>5274822
Well, we are Sam's...sister? Daughter? No, none of those words sound right, but "clone" feels weird, too. And "twisted reflection as reinterpreted by the Crucible's auto-generation protocols and a different lifetime of experience" is accurate, but a mouthful. Regardless, yeah, it makes sense that Sam can see some of herself in us. I'm sure that's part of why she gets so frustrated with us. Of course, we can see part of Shu in her, which is why we get so frustrated with her. We're one big dysfunctional clone-family.

>>5274828
A thought just occurred to me. What if we offered Sam a dive back into the Dreamscape albeit temporarily? With a Cyborg body like that, both Sam and Shu are be missing out on some dream time and well deserved zzz's. The dreamless kind.

>>5274752
>>5274822
changing my vote from
>...It hurts to talk...but you have to. Something. Anything. Everything.
to
>...It hurts to talk...but you have to. Something. Anything. Everything.
>When you run out of things to talk about return to the Dragon's Roost to lie down and get some sleep.
>Extend the offer to Sam.
>"You...do you...wanna take a break with me in the dreamscape?"
>"No strenuous psycho therapy bullshit. Just being in the dreamscape catching zzz's in fluffy clouds. You need it, I need it. We both know it."
>"No need to worry about the nightmares and ghosts of the past."
>Hold up the Silver Key and point at the Neurotic Halo.
>"These will keep things stable."

The reason why I'm offering Sam to sleep with us "platonically!" is because given how Sam's essentially like us, it would be understandable that she would be in a similar condition to Shu.

>>5274856
Maybe not right into that, but addressing the idea of "when's the last time you slept" could be a good lead-in. Hell, when's the last time Shu slept? With how the Dreamscape works, I think the last proper sleep where she wasn't still conscious was right after Almath. The rest of it has been visiting Dream Daughters. Which explains a lot about how she's having a panic attack, she's severely sleep deprived.

>>5274828
>Well, we are Sam's...sister? Daughter? No, none of those words sound right, but "clone" feels weird, too.
Would "Twin" suffice? Identical twins. Shu and Sam have that same sort of Vibe where if both of them were in flesh and bone, you wouldn't be able differentiate the two from each other at a glance, but their personalities would be the distinguishing factor.

>>5274860
I guess the same could go for our family members too. the alien day-night cycle severely fucks with humanity's circadian rhythm, and with the dreamscape being an actual thing that requires active mental control like REM stage or Lucid dreaming on steroids, actual DEEP-sleep would be something many a daughter would kill for the moment they have security and peace of mind to rest.

>>5274860
Any way to segue into that topic point during our "talk about anything and everything" segment?

I'll accept amendment proposals.

>>5274873
Well, we can just bring up how we don't actually sleep, because of the Dreamscape. And then ask if Sam sleeps, as a cyberwoman. Make it part of commiserating with her over how fucked up Crucible life is.

>>5274856
>>5274856
>>5274752
Compiling my vote into the latest iteration.
>...It hurts to talk...but you have to. Something. Anything. Everything.
>Commiserate with her over how fucked up Crucible life is. From the Hunger situation to the grand Cosmic game, to even the slice-of-life things humanity took for granted like a day-night cycle that lasts only 24 hours instead of the 48 hour day-night cycle that seems to be modeled from the Hexane race.
>"Hey Sam...do...do you ever sleep? Like "sleep" sleep? No dreamscape bullshit and all that."
>"Heck, when was the last time I've slept? When was the last time ANYONE on this goddamn planet had a full restful 8 hours of deep-restful sleep devoid of dreamscape shenanigans?"
>Extend an offer to Sam where she can (if she wants to) actually get some peaceful sleep.
>"You...do you...wanna take a break by getting actual sleep?"
>"No strenuous psycho therapy bullshit. No dreamscape shenanigans. Just simply catching zzz's in fluffy clouds. You need it, I need it. We both know it."
>"No need to worry about the nightmares and ghosts of the past."
>Hold up the Silver Key and point at the Neurotic Halo.
>"These will keep things stable."
>When you run out of things to talk about return to the Dragon's Roost to lie down and get some DEEP sleep.

If we do go for a nap, though, we're going to wind up annoying Ozmas something fierce. "Ugh, I told I wanted to talk, now she's getting distracted reconciling with her clone-twin-progenitor thing and going to sleep? Dang it!"

Gina would be happy, though. Wasn't she just chastising us for our "sleep when I'm dead" attitude?

>>5274924
Fair point. Given how she's on the administrator console, she could easily see that we were having a panic attack.

Shit. On one hand, sleep for mental health is a big priority. On the other hand, we do have a tendency to brush Ozmas off, and cheesing her off when we finally reach out to contact her would be pissing her off.

Again, there's commonality between Shu and Ozmas. Given Shu's recent panic attack episode, it could be somewhat easy for Ozmas to understand Shu's point if the panic attack episode was brought up given how back during Ozma's crucible cycle, Ozmas and Reyva/Charon had similar episodes during the climb. Particularly when Reyva nearly fell prey to one of the Cord's floors and that one floor of total pitch darkness.

>>5274938
We could push it back some. Extend the offer to Sam, and say that we'll sleep in a bit, after we talk to Ozmas.

>>5274752
>In line with >>5274900, offer Sam a safe place to get some sleep, but we'll stay up a bit longer to talk to Ozmas. We need to practice better self-care, but Ozmas at least deserves a brief chat before telling her we're tired and we'd like to continue the discussion later.

(I'm still knee-deep in work stuff, so if there are any other additions, adjustments, or last-minute votes, you're more than welcome to voice them. Thanks for bearing with me, and I'll likely post within the next hour and a half or so.)

(Also, given the need for Shu to be resonating with the Silver Key, Sam won't be able to sleep until Shu is physically present. I assumed she and Sam would rest together given the pre-vote discussion, but I just wanted to touch base.)

(...still going to write it for myself, regardless. It will make a fine addition to the fluff archive.)

>>5274755

Wow. Yeah, we were due for a breakdown I think. And I cannot agree more that the timing is perfect.
Also - amazing writing BHOP! Once again, you make me glad I'm following this quest, even though I can rarely participate.

>>5274958
Ah, we'd need to be there for Sam to sleep. Okay, can we briefly contact Ozmas to say something along the lines of "Hi, Ozmas. Sorry, I want to be at my best for when I talk with you, is it alright if I delay it a bit longer? I know, it's rude of me, but something unexpectedly emotionally straining came up and I think it would be ruder to speak with you while I'm still occupied by that."? Does anyone else think that could work?

>>5274962
(It always means the world to me when you and the other are even just able to pop in and say 'hello! Thank you so much for keeping up with the Quest, and I'm so glad you're enjoying it!)

>>5274965
(Alternatively, Sam's cooled off enough to be willing to wait either out here or in the Roost for when you're done.)

>>5274967
>(Alternatively, Sam's cooled off enough to be willing to wait either out here or in the Roost for when you're done.)
That could also work. But I'm trying to account for Shu's mental state, too. Which would feel better for her, knocking off this conversation with Ozmas so she can rest easy? Or having some guilt about delaying but being nice and rested for the actual conversation?

>>5274970
Okay, I'm going to say talk with Ozmas first. It's probably not healthy for Shu's mental state, but she'll feel too guilty letting Ozmas hang to sleep well anyway. Let's try to make this a short thing where Shu can knock out some basic details with Ozmas, then reconvene later to work on them further.

File: The 4 states of Shu.png (238 KB, 770x635)

238 KB PNG

Something funny yet relevant
>>5274967

pic related feels somehow relevant when it comes to Shu's state.
Clearly we're currently in the Disco Elysium zone of visible composure.

>>5275000
(Oh, good Lord. This is glorious.)

>>5275000
Wait, does that make us the skill chorus? We are a bunch of voices in Shu's head that make deductions and suggest solutions, after all.

>>5275016
(Absolutely.)

File: 175.jpg (8 KB, 214x236)

8 KB JPG

>>5275017
Oh god. Imagine the dissonance. Shu, the defiant, a master orator, adept negotiator, a god hunter...all these rumors and perception filters are hyping daughters up to look at her as some confident woman, and then when they meet her in person she looks like she's a frazzled genderbent counterpart of Harry Du Bois.

>>5275017
Cool. Dibs on...you know, I was going to say Electrochemistry, but honestly that just sounds like it would be exhausting. I'm going to say Volition, actually, I think I can do that job well.

>>5275023
Who's Kim in this scenario? Dorian?

>>5275030
>>5275017
>>5275016
haven't played disco elysium, have heard of the game and some of its memes, so I wonder what other parts of the skill chorus? do the anons fulfill? And if Sam's a part of Shu, what part of the Skill Chorus would she be in the whole Sam/Shu entity amalgamation?

>>5275030
>>5275016
I ask this because of all the characters in the quest. Sam is the one with the most awareness of us anons buzzing around in Shu's head as she frequently refers us anons as "The swarm".

>>5275046
The skills cover more or less all of Harry's drives, so they're in many ways specific to him and don't translate too well to Shu. But in general terms we're all of the skills that don't have to do with things unsuited for the medium. Like, we can't be Visual Calculus too well, since we don't have a physical space to analyze. But we can be Conceptualization for putting together clues and making connections, and Inland Empire for innovative and out there (sometimes too out there) ideas.

Sam wouldn't be one of the skills, but she would be one of the other voices in the Detective's head associated with his subconscious thoughts, the Limbic System and the Ancient Reptile Brain. The highly critical and cynical thoughts experienced in dreams when the Detective is just trying to sleep, which seem like jerks but ultimately aren't evil and even have some good points to make at times. They just also think your existence is awful and stupid and pointless and you'd be better off as cynical as they are. That fits Sam well, I think, when she's in her darker moods.

File: Hearts Laid Bare.png (267 KB, 473x536)

267 KB PNG

>>5274752

…It hurts to talk...but you have to. You have to say something.

Anything.

Everything.

“I meant what I said, before…” You cough, forcing the words out syllable by painful syllable. “…I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“Yeah, well…could’ve fooled me with how well things have gone for you so far.” Sam scoffs, and you turn to her with what feels like a head stuffed with cotton and jammed with static.

“Isabelle.” You say, and Sam has no reply for that or what follows after. “The Monastery. Almath. Do people just…gloss over the places where I fucked up?”

“Some of them, yeah. Comes with the whole ‘messiah’ shtick…but others? Why would they wanna dwell on stuff that they know you’re torn up about?” She asks, languidly gesturing towards you with one lazy talon. “Looks like you got that plenty covered, yourself.”

“…Fair point.” You admit, not daring to mee the eyes of your family, just out of earshot. “But they’re…different. One’s my daughter. Another’s my girlfriend. Yet another’s-“

“Also your girlfriend.”

You blink your eyes blearily at the cyborg beside you.

“…huh?”

“…’Gee, Shu, how come the Crucible lets you have *two* girlfriends?’” Sam snorts, shaking her head. “But yeah, so…what? Because they care about you, their forgiveness don’t count? Sounds pretty ass-backwards, from where I’m sitting.”

“No, it’s…” You protest, weakly. Trying to put into words just how it feels for all their love to feel so small in the face of everything on your shoulders. “…I love them. And I know they love me, it’s just…a lot, right now. It feels like there’s always something new, always some new crisis to deal with when I’ve already got the Cord wrapped around my neck. It gets hard to…to remember. I have to keep reminding myself, so it doesn’t…so I don’t get overwhelmed.”

“…They’re good people. Dumb, and good.” Sam says, casting a sideways glance at your family, held back by sheer force of will—yours or theirs, you’re not quite sure. “So…are they gonna kick the shit out of me, or what?”

“I don’t…” You hesitate, casting your own quick glance their way. “…I don’t think so, no. At least you caught us when Rath’s out and Amara just left, so…”

“Guess I got lucky then, huh? Gang’s all here, so if they wanted to, they…hm.” Sam trails off. “Doesn’t look like the whole crew, now that I look.”

You scan the faces of your allies, and your immediate family’s all accounted for. Who’s she-?

…

…oh.

“How…how is she?” Sam asks, and you don’t have to guess who it is she’s referring to.

“…Better.” You reply after weighing your options. “She has friends. Three of them, thick as thieves. They’re…really good, together.”

“…Good. Good, she…she deserves that.”

You look to her again, and say; “You do, too.”

(Continued)

>>5275121

“Eh…jury’s still out on that.” Sam grunts, her frame jerking unsteadily as she rises to her feet. With equally unsteady hands you offer her back her cloak, and when it’s secured around her shoulders you find her hand thrust down at your face.

“Can you stand?” She grumbles, and you decide to find out together, clapping your hand against hers before you’re hauled to your feet. Your knees almost betray you, but it’s not like you have to stand under your own power for more than a half-second before you’re caught between Gina and Julia in a gloriously cozy sandwich.

“Everyone good?” Dorian asks, voice as even-keeled as he can manage.

“I…I think so, yeah. At least, we will be.” You say, glancing at Sam even as Gina buries her head in your chest, her mind barely holding back the torrent of worry and fear that threatens to breach her dams of self-control and flood your mind, in turn. Sam, for her part, looks like she wants nothing more than to run, to flee even as her feet are rooted to the spot…through obligation or indecision, you’re not sure.

Neither is she.

“…Do you…do you have the coordinates?” She asks, finally.

“For, what? The Fortress?” You guess, and Sam sharply nods. “I do. You’re welcome to have them.”

“That’d be…yeah. Good.” Sam nods again, glancing up the sky with a tilt of her head. “This whole new day-night system is just fucked. Does it get dark here, ever?”

“Yeah the time is…I don’t know. I haven’t really figured it out myself.” You admit when a simple, silly thought occurs to you. “Hey Sam...do...do you ever sleep? Like "sleep" sleep? No dreamscape bullshit and all that."

“Ha, no. Can’t eat. Can’t sleep. Closest I’ve come is drifting in and out, but even that’s not ‘dreamscape bullshit.’” She chuckles, before turning the question back on you. “What about yourself?”

"I mean yeah, I…” You pause, wracking you brain to recall the last time sleep wasn’t a tick box on your ever-expanding to-do list. “…heck, when was the last time I've slept? When was the last time ANYONE on this goddamn planet had a full restful eight hours of deep-restful sleep devoid of dreamscape shenanigans?"


Sam laughs, at that, and it’s changed since the last time she did. It’s a drained sound, drained of the fight. Of the hate. It’s an amused sort of exhaustion.

“Sleep, the Hunger, the…whatever this is that happened with our body.” Sam mutters, gesturing between the two of you as you try not to dwell on her us of ‘our’. “The Crucible really is a kick in the dick, isn’t it?”

“Multiple kicks. Every minute, on the minute.” You smirk, and when the two of you laugh again you’re able to keep it from turning into another damn cough. You feel light-headed, and you chalk it up to that when the next words to leave your mouth are-

“Hey, do you...do you wanna take a break by getting some *actual* sleep?"

(Continued)

>>5275122

Sam just stares at you, and you can feel the eyes of your allies boring into the back of your head with the same ‘what-the-fuck’ glare.

"I don’t mean any strenuous psychotherapy bullshit. No dreamscape shenanigans.” You clarify, waving your hands as if to dispel the other girl’s doubts. “Just simply catching z’s in fluffy clouds. You need it, I need it. We both know it."

“I…I never slept well.” She protests, but you can tell by her tone that the prospect’s too tempting for her to dismiss entirely.

"No need to worry about nightmares or ghosts from the past." You say, withdrawing the Silver Key from your dress pocket and tapping it against the Neurotic Halo. “These will keep things stable."

“You said ‘both’. Would we be…?” Sam trails off, and both you and her end up looking to Gina, who just throws her hands up in defeat.

“Hey, I’ve been trying to get her to get some damn rest.” GG grumbles, glancing up at you with a look that pangs your heart with guilt. “If this is what it takes, then fine by me.”

It takes some doing—Gina sends word ahead for the Dream Team to be absent when you return, and Dorian takes some convincing with a few glances that speak volumes—but when you, Sam, and the rest of your family finally emerge into the vast open space that is your living room, the other girl’s frame seizes up at the sight.”

“S’nice.” She mumbles, clearly impressed as she finally follows you to your room. Your hand’s on the doorknob when you turn to her, because you have to tell her just as much as you need to know.

“Hey…I kind of need to talk to Mother before I rest, but I don’t want you to think that-“

“It’s…I get it. It’s fine.” Sam mutters, nervously adjusting the shawl across her shoulders.

“Thanks…and you’ll-?...When I get done, you’ll still-?”

“I’ll be here.” She assures you with a sigh. “I promise.”

The door swings open, and you gesture for Sam to take a seat on the edge of the bed as you take the same chair you occupied when you sat with Charon only…half an hour ago? Less than that? More?

You close your eyes, and you can feel Gina’s presence at the ready, her care and concern held at bay, just like she’s holding back Dorian, Julia, and November until you’re ready to talk.

You wonder if she knows how much you appreciate that, as you give the signal and you feel reality slip away once again as the void tugs at your very being. You’re drawn deeper, into the darkest recesses of an ancient mind filled with fresh wounds and perpetual scars.

You can feel her.

You breathe.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

You can do this.

You have to do this, if just to get some god damn rest.

“You’ve looked better, Defiant.”

Her voice is small. Tired. Drained.

So very human. So very much like yours.

“But I suppose that makes two of us.”

(Continued)

File: MOTHER.jpg (1.1 MB, 1280x1706)

1.1 MB JPG

>>5275123

When you finally open your eyes, it’s a ragged thing floating in the dark. A cloaked figure, bony and impossibly thin, whose tattered shawl barely hides the slender, shattered exoskeleton underneath. Gone is the presence that’s larger-than-life. Gone are the powers of an Administrator, wielded at her spiteful whims. She looks how you feel. Raw and ragged. Shattered, struggling to stay whole.

She barely feels real, floating only a few meters away, and when she speaks it sounds as though it’s a voice carried on an errant, fleeting breeze.

“It was a good letter.” She says, softly, regarding you with a tilt of her head. “Well-spoken and well-read. A potent combination for your kind.”

You let the back-handed compliment wash over you, the question she really wants to ask tugging at her throat until it finally breaks free.

“Is this really the last cycle?” She asks, as though she can’t quite believe it. “It’s almost over?”

You nod.

She’s quiet, floating silently in the void before you as her shawl billows like a restless shore…and there, just beneath her shoulder.

An ethereal FuzzBuzz, gently tucked into the crook of her arm.

“Good.” She declares, finally tilting her head to get a good look at you. “Tell me what you want, Defiant. Tell me what you need to end this, once and for all.”

“But…what about Charon?” You ask, taking a step towards the Ozmas’ wraith-like form. “She wants to-“

Ozmas holds up one hand to stop you, and even that simple, errant motion causes bits to flake off the ends of her fingertips, the chitin crumbling away to naught but ash and dust that tumbles into the void.

“She will be rid of me soon enough…and so will you.” She intones, allowing the hand to gently fall to her side and slip between the folds of threadbare cloth. “We’ve wasted enough time, Defiant. Ask me what you will, and I will do what I must.”

“Ozmas, Charon wants to speak to you. There are still things they need to-“ You begin, but Ozmas cuts you off as the void around you pulses with an all-too-familiar rage.

“I

want

to

FINISH

this.”

A flash of her former power, a fleeting glimpse of the yawning, bottomless chasm that is her hatred of all that is, that was, and will be.

“So tell me what you need to put me out of my misery, Defiant. Let us not waste each other’s time more than we already have.” Ozmas groans, hairline cracks forming as she leans closer to you from where she floats, suspended in regret.

“For we are both so very, very tired.”

>>Fine. You’re not going to fight her on this. Ask what you will, you just…she’s right. You’re so tired.

>>No. No, fight her on this. Charon deserves an audience with her friend, it is the *least* Ozmas could do to honor that after everything she’s done.

>>Start with a tactical dialogue, but veer it towards Ozmas, personally. You’re not letting go that easily.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL

(Ah, there we are. Voting shall remain open for the next eight hours, with posting to resume on Tuesday, May 24th at 10AM Eastern time. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns the please let me know, and I welcome it all. Thank you for your continued patience, participation, and encouragement, and I wish you a good and restful weekend, one and all.)

>>5275125
Man. Feels like this is a segment where the wizard is revealed behind the curtain.

Ozmas looks miserable. That's all I can say. Just miserable. She's left with nothing but her rage and her state is not unlike Morningstar's: A hair's breadth from Oblivion.

>>5275125
>>5275137

Just...broken and fragile. As much as I want to help Ozmas keep herself put together to make things slightly easier, I'm not sure how to do so. I...I need time to think.

We originally approached Ozmas because Charon had emotional hang ups about her ascent up the Cord. We have Ozma's diary, which would provide the other perspective of the journey, and Charon wants to talk to Ozmas again. But Ozmas currently isn't having any of it. Come to think of it. Why did we send Ozmas the letter again? I do remember it was to help with emotional therapy stuff but it still seems Ozmas is quite stubborn about her position now that we're here face to face.

>>5275126
Damn. Is the decay really that bad? Ozmas looks like what I said earlier, a hair's breadth from oblivion. Was there entropy rolls that she had to roll for to stay cognizant after getting much of her admin powers burned away post-almath?

>>5275126
Thanks for running, BHOP. Have a nice weekend.

>>5275137
>>5275146
>>5275151
(While she can't yet die before the Crucible concludes, the vast majority of power she brought to bear in the first place was her position, not her actual power. She's always been a wizard behind the curtain - as weak and as miserable as the day she took the throne.)

>>5275159
(It's always a pleasure, and I hope you do, too!)

>>5275163
>as weak and as miserable as the day she took the throne.

Oof. So you're saying the current state we're seeing of Ozmas reflects the state she was in the moment she plopped her plant-ass down onto the Stellar Throne?

>>5275121
>“Also your girlfriend.”
>You blink your eyes blearily at the cyborg beside you.
>“…huh?”
Okay, so the Ozmas shit is real-deal important, but I have a headache so I'm just laughing about how even SAM is shipping them now.

>>5275168
(She was utterly broken and devastated when she 'won' her Crucible...she's had a few thousand years of solitude to sharpen that misery to a razor-edge.)

>>5275172
Jesus. Looks like all that EDGE has been constantly digging into her for so long. She would've been a bone fide goddess of "edginess" if it weren't for the fact that she's actually miserable.

Coaxing her out of the most painful of miseries is gonna be hard. I have a feeling that this visit won't be a one-time thing.

>>5275146
It was to formally approach her, after avoiding talking to her for so long. Just to be polite about suddenly resuming contact. Giving Charon a chance to confront Ozmas would be nice, but it wasn't the only concern.

So, things I think we need to talk to her about, on the tactical side:

>What defenses did she put in place to enforce the "no allied groups" rule? We've heard of a gate guardian called Sargatanas, what can he do? Is there anything else?
>How mutable is the interior of the Cord? Is it even worth it to ask about what its layout is, or will it be completely different by the time we climb? Is there at least a pattern to its interior and how safe zones and floor rules are placed?
>We've heard of psychological attacks being part of the Cord's trials, and even with the Halos it was apparently enough to ensnare Charon. Is there any way we can effectively prepare for those, other than resolving issues before we climb so there's less to target?
>What happened to the various "leftovers" in the Cord from previous species, that Ozmas released the limits on? We know the Tindalos Hounds streamed out into the Crucible, are there any ancient aliens still hanging around the Cord?
>What's West made of the floor she's hunkered down on? What defenses are we going to have to get past, there? For that matter, what capabilities has West shown in her climb?


And on a psychological side:

>Why did she decide to take the throne, when she knew it was a trap?
>Why'd she turn on Almath and destroy it?
>She says she doesn't want to talk to Charon, but is there anything she'd at least like them to know?

>>5275163
That makes sense, she was separated from her unstoppable super-being body and persists as an infomorph. She's not going to have any of her power. Thinking about it, that's probably the whole point of retaining the Mother's body, isn't it? We saw in Charon's memories that the last Mother did it, too. It's not nostalgia on their part, it's to separate the super-body from them so the star gods can take and analyze it, while the original occupant is left powerless. That makes a lot of sense, now that I'm thinking about it.

>>5275170
I'm pretty sure at this point even Sir FuzzBuzz and Marco are shipping it.

heading off to work. Will be back in about 5 hours. which leaves...about 2 hours left of voting time after I return?

>>5275177
Have a nice day, anon.

>>5275177
(Hey, it's the weekend, so if something comes to you and you all need more time, then that's no trouble at all.)

(Have a good day, and I hope work goes well!)

File: Ow_the_edge.jpg (65 KB, 800x450)

65 KB JPG

>>5275174

>>5275176
>>It's not nostalgia on their part, it's to separate the super-body from them so the star gods can take and analyze it, while the original occupant is left powerless. That makes a lot of sense, now that I'm thinking about it.

(You absolutely nailed it, in addition to the prospect serving as perfect bait for Cord-climbers. There was a reason it was left out in the open for Ozmas to stumble across, after all.)

>>5275125
>>Start with a tactical dialogue, but veer it towards Ozmas, personally. You’re not letting go that easily.

I think the best way to do this is to just question her motives for certain actions. Like, we should be asking her about the defenses enforcing the "no allied groups" prohibition. But she's the one who made that rule, so we can also ask why she put it there in the first place. Or we could try to work it into questions about defenses, like asking if the Throne has some sort of enthrallment effect, since she knew the plan to rewrite the Crucible and could presumably have done what she wanted without taking the Throne, so was there something influencing her? And then to deny that she'd have to acknowledge what her actual thought process was, and so on.

>>5275182
back from work and I think I'll take you up on that offer.

>>5275176
>>5275170
>People are shipping Shu with Ozmas
wait. what? How? what context?
It feels straight out of a crack-pairing. I'm confused.

>>5275533
No, oh god no. That would be nightmarishly crack. No, we were talking about people around Shu shipping Shu/Gina/Rath.